Flame and Starlight by Dana Isaly
Chapter Seven
I woke up to yelling in the hallway. When I threw my eyes open, I was still cloaked in darkness. My heartbeat hammered in my chest to the point where I thought I was going to pass out. I couldn’t help but remember Asher’s warning that people here would be out to get me, to kill me. I sat there, breathing in and out of my nose, listening. A loud thump into my wall made me jump up, throw the curtains back, and climb out of bed. My fire had almost died down to coals, making it very difficult to see.
It must be late.
I grabbed the cloak from the wall and, as quietly as I could, unlatched my door and peered out into the hall. There was no guard at my door, and that made my stomach twist again. Something had to have happened for my door to have been left unguarded. I stepped out into the hall and closed my door behind me, wrapping the cloak around my bare legs as tightly as I could. I heard voices to my left, and shadows danced across the walls around the corner.
Clinging close to the wall, I padded down towards the voices in bare feet. I tried to keep my breath calm so that I could hear if anyone was coming my way, but all I could hear were muffled footsteps and urgent whispers. As much as I dared, I poked my head around the corner. I spotted Emric, his dark hair in tangles around his shoulders, and another guard I didn’t recognize. They were standing outside an open door, Emric talking animatedly with his hands.
“Go…the healer…blood…” were the only words that drifted down to me. The other guard took a short bow and turned towards me. I ducked back and pressed my entire body against the wall, heart in my throat, praying I could blend in with the shadows. He walked out, and I watched him walk away from me. I stared at his back until he was too far away to see and slowly peeked out again. There was no sign of Emric, but the door was still wide open, firelight pouring out of it.
Curiosity got the better of me. I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was very, very wrong. I got more confident when I realized I couldn’t hear anyone talking, so I tiptoed down towards the open door. The cloak did very little to keep the cold out with my bare legs and arms in the flimsy nightgown Mavka had dressed me in earlier. It was no more than an insubstantial piece of silk with thin straps and a hem that stopped midthigh. Gooseflesh raised across my skin, from cold or fear, I didn’t quite know.
I shivered as I approached the door, the warmth of the fire pouring out and drawing me closer. I looked into the doorway and saw Mavka wringing a cloth into a large basin next to the sofa at the fireplace. The water was streaming crimson over her small hands. The back of the couch faced me, but I could see a leg draped over the arm and a massive wing folded over the back. In the dim light of the room, its feathers looked inky as oil.
“Mav?” I whispered, taking a step into the room. Her head shot up to look at me, her eyes wild and wide.
“Get out of here, girl. This is not a place for you.” She stood up, rag in hand, and walked the couple of steps to the person lying on the couch. I had never seen anyone severely injured before, but I had taken care of my mother as her body had withered away into nothing, the cancer eating her up from the inside. In those final months, I had bathed her, held her hair as she vomited, and changed her diapers. If I could handle my mom in that much pain, a stranger should be easy. And it wasn’t like I could’ve gone back to my room and fallen asleep.
I slung the bright white cloak across the bed. I felt naked in the thin fabric covering my body, but I didn’t dare get blood all over that pristine thing. I tied my hair up in a knot on the top of my head with the strip of leather I kept tied around my wrist for training. I made my way over to the couch and watched Mavka lay the cloth on the Fae lying on the couch. When I looked over the back of the couch, Asher lay there, a gash so deep across his chest I could see the cartilage of his ribs.
“Oh, my,” I said and pressed the back of my hand to my mouth.
“If you aren’t here to help, go back to bed. He doesn’t need anyone else gawking at him.” I had no idea Mavka could be so stern, but then as I watched her push fingers through his hair as a mother would, I could see the worry in her eyes. The wrinkles at her eyes seemed more pronounced now, filled with dread.
