by A. J. Bell
“What’s the matter with you? We’re their guests!” shouted Daniel. “You don’t insult your hosts by walking around their home in nothing but your undergarments.”
I bit my lip, choked back the hurt inside, and shut the door behind me. With my back against the door, I slid to the floor and buried my face in my hands. I could hear Daniel outside the room, apologizing to Jais, Tara, and Dash.
“Please excuse her behavior. She’s still a lady in the making. Her life has been shaped by the sword… She doesn’t know any better,” he concluded.
I should have known better. I was a woman – a woman who could take down any man in the realm, but an ignorant woman who didn’t know the difference between a nightgown and a slip because, as far as I could remember, I had been wearing male clothes all my life.
“I have made a fool of myself and insulted the family in whose home I’m staying. Good job, Elle – well done,” I mumbled in disappointment of my actions.
I woke up the next morning with a terrible headache, no doubt due from crying the previous night about my stupidity. However, it was a brand new day and I was willing to put my past behind me. I started by braiding my hair. Then, instead of wearing the dress that Tara had left for me on the bed, which seemed too small, I took the liberty of wearing a shirt that almost reached to my knees and a pair of trousers that belonged to Dash. Since they were a bit too big for me, I had to make it work by tying them with a piece of rope. It looked awful, so I didn’t tuck my shirt in. Instead, I tied a sash around my waist over my shirt so it looked like I was wearing a short dress on top of the trousers. I put on my boots and was again ready to take on the world, one step at a time. I half-expected Tara to faint when she saw me wearing her son’s clothes, but she showed no surprise. She was putting some extra effort into making me feel comfortable. She gave me everything she could find in her kitchen to eat and drink.
The rays of sunlight took it upon themselves the task of filling every space in their little cabin with light. It felt warm and cozy.
“I’m terribly sorry about last night,” I said, biting my lip. “I’m not used to the clothes women normally wear just yet.”
“I see that,” she said, sweeping me with her eyes from head to toe; yet, she didn’t sound harsh. I offered to help Tara clean the dishes as soon as I was done eating.
Jais and the others came in just as we finished with the kitchen.
“Tara, did you pack their meals already?” Jais asked. Then he turned to me. “Good morning,” he said. “You didn’t like the dress my Tara gave you to wear?”
“It’s a beautiful dress, but I’m afraid it’ll only get damaged during our journey back home. I took the liberty to borrow some of your son’s clothes. I hope he doesn’t mind.”
“Oh, I don’t mind at all. As long as you promise never to show yourself naked to my parents again, you can have anything you find in my wardrobe,” he said, chuckling.
“I wasn’t naked!” I said, throwing a punch at him. Lucky for him, Daniel got in between us. Unlucky for Daniel, I struck his shoulder. His face twisted as he received the punch, but when he stepped close to me, he didn’t have to say a word. I knew what he meant.
We were guests, and my troubled attitude was wearing out our welcome. I took a deep breath and turned back to face Jais. Trying to control my temperament had never been this hard. Dash, somehow, managed to bring out the worst in me.
Jais was looking at me with one eyebrow raised and with his arms crossed in front of his chest. “Were you really going to hit my son?” I lowered my face in shame, but then Jais burst out laughing. “Seriously?” Jais asked again in between snorts. The strange look on my face only seemed to encourage him – even Dash seemed confused by his father’s reaction. “Using the sword is one thing,” Jais paused to catch his breath, “but you were going to try to teach my son a lesson with your bare hands. That’s just funny. He’s almost twice your size–”
“It didn’t take much strength on my part to break his nose!”
He stopped laughing, looked at his son’s face with the big patch over his nose, and then began laughing again.
“Father, I’m glad you’re having fun at our expense,” Dash said, trying to look at his nose and getting crossed-eyed every time he tried. Soon, everyone in the room was laughing for no apparent reason.
