Living Proof

Chapter Fifteen

Something fluttered against her cheek. Kaia moved away from the soft tickle along her cheekbone, but it followed her insistently.

She tried to brush it away, but rough fingers tightened about hers and she opened her eyes to find Boromir at her bedside, looking utterly exhausted and a bit disheveled, his cheeks scruffy and unshaven. Even so, her eyes stung at the sight of him, at the sight she thought she'd not see again. "What happened?"

"You don't remember?"

His low voice made the stinging in her eyes even worse and without thinking, she tightened her fingers about his as she shook her head. "It's a bit of a blur."

"I found you out on Pelennor Fields." His free hand came to rest on her hair, then moved lightly along it. "How did Faramir impress you into service?"

"He did no such thing. I offered." She managed a smile despite the throbbing ache in her right arm. "I don't know how effective I was, but—"

"You're here," he interrupted softly, his hand going still on her hair, "so I'd said you were fairly effective as a warrior."

"Where did you go? When I saw you at Osgiliath?"

"I tried to find the halflings who'd been there."

"Sam and Frodo? Why?"

"It is a long story and one I'd take no pride in telling."

She scowled up at him. "Boromir."

"I will tell you when I return."

"Return from where?"

"Osgiliath."

"What?" She shook her head. "No, it was overrun by orcs. You'd have to be mad to return."

"I have no choice."

"What do you mean, you have no choice?"

He resumed his stroking of her hair. "We will talk about that when I return as well. We have a few more important things we need discuss before I leave, though."

She swallowed hard, the stinging in her eyes even worse now. "Boromir..."

His thumb brushed along her forehead. "Why did you leave?"

She pulled away from him with a scowl and sat up. "Must we discuss this now?"

"Why not now? What point is there in putting it off longer?"

She looked about. "Well, there are others here, for starters."

He glanced about at the infirmary. "No one is paying the slightest bit of attention to us."

"Still. I'd rather not be the entertainment, if it's all the same to you."

"Fine."

"Boromir, I know you're angry, but—"

"Now, why would I have cause to be angry?"

His droll tone earned him a glare as she swung her legs over the side of the bed. "Is there somewhere else we might have this discussion? Because this room is far too full for my liking."

"Very well." He stepped back to allow her the room to stand, which she did slowly. Her legs were uninjured, but as she moved, a hot sting erupted in her shoulder, the slow burn that began there slowly slide down her arm, toward her wrist. An icy sweat prickled across her back, across her chest. A wave of nausea rose, one she swallowed hard against as she came completely upright. The last thing she wanted to do was faint in front of him.

Ioreth had given her a clean, simple linen gown to wear, the sleeves short enough for her to tend to Kaia's wounds, which were two ugly slashes, one running the length of her upper arm to her elbow, the other curved over the top of her shoulder, deep enough that she could barely move her arm more than a few inches in either direction. Even something as simple as moving her fingers caused that hot sting to race through her, although Ioreth assured her that it would heal in time and with the proper care, she should regain full use of her arm.