Servants shouted. Boots pounded. Someone knocked over a stool. A woman began to pray under her breath.
Maxwell’s chest tightened so hard he could barely breathe.
He lifted Ariella fully, cradling her as if she weighed nothing, though his arms shook with the force of what he felt.
“Move,” he snapped, and people scattered instantly, clearing the corridor as he carried her toward the stairs.
Isla ran beside him, clutching at Ariella’s cloak as if she could anchor her.
“Stay with me,” Maxwell muttered under his breath, words meant for Ariella alone though she could not hear him. “Stay with me, mo chridhe.”
He did not know why he said it.
He only knew he could not bear the thought of losing her.
They reached her chamber. Maxwell pushed the door open with his shoulder and crossed to the bed, laying her down carefully, pulling the covers up as the healer burst into the room moments later, breathless and sharp-eyed.
“What happened?” the healer demanded, already rolling up her sleeves.
“She collapsed,” Isla said quickly, voice trembling. “She was pale and then she fell.”
The healer pressed fingers to Ariella’s wrist, then her throat, then lifted her eyelids.
Maxwell stood at the foot of the bed, unable to move, hands stained with nothing but still feeling as if they were drenched.
“Has she eaten?” the healer asked.
Isla hesitated. “Nae today.”
Maxwell’s jaw clenched.
“Has she been sleeping?” the healer pressed.
Isla’s gaze flicked to Maxwell, then away. “Aye… but she’s been… tired.”
The healer made a low sound and reached for a small bottle, uncorking it and pressing it to Ariella’s lips. “Hold her head.”
Maxwell stepped forward immediately, lifting Ariella gently, supporting her as the healer coaxed tonic into her mouth.
Ariella swallowed weakly. Her lashes fluttered again.
Lara watched her closely, then turned her gaze to Maxwell.
“Ye,” she said, voice flat. “Ye may want to sit.”
Maxwell did not sit.
He stared at the healer, heart hammering.
The healer’s expression did not soften. “Our lady is with child.”
The words landed like a blow.
Maxwell froze.
He felt the room tilt. The air seemed to thin. For a moment he could not hear anything but the pounding of his own blood.
With child?