“No,” I said, pulling myself together. “Tell me what to do. I can help.” She eyed me warily, still twisting her fingers through his hair. His eyes were closed, and his eyebrows were knitted together in pain. He groaned with almost every exhale, but he was clearly either passed out or so close to it he couldn’t comprehend what was happening. “I took care of my mother for months as she died. I can handle this.”
Without waiting for a response, I walked around to the bowl of water, muddied with his blood, careful not to touch his wing. I took it from the floor and carried it to the bathing chamber. His room was set up almost identical to mine so everything was easy to find. I dumped the dirty water into the bath and watched the water, thick and red, swirl down the drain. I let the water run for a minute to let it get scalding hot. While the bowl filled back up, I got several new cloths from the drawers next to the door and threw them over my shoulder. I walked back into his bedroom and made my way across the floor, careful not to spill the steaming water all over myself.
“This needs stitches, Mavka,” I said as I knelt next to them both. His head lolled to the side to face me, like he could hear my voice, but his eyes never opened. I swallowed thickly and looked at Mavka. “Where’s the healer?”
“I’m not sure. Emric is flying to get him now.”
“He doesn’t live on the grounds?” I slowly peeled the filthy cloth Mavka had laid across the cut in his chest and handed it to her.
“No,” she said, standing up with some effort. “He lives in town. I would hope he would be here within the half hour.” She dropped the bloodied cloth into a basket filled with them under the window.
“Okay,” I said, wringing a new cloth in the clean water I had brought over. I laid it as gently as I could across his chest. He hissed through his teeth, and his eyes opened just long enough to make contact with mine. They closed, and he rolled away from me.
“Get out,” he mumbled.
“What did he say?” Mavka asked and quickly came back to where his head rested on a pillow. Her hands wiped his hair back off his sweaty forehead.
“I couldn’t understand him,” I lied. He was such an arrogant ass, even when he could be dying. “We need something to stop the bleeding. He’s going to bleed out.” I chewed on my lip. “Aren’t Fae supposed to have, like, super-amazing healing abilities or something?”
“We do, especially High Fae like him. But this wound was inflicted by one of the souls he was escorting into the After. They are different wounds, and we can’t heal from them as easily.”
I nodded and turned back to Asher. The cloth I had placed on his chest had already turned completely red. I took it off and replaced it with a clean one.
“Mav.” She looked at me. “Can you go get the tin the healer gave me for my face? I know it’s not going to be enough, but it may at least help the pain. Hopefully it will kick-start the healing process.” She nodded and was out of the room quickly.
“I thought you said you were good at what you do,” I said under my breath as I swapped out his cloth again. His chest rose and fell, slow and ragged. The tattoos I saw on him the night he took me extended down across his chest and covered his hard stomach, disappearing into his pants. My face warmed at where my eyes ended up, and I forced them back to the tattoos that swirled around his arms, stopping promptly at his wrists.
“See something…you like?” I jumped and found him looking at me. “I thought I told you to leave.” He closed his eyes, and I could see him struggling to keep his breathing calm.
“I’m helping. If you hadn’t noticed, you could use as much help as possible.” I shifted my knees and discovered they were sticky with his blood. I pushed the stray hairs out of my face with a shaky hand. Okay, this is really bad. “Mav has gone to get the salve the healer gave me for my face. If anything, it may help with the pain.” His arm fell off the couch as he passed out again, and his calloused fingers brushed my bare thigh. I looked at them for a second before lifting his arm back onto the couch. I was going to bury the feeling I got at that touch very, very deep.
“Got it,” Mavka said as a way of announcing her presence back in the room.
“Thank you,” I said, standing up and peeling away the cloth. “If he wakes up while I’m doing this, it won’t be good, Mav. It’s going to hurt. I need you to try and keep him calm.” She nodded grimly and placed her hands on his shoulders. The thought of her tiny self holding Asher down almost made me laugh. “Okay,” I said, pushing down the hysterical gurgle that threatened at my throat. “Let’s get this over with. I’m going to do it as quickly as possible.” She nodded again.
