“It’s been a long night for all of the palace healers.” Chaaya hung her head. “And the monks.”
Her last words were little more than a murmur.
“We need to help!” I said. “I can’t believe I didn’t think of it sooner. I’ll go to the infirmary now and tell them about using turmeric.”
“The raja is meeting with his council at the infirmary.” Chaaya began to look more hopeful. “You can tell him about the discovery too.”
Saving the soldiers of Banghervari would have been satisfaction enough, but the chance to tell Aru about the cure that Nallini had discovered in front of Vishwajeet? It was almost too perfect. A wicked smile crossed my face.
“Nallini, can you care for Parushi while Chaaya gets me dressed?” My sari had been absolutely ruined during the course of the night. She nodded, and I said, “Good. This is too big an opportunity to miss.”
I left for the infirmary with Nallini as soon as Chaaya changed me into my jade green sari?—it was Banghervari’s color and Aru’s favorite. She’d left my curls unbound, and they formed an aura around me. After that, she went to take care of Parushi while Nallini freshened up. It didn’t take long for the healer to emerge in a more formal yellow robe with delicate white flowers embroidered on the hems and her hair pulled back in a long, neat braid.
We made our way through the palace, passing by several clusters of people gathered along the sides of the corridors. Their whispers were like a babbling brook; no words were distinct, but together their sounds had an unmistakable flow. The worried lines on their faces twisted into something else?—something harder?—as we approached, but they bowed deeply before I could see their expressions properly. Goose bumps pricked my arms, and my stomach flipped, but I doubted it had anything to do with my ever-present nausea. I wrapped my sari tighter around me as the coldness of the white halls settled on my shoulders.
We walked past the throne room and through corridors I’d never seen before. They were filled with tapestries depicting the heroes of Banghervari on the battlefield. The rich, sumptuous colors made the blood of their enemies shimmer beneath the Banghervari victors. More soldiers in green-and-yellow uniforms roamed the last hall we entered, and young healers with white training cords tied around their saffron robes scurried in and out of doors ahead.
The infirmary’s imposing doors, so dark they looked almost black, were closed, but I could still hear the moans of the soldiers inside. Aru and his council spoke together earnestly on the side of the hall as the guards outside the infirmary’s doors looked straight ahead, deliberately ignoring their conversation. I hurried forward. The sooner we told Aru of Nallini’s cure, the more soldiers we could save.
Aru stood tall in his sky blue kurta, but his face looked heavy. Next to him, Vishwajeet wore a gray kurta with white pants and a white scarf over his shoulder. Even in a situation as grave as this, Vishwajