Shadows of Voryn

Chapter Three

                                                                            The image above is Lord Thad

                                                                                                 T'ara

The maester used leaches and ointments to prevent an infection. The older man's fingers were bent as he rubbed the stiffness away before reaching for a cloth to clean around the wound. The maester closed the wounds and covered them gently, his eyes wandering over her body, ill intentions seen in the way he kept peaking at her breast, licking his lips. She was restless laying in a bed, but she could see when a man looked at her wrongly.

Though barely able to lift head off bed, T'ara grabbed the front of his robe, not letting go. She shuddered from the pain, barely able to speak without hearing her sound hoarse. "Do not think I can see. Do what was asked of you and leave."

The maester opened his mouth to speak, quickly shutting it when she snarled inhumanly. T'ara saw as he finished bandaging her, mindful of where he looked and relaxed in the comfort of a bed. It had been years since her body touched a proper bed. T'ara thought of her life before being forced into this new life. Her ma and father waking her up for morning supper. She missed them every morning, afraid she'd wake up and forget their faces.

Soon after, she heard the maester leave followed by the sound of a door creaking and shutting. T'ara closed her eyes and didn't open them again until she felt soft hands brush over her feverish skin. She winced from the touch, body tender and aching.

"T'ara." Lady Saerena spoke softly, knelt beside her.

It took much effort for T'ara to open her eyes. She moaned, exhausted but aware of who was beside her. As much as she wanted to speak and touch Lady Saerena, she couldn't find the strength to stay awake.

"Rest for now. We have much to speak of later." Lady Saerena ran her fingers carefully across T'ara's cheek. "I'm here."

T'ara listened to Lady Saerena's soothing voice until she fell asleep.
*
"Do not move, child." T'ara suspected it was the maester but the voice sounded gentler and sympathetic. He brought a cup to her lips when she stirred.

"Warm milk. It will be a bit bitter from the remedy that will help with the pain." He waited for her to lift his head. "Now is not the time to wake. That Lord Commander Joro demands for your death."

"Lady Saerena..." T'ara asked.

"She is fine. Sleep, child," he encouraged.

T'ara drank aware she did not know the man but somehow trusted him in her dubious state of mind. She slipped back to sleep, reliving the memories of her parents, and the promise she made to her mother. To Live.

By the time she woke again, T'ara felt the ray of sunlight on her face. She opened her eyes lazily and sighed, no longer feeling the captivity of sleep.

"You have felt the worst of it" Lady Saerena mumbled in her ear. "You will be okay."

T'ara felt Lady Saerena's soft hands again, holding hers, heart warmed as if being cradled by Lady Saerena. "How long?" T'ara's voice cracked from lack of water. She repositioned and groaned, stiff from laying still too long.

Lady Saerena held a cup to T'ara's lips. "This is water."

"How is she?" The man who helped her last, asked as he walked forward. He wore a dark robe, hooded with marking engraved under both of his eyes and down one side of his face.

"Better, it appears," Lady Saerena answered.

T'ara tried to sit up, being helped as she pivoted left and right until she was in a comfortable position. Lady Saerena ran her fingers through T'ara's unkempt hair and leaned forward to kiss her forehead. "This is our Druid. The maester had been neglectful of duties and I sent for him," she explained. Lady Saerena smile touched every corner of her face. "I have missed those lovely eyes."