I opened the tin and swiped all the contents that were left onto my fingers. I hovered over the gash, taking a few deep breaths to steady myself before I had to run my hand over his torn skin and exposed bones. I counted down from three in my head.
And then so many things happened very quickly. I swiped my fingers over the length of the opening in his chest. His eyes flew open, arms flying up to push Mavka off. He was too fast; she didn’t stand a chance. She went soaring backwards at the force of his attack.
Then, in the time it took me to blink, he was on me. He had flown, literally flown, off the couch and threw me onto the ground. He roared in pain. One of his hands slammed down on the floor, and the other grabbed my throat as my head bounced against the floorboards with a sickening crack. Stars flew into my vision as I tried to blink them away. I swallowed against his hand at the vomit threatening to come up. The wind was knocked out of me, and I couldn’t breathe through his grip. I gasped and groaned. I choked, trying to take in as much air as possible. I could feel his blood, warm and syrupy, dripping onto my chest and pooling in the hollow of my neck.
“Ash-Asher,” I whispered through a hoarse throat. I blinked the stars away a few times, but I still couldn’t see anything. It was so dark. All I could make out was the outline of his head. His wings, I suddenly realized. His wings were spread out, cocooning us on the floor. “It’s Alys! It’s me, it’s Alys,” I whispered. “Get the fuck off me.”
“Shit,” he swore. “I told you to get out,” he said, releasing my throat and kneeling off me, his wings tucking themselves neatly behind his back.
“What the hell happened here?” Emric practically yelled as he stormed into the room. I heard Asher slump onto the floor, leaning against the couch. Emric knelt next to me, but remembering what happened last time he touched me, I held an arm out to him.
“Don’t,” I said through gritted teeth. “I’m fine.” I looked to the door and saw the healer standing there awkwardly, looking from me to Asher. “Help him!” I shouted and motioned towards Asher. I coughed, my throat feeling raw from Asher’s assault. The healer made his way over to him and helped him sit back on the couch.
Asher’s skin had gone deathly pale. The exertion from the sudden movement had caused him to lose a lot of blood. I was absolutely soaked in it, I realized as I looked down at myself. I was also indecent. My nightgown was all the way up to my hips, my underthings completely on display. I felt my cheeks burn as I quickly yanked it back down. Emric cleared his throat and stood up. Asher’s blood had completely covered my chest, shoulders, and arms. Emric held his hand out to me to help me stand, but I shook my head. Pain seared behind my eyes.
“I’m going to sit here for a minute. If I stand up too quickly, I’m going to pass out.”
Asher groaned, and Emric’s attention latched onto him. I tentatively brushed the back of my skull with my fingers. There was already a lump forming. If I remembered correctly, it was always better to have a lump because it meant it was pushing out and not in? Or was that some old wives’ tale I had heard?
Stupid, fragile human body.
“He’s lost a lot of blood,” Mavka was saying to the healer. I looked up at her, and she seemed unharmed. For a moment I wished my Fae blood had already kicked in. It didn’t seem safe to be so breakable around all these Fae. The healer dug through his bag, pulling out herbs and oils. He picked up one of the clean cloths I had left lying next to the couch. He layered and smoothed them out across it and then gently laid it across Asher’s wound.
“This poultice will help the healing process. The wound should be closed by the morning, but he’s going to be sore for a few days.”
“We’ve got a room nearby that you can stay in for the night.” The healer gathered his things and stood to follow Emric. He bent down to my level and gently checked the back of my head. He nodded and then handed me a small vial of clear liquid.
“This is going to help your headache and help you sleep. You seem to be going through a lot these past few days,” he said and smiled. The smile reached his bright green eyes, and I found myself smiling back. “How about you rest for a couple of days and let your body heal?” I nodded, and he followed Emric out of the room. I slowly stood, using the wall to keep my balance.
