The Second Son

Chapter 13

Eddie barged in wide-eyed and smirking.

"Well that was intense! What is going on with you and Prince Henry? And don't try to deny it! Everyone at that table could see the way you two looked at each other. Do you know what the queen will do to you? She's not your biggest fan as it is!"

Eddie's ramblings made me even more anxious than I already was. If everyone noticed that there was something going on between Henry and I, I was in a lot of trouble. The queen was the last person I wanted to cross. I didn't know what to do.

"Eddie, please stop talking about Henry and I. I'd like to keep my head attached to my body, thank you very much!"

My words seemed to dampen his excitement for the drama of it all and he became more serious.

"Em, please tell me the truth. Is there a reason to be worried?"

I turned my back on him to hide the emotions that I knew were written all over my face. I wanted to trust Eddie but he was terrible at keeping secrets. He would hate me for it but I decided to lie to him.

"There's nothing more than friendship between Henry and I. He showed an interest in what I do so we've spent some time together but it's completely platonic."

I wasn't sure I had convinced him of my lie but I finally got Eddie to leave me alone. I needed to be alone with my thoughts. After he left, I laid down on the cot I kept for some of the more serious patients I see. I was completely drained from the events of the last few days and within minutes, I was asleep.

The next morning I was awoken by a loud banging noise. When I opened my eyes, for a moment I had no idea where I was. When I remembered that I had fallen asleep in my surgery, I realized that the loud noise was someone knocking on the door. I jumped up to answer and to make the annoying sound stop. When I swung the door open, there was a slightly disheveled Henry standing in front of me with a very worried look on his face.

"O thank the heavens you are here! My father has fallen ill. He's burning up and going in and out of it. I think he might be seeing things too. You have to come help!"

For a second, I thought I was dreaming. But my training kicked in quickly. I grabbed my bag of medicines and followed Henry towards the guest quarters. I decided to get some more information out of Henry so I knew what I was walking into.

"Henry, is your father vomiting? Has he been able to eat or drink anything? What about his eyes? Are his pupils dilated or normal?"

Henry answered my questions and it sounded more like an infection rather than poisoning. I had treated some villagers with the same symptoms recently which meant there was something going around. Unfortunately, for the king, it seemed to be much more serious for the elder population. Even fatal in one or two cases. I was going to have to act fast. I couldn't let Henry's father die on my watch.

When we arrived at the king's room, he was in bed surrounded by the queen and his eldest son. My aunt was there but standing off to the side. The king's personal servants were also in the room. I requested that anyone who wasn't family leave the room. My aunt gave me a look that said I better not screw this up before walking out into the hallway.

The queen look displeased to see me but allowed me to examine her husband. He was running a very high fever and was starting to show signs of dehydration. I made a mixture of honey and warm water and allowed him to sip on it every few minutes. I handed the cup to Henry instructing him to keep letting him sip on it while I went through my bag to find what I needed.

I pulled out a serum made from a herb given to me by the Arbors that supposedly could heal almost anything. I decided to try it. If I didn't get his fever down quickly, there was a very good chance he wasn't going to pull through. I made a tea with the serum, more honey, and some other herbs that I hoped would help. I had Henry sit him up and I brought the mug to his lips and he slowly sipped on the concoction.

There really wasn't anything else I could do. I let the queen and the two princes know my thoughts on what was wrong and that all we could do now is wait. The medicines must have helped because the king fell into a sound sleep and his breathing evened out. I let out a huge sigh of relief. I had a feeling that if the king doesn't come out of this alive, either would I.

I suddenly became aware of the fact that I was in the same clothes I wore to dinner last night. I excused myself to get cleaned up. I felt Henry's eyes on me as I left but I wasn't going to look up when the queen was there.

After I was dressed and ready for the day, I went back to my surgery to see if there was anything else I had that may help the king. My eyes landed on the Midnight Bloom that Alva had given me. It was sitting on my work table with the strange notebook from the library. I had a sinking feeling that I was going to have the opportunity to test it out.

According to the notebook, the flower's petals needed to be dried out and ground up into a powder. I had already dried the flower so I decided to finish preparing it for use. After grounding it up, I put it in a glass jar with a lid and stuck it in my bag along with the notebook. If it did bring someone back from the dead, I most definitely would be accused of witchcraft. But if it could save someone's life, I guess it was worth it. Especially someone as important as the king.

After gathering a few more things, I went to check on the patient. Hopefully, he was still sleeping. When I opened the door, I found the queen by herself crying over the king's body. His face was drained of all color and he didn't appear to be breathing.