Sevrin moves away from them, picks me up, and slides me back into his arms. “Come, My Heart, show me our room.”
I don’t know what to say, so I just whisper, “Okay.”
He turns and walks away without the slightest care in the world, but I look back at the room full of men. The king looks relieved. His advisor and the other lords look pissed. And the princes? They seem devastated. It makes my heart beat faster.
This is going to be a complete disaster…
7
Harper
We head backthrough the castle and into the academy grounds. Me, cradled in Sevrin’s arms, the three princes silently following behind. I can tell Sevrin doesn’t like having them at his back, but he doesn’t say a word, nor does he respond to the panicked looks everyone gives us when they see him in the halls.
“Which way?” he asks as we come to another fork in the road.
“That way,” I tell him.
And it’s nice. He doesn’t seem to mind following my directions. I just tell him where to go, and he obeys.I’m going to have to remember he has that talent next time we’re in the bedroom.The thought brings a blush to my face. He glances down at me, and his mouth curls a little.
“What are you thinking about?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing?”
I feel like my cheeks are just getting hotter. “I was just noticing how good you are at following instructions.”
In no way did I want him to piece together what I was thinking about, but I see it in his face when it hits him. “Keep that in mind. I’mverygood at following instructions.”
Man, I hope the princes can’t hear us.
We finally make it to my room, and he opens the door and pushes inside like he owns the place. He walks straight to my bed and lays me down with all the care in the world. Then he goes to my boots and first takes off the one on my uninjured foot, then, ever-so-gently, takes off the one on my injured foot.
Frowning down at my bruised ankle, he says, “It’s not as swollen as yesterday, so that’s a good thing.”
“I know,” I tell him, feeling a smile dancing across my lips.
His gaze meets mine. “Well, since you’re the healer, what should I do now?”
I glance toward the doorway and see that all three princes have entered. They don’t say a word. They just stare. Glare, really. But as long as they’re being good, I’m going to ignore them.
“See that top drawer over there? I have all my healing stuff in it. You’ll see a bottle with green paste. That’s a healing poultice that should work perfectly, and there are wraps beside it. Choose one that would suit my foot.”
He instantly does as instructed, coming back with everything I asked for. “Is this going to hurt you?”
“No. I’ll be fine,” I reassure him.
It’s strange. I never thought I’d associate the word “gentle” with a Hollowborn, but again and again this word comes to mind when Sevrin touches me. It’s like for the first time in my life someone sees me as something precious. Not fragile, exactly, because there’s also an element of respect to our interactions, but definitely someone important.
He lathers the cool poultice around my ankle, washes his hands, and returns to wrap my ankle slowly and carefully. When he looks at me, he says, “How did I do, healer?”
“Very well,” I tell him, beaming.
He finally looks back at the three princes. “It was unfortunate she was hurt in my care.”
“How exactly did it happen?” Alaric asks, tension in his voice.
“It was storming. We were running for cover, and she tripped.”