The same young woman from the previous night arrived in the middle of our laughter. Jais put an arm around her as he continued to laugh. “What is it, Valerie?” he asked her.
“The horses are ready,” she said.
That caught my attention and cut off my laughter. “Horses?” I asked. She nodded.
“Fun is over,” said Jais, a little disappointed. “Come with me,” he beckoned. We went out through the front of the cabin where he ripped a small branch from the bushes that surrounded his home and handed over to me. “Ghost berries,” he said.
“This is an empty branch!” I corrected him.
“Look again,” he said. This time, I saw them – little pearls no bigger than a fly. They were clear, so they blended with the color of the leaves on the branches. “They grow wild here in Surien.” He gestured at our surroundings. Around every house and pretty much all around the village, I saw the same kind of bush in bloom. “No need to tell you why we call them Ghost berries. Obviously, they hide from human eyes, so it takes a person a second look, sometimes a third look, to actually see them – just like the snakes they keep away. You don’t see a Ghost snake until it’s too late, until its fangs have dug into your skin, and the venom begins to travel through your blood. We’ve loaded your horse with a bush of these berries, roots and all. You said your mother has a garden. Maybe she can make it bloom. I’m also sending a sack full of Ghost berry seeds so that you can spread it around Andora. If you’re able to make them grow, you’ll be saying goodbye to those awful snakes, since the plants work not only as an antidote but also as repellent.”
“Thank you. We appreciate your help, and please forgive my rudeness. I’m not used to–”
“Everything’s ready,” interrupted Tara, carrying four sacks full of food and four canteens filled with water. Dash came out to meet her, picked up the sacks from her hands, and started to load them onto the horses.
“We need to get going. It would be better to get on the road while our horses’ bellies are still full,” said Dash.
“We?” I asked in surprise. “Where do you think you are going?”
“My son will accompany you back to Andora,” said Jais unwaveringly.
“It’ll be an honor to ride together,” said Daniel to Dash.
Obviously, my opinion didn’t matter. Daniel shot a warning glance to me, so I rolled my eyes at him but still chose my words carefully to not insult our host anymore. “Thank you for your hospitality,” I bowed slightly. “I’ll not forget it. If you ever need my help, Andora is where you’ll find me.”
I walked over to Rogue. Dash was holding his reins and brushing his fingers through his mane, so he offered to help me to my saddle. Despite the strong desire I had to refuse his offer, I allowed him to help me, which pleased not only Jais, but Daniel as well.
“Farewell, John… Elle – whoever you truly are. Just stay safe,” said Jais, waving at us as we parted.
“She’s back! She’s back!” I heard Mother scream as she ran towards us, lifting her petticoats high over her knees the moment she saw us approaching the castle.
My feet had barely touched the ground when she already had encircled me in her protective arms. Tears streaked her face while she showered me with kisses. When she took my face in her hands and kissed my forehead gently, she noticed my bruised mouth and shook her head in reproach. Then she also noticed Dash.
“How’s Richard?” I asked, afraid that the response might not be something I was prepared to hear.
Before she could give me an answer, another set of arms encircled me, turned me around, and to my surprise, planted a kiss on my lips. I pushed Victor from me. “What�
�s wrong with you?” I said, outraged.
He approached me again, carefully. “My anxiety got the best of me and… actually, it’s your fault.” He straightened his shoulders when he noticed that Dash didn’t bow when he saw him, while Daniel and Shane were still bowing. “You made your parents so sick with worry, you should be ashamed!” I raised an eyebrow to his comment and the sharpness of his words. “I swear, if you ever do something as reckless as running away like that again, I shall have you imprisoned until you learn your lesson,” he concluded, avoiding my gaze.