“I told you to fucking leave, Alyssandra,” Asher said, already sounding stronger. I turned my attention to him and saw Mavka’s eyes widen.
“I’ll take her back to her room and—”
“I’m not done, Mav,” he said, cutting her off. I stared into his eyes, black in the dim light of the room. “You—”
I stopped him. “Yes, well, I am, Your Highness.” His title dripped off my tongue with malice. “I was just trying to help you as you were lying there, chest ripped open by Gods knows what! You are seriously the most ungrateful person I have ever met!” I swiped at the hair that had fallen in my face.
“I would’ve been fine, and I didn’t ask for your help.” He tried to sit up but winced and slunk back down into the cushions. “Your injuries could’ve been far worse than they are! You are human. I could literally crush your bones to dust if I wanted. And look at you!” He looked me up and down. What looked like disgust flashed across those dark eyes, and gooseflesh raised across my legs as I remembered just how little of me was covered. “You are covered in blood and barely clothed.” I crossed my arms as Mavka made her way over to me, trying to escort me out of the room. He chided me like a child, and suddenly, I didn’t feel much older than one.
“Good to know. Next time I won’t lift a finger to help you, even if it means saving your life. I guess you can save yourself from now on.” I saw him roll his eyes and lie back down, not up for any more of a fight tonight. I turned on my heel, letting Mavka lead me out of the room, and flipped him off over my shoulder.
“Oh, my cloak,” I said as we entered the hall.
“Maybe best we leave that for tomorrow,” she said, patting my shoulder. “Wouldn’t want to ruin it.” I shivered against the cold but agreed and let her lead me away and back into my room.
“Has he ever come back injured that badly from Mayassar?”
“Only once. His first time, he was young and distracted.” Her voice was hushed like he could hear us. “It must have been an unspeakable soul to be able to harm him that badly. But,” she said, a bit lighter as we made it back to my room, “he will be fine. He will still be a bit sore tomorrow, but overall, he’ll be fine.” It sounded like she was more trying to convince herself than me.
I ran myself a bath while she stoked the fire and added some more wood. By the time I emerged from the bathing chamber, no blood left in sight, Mavka had the fire roaring and the bedsheets turned back. I sighed and started to braid my wet hair to the side.
“He’s never been the easiest person,” she said, taking over, her thin fingers moving deftly in and out of my hair. I scoffed. She turned me around when she had finished and smiled at me. “He knows his strength. He knew tonight he could have killed you. That’s why he was angry.” She patted my cheek. Her weariness seeped into me through that touch. Her worry tasted sour.
“I was just trying to help.” I climbed into bed, throwing back the vial the healer had given me like a shot of apple vodka. The thought suddenly had my heart hurting and missing home. I missed having people to confide in. I missed Tom’s laugh. I missed Aoife’s hugs. I could have really used a smile and a hug right then. The elixir went down much more smoothly than the apple vodka. It tasted like honey and made my entire body go warm, my headache barely there anymore. Tiredness hit me like a brick wall, and I practically fell back into the pillows.
“He’ll come to his senses,” she said, tucking the covers up under my chin. “Hopefully, anyway,” I heard her laugh. “Stubborn as a mule, that one. Get some sleep.” The tone of her voice betrayed the love she had for him. She spoke about him like my mom used to speak about me.
“I’m not holding my breath,” I said, slipping into sleep. I didn’t hear her close the curtains or close the door on her way out. I fell asleep replaying memories of my friends back home. The memories blurred into dreams, and then the dreams twisted into nightmares. Aoife’s hugs turned into vise grips, and her laughs turned into threats. Her ears were pointed, and her fingertips were black as coal, snaking up onto her palms and wrists. Fire flew from her hands and creeped its way around my neck, branding me the Autumn Court’s property.
And then there was Asher, stepping in between us to save me and pushing me away, hurdling me across the room in the process. This time when I heard my skull crack, everything faded into black. And I had no more dreams.
