The life and death of Nicolae Roman

Chapter 14: Murder?

"What have I done?" Nicolae stood over Ludwig's body, clasping his head in utter despair.

"I didn't mean to kill him! I swear it!" He looked pleadingly from Viktor's impassive face to Ludwig's friend, Albert, who had completely blanched.

Nicolae started pacing around like a caged animal. "Oh my God! What have I done? What have I done?"

Suddenly, he felt Viktor grasp his uninjured arm tightly. "You must calm yourself down, Nicolae! It won't do any good to panic!"

"Too late for that!" Nicolae kept running his hand through his disheveled hair. "Just look at him!" He pointed a finger toward Ludwig.

Ludwig's face was utterly devoid of color as he laid limply in the grass. His white shirt was stained with red across his chest. There was an obvious mark where Nicolae's bullet entered his body, smack in the sternum.

Viktor briefly glanced at Ludwig, but immediately returned his gaze to Nicolae. The Count's eyes had taken on the same eerie look as before. His pupils were abnormally dilated, giving him a predatory appearance.

"I see you've managed to bind your arm," he remarked, his voice sounding odd. "Very good!" As he spoke to Nicolae, Viktor's pupils retracted and looked normal again.

"What?" Nicolae's eyes were glazed over. He was obviously not interested in his own well-being at the moment.

"You must get yourself back home, right now!" Viktor looked sternly at him. "Do you hear me?"

"What about him?" Nicolae sounded like a lost little boy.

"Albert and I will take care of Herr Eberwald," Viktor fixed his gaze on Nicolae. For some reason, Nicolae felt soothed all of the sudden. His heart rate began to slow down and his erratic breathing became calm once again.

"Very well," he murmured. "I will go back home now."

As if in a dream, he turned around and started walking through the park toward his flat. While he was fully aware of what had happened, it somehow didn't bother him anymore. He felt as though his legs were moving by themselves, without any conscious thought. He took the stairs up to his flat and let himself in.

"Good morning, Ion," Nicolae greeted his valet in a detached voice.

"Sir? You've already been out?" Ion started at him open-mouthed. "But it's barely morning..."

Suddenly, the pain in Nicolae's right shoulder struck him like a bolt of lightning. He groaned and plopped down into an armchair, cradling his injured arm. Ion was immediately at his side.

"Are you alright, Master Nicolae?"

Nicolae winced. "Help me take my coat off," he told Ion.

As he assisted him, Ion's eyes widened with shock at the site of Nicolae's bloody arm. The make-shift bandage he had made with his cravat no longer held tightly, and the entire right sleeve was drenched in blood.

"Sir!" Ion exclaimed. "What happened to you?"

"I got shot," Nicolae muttered. "I'll explain later, Ion. For now, go get me hot water and make some bandages... you can use a pillow case if you need to."

His servant obeyed immediately, mumbling something intelligible.

Nicolae gingerly unwound his blood-soaked cravat and proceeded to take his shirt off. He flinched at the site of his bare shoulder. Even though the cravat had provided some much needed pressure, as soon as he removed it, the wound began to bleed again. He could see a gash where the bullet had grazed him. Luckily, there was no entry point. Nicolae sighed with relief.

Ion returned with a few make-shift bandages and a basin full of hot water.

"Let me help you, Sir," he told Nicolae, setting the basin next to him.

Nicolae nodded. "Yes... thank you, Ion."

Ion started to clean the wound with a damp cloth. At the very first touch, Nicolae screamed in pain.

"Hold on, Sir," Ion said, setting the cloth down. He disappeared for a minute and returned with a bottle of whiskey.

"What's that for?" Nicolae's eyes widened.

"It will serve two purposes," Ion answered, uncorking the bottle. He poured a fair amount into a glass and handed it to his master.

"First of all, this will help dull the pain... somewhat," Ion said as Nicolae took a gulp. "And, second of all, it will help disinfect your wound."

Nicolae nodded while continuing to drink. "That's very enterprising of you," he finally said once he set his empty glass down.

"Unfortunately, you will still feel a fair amount of... discomfort," Ion spoke sadly. "That is one nasty gash... I have to clean it well."

"Go ahead," Nicolae urged him. "I'm ready now."

Ion picked up the cloth and dipped it again in the basin. He waited before placing it on Nicolae's arm, until his master nodded. Ion was as gentle as he could possibly be while cleaning the area thoroughly. Nicolae bit the inside of his cheek to prevent him from howling. While the whiskey certainly helped, it still hurt like hell.

"And now... to disinfect it," Ion poured some whiskey onto a clean bandage. "I must warn you... this will not be pleasant."

Nicolae nodded. As Ion placed the alcohol-soaked cloth on the wound, Nicolae's eyes started to water. He tightened his fists and bit his lower lip, but made no noise beside a low groan.

"Sorry, Sir," Ion said apologetically. "We're almost there."

The valet took a dry, clean strip of cloth and wound it tightly around the injured upper arm. "This will make a better bandage than the cravat," he muttered. "Not that you didn't do a good job, Sir," he quickly added.

"Thank you, Ion... for everything," Nicolae gave his valet a meaningful look full of gratitude.

"Of course, Sir," Ion answered. "You shouldn't expect any less of me." He paused and cleared his throat. "And now that your wound is bandaged, perhaps you could tell me what exactly happened?"

***

After telling Ion about the duel and its ghastly results, Nicolae felt his eyes growing heavy. He yawned and stood up. He felt shaky on his feet, but his valet immediately propped him up.

"Let me help you to your bed, Sir," Ion said. "I fear you might not make it on your own."

"I guess I'm more affected than I thought," Nicolae muttered. "Yes... I better lean on you."

Ion walked him to the bedroom, and then helped Nicolae get into bed and covered him with a blanket.

"There, Sir... you should rest now. You've had quite a morning." Ion turned to leave.

"Ion! Wait!" Nicolae called out. As his valet approached him, Nicolae asked: "Am I a murderer?"

Ion paused before answering. "Well... technically, it was self-defense. Herr Eberwald was the one who demanded satisfaction. The duel was his idea, not yours."

"Still... a man is dead because of me," Nicolae whispered.

"The only one who can truly pass judgment is the Might Lord Himself," Ion said sadly before walking out and closing the door softly behind him.