I tilted my head to the side, trying to analyze his newfound authoritarian tone of voice, but I really didn’t care to see him showing off the power that he had. “Well, Your Highness, I’d love to spend some more quality time in the Royal Prison, although I must admit the jail at Surien was much more comfortable than the one in the palace. Perhaps His Highness would like to get some advice as to how to accommodate my cell from my acquaintance here,” I gestured towards Dash. “If kissing and threatening are the only things His Majesty wanted to address with me, I got the message. Now if you’ll excuse me,” I said, bowing as low as I could while still holding my defiant gaze on his. “I’d like to see Richard.”
I wrapped my right arm around my mother’s shoulder and pushed Victor aside as we passed. “You were imprisoned?” he asked, but I didn’t turn back nor did I answer. He would be married to Camilla, Princess Royal of Ganzale. Yet, he dared to kiss me. His careless attitude made me furious!
We stopped in front of the oak doors to Richard’s chambers, and Mother held my hand over the door knob. Since her face showed sorrow, I knew no good news waited behind the door. I held my breath and stepped into the room. I saw Doctor Stern stumble, trying to move out of the way quickly the moment he realized it was me. I thought I saw a flicker of fear in his eyes, but once I looked at Richard, nothing else mattered.
He was lying on the bed. His breathing was so shallow, every breath was a strain on him. I reached for his forehead, which was still scorching hot. Sweat covered him completely, and his body would shudder uncontrollably when a cool breeze or something cooler than his skin came in contact with him. I leaned close enough for him only to hear me and began to sing a lullaby to him. Mother could not hold back her tears and began sobbing. When Father reached out for her, she cried even louder in his arms. Victor also came into the room and stood next to me, putting his hand on my shoulder.
“I’ve failed him,” I muttered. I did my best to hold back my tears, but hearing Mother in the background was not helpful. Yet, I couldn’t blame her, Richard had been like a son to her. Victor squeezed my shoulder tighter, so I put my hand on top of his and gave a little squeeze too. That was my way of thanking him for being there for me, regardless of his earlier attitude. Victor knew this kind of gesture. We communicated many things without words. We always had.
“I must send a messenger to my father and to my uncle, Lord of Arden, to let them know about Richard’s… passing.” Although he choked on the last word, he managed to get it out. I looked at him in disbelief. Richard wasn’t dead, not yet, but by the time the King arrived, he would be.
I bit my lip. I’ve never felt so powerless, even though I’ve been in situations when I couldn’t see the way out. This situation was far worse than anything else I’ve faced before. I ran my hand all over Richard’s face, taking in every part of it – the shape of his eyes and his well-defined nose. The color of his lips was gone, and they were so cracked that they were bleeding. I remembered how soft they had felt when he had kissed me. Now his lips were dead, just like the rest of his body soon would be.
“I’m sorry I left, Richard, but I’ll be here now, and I won’t go anywhere until you have either come back or have gone forever,” I whispered in his ear and kissed his check softly. Mother had stopped crying. “Elle, did you not find them?” she asked.
“Find what?”
“The berries!” I looked at her as if she were speaking a foreign language. “The reason you went to Surien – the healer berries that could help Richard’s fever to break!” Mother said in despair.
“Do you mean you haven’t given them to him? Jais sent a few of his men with the Ghost berries and the instructions on how to administer them to him. They were supposed to arrive yesterday!” Mother shook her head. “Jais sent a whole bush with me; maybe there’s still hope. We have to try!”
“What can I do?” Mother asked me.
“I am not sure, but I’ll find out now. I need to speak with Dash!”
I ran out the door towards the main gate, hoping that it wasn’t too late to speak with Dash before his return to Surien. I ran to the stables where our horses were now being fed.
“Dash!” I called out. “Has anybody seen him?” I yelled. “The man that arrived with me?” Everybody denied knowing where he was.
I continued to look for him desperately and, accidentally, hit a wall that I had never seen before. I fell hard on my rear, and as gently as a brick wall could pull me up, Dash helped me to my feet.
“You need to be a little more careful where you step,” he said.
“Your men–”
“They’re not here.” He sounded worried. “They should’ve arrived yesterday, but no one has seen them. I’m sorry,” he said.
“Dash, do you know what we need to do with the berries to help Richard?”
He nodded, so I grabbed his hand and forced him to run with me to the kitchen where Mother was already waiting for us.
Chapter 21
Dash and Mother began to work on the infusion while I watched and helped with little things, like passing them more water or fetching a towel. I followed, with my eyes, everything they were doing. The berries needed to be boiled until the hard peel that covered them softened enough for them to be mashed, but not any longer. Boiling the inside of the berries would kill them and the process would have to be started all over again. Then, once they were mashed together, the core and peelings were strained until all that was left was a clear pulp with the consistency of honey that smelled of mint and chamomile.
“He needs to drink this, which will be the tricky part,” said Dash. “It’ll also help to wash the wound with it instead of regular water, and also to put it on the towel on his forehead. The more contact he has with the nectar, the better. If he fully awakens, he needs to continue to drink the Erenza nujar for a while until his strength is fully regained.”
“What did you call this?” Mother asked.
“Erenza nujar,” Dash said. “It means–”
“Hope’s Nectar,” I interrupted.
“How do you know what it means?” Mother asked. Dash was also staring at me. I could sense he wanted to know the answer too.
“I don’t know. You might’ve told me when you first mentioned the story to me.” I dismissed the comment and gathered some more towels. “Can we talk about it later?” I said in desperation. “Richard needs this right now.” I left them behind and went to see my ill friend and mentor.
As I walked in the door, Richard began to shiver. The breeze from the door had gotten to him, but then the shivering became shaking. Although Victor and Doctor Stern pinned his arms against the bed, the heat of his body was too much, and he began convulsing. The two of them put him in the bathtub and poured cold water on top of him. Shane restrained me from getting close, since I was hysterical. Suddenly, Richard stopped moving. When Shane let me go, I ran to his side. He wasn’t moving, and for an instant, I thought he had stopped breathing, but then his chest began rising and falling.
“Inhale… exhale,” I whispered. “Don’t stop, don’t stop breathing!” I looked at Victor, who was crying. We both knew we had been so close to saying goodbye to Richard. He fled the room when he realized I was looking at him, but there was no time to go after him. It would have to wait. Richard’s well-being was all I cared about.
“Shane, give me the cup I just brought in and also the spoon next to it.” I took the spoon and filled it up with the Erenza n
ujar. I opened Richard’s mouth with one hand, and with the other, I put a spoonful of nectar in it. Then I closed his lips, hoping he would swallow. Slowly, the nectar found its way into his body. Next, I soaked a towel with it and lay it on his forehead. Then I cleaned his wound with the remaining nectar in the cup. When I was done, Father and Shane moved Richard back to the bed.
I continued to do the same over and over for the next three days. Thankfully, Richard’s situation didn’t worsen. Instead, the fever began to dissipate. It wasn’t gone, but I was able to tolerate holding his hand for more than a few minutes before the feeling that his skin was burning mine. I spent all my time nurturing him, completely forgetting about me. I left his side only when it was expedient for me to do so, like to take a bath myself or use the latrine. As soon as I could, I’d come back to him. I would tell him stories of the travels we had together, sing songs, brush his hair, or just plain watch over him.
By the morning of the fourth day, the fever was coming and going. Gradually, Richard’s breathing became normal, but he was still very weak and delirious. The Erenza nujar was working by healing Sir Richard from the inside out, and his wound was healing too. The color in his cheeks and lips was coming back. Life was filling his body. The more nectar he had, the better he looked. Even Doctor Stern believed that Richard’s danger would soon be over, at least as regarding this illness. I stayed by his bed day and night, falling asleep with my head on his bed and holding one of his hands with both of mine. The sixth night, after cleaning his wound and washing his body, I brushed his hair and pulled it into a ponytail. I kissed him goodnight and brushed my lips softly on his, hoping he would come back to life as in the fairy tales I had heard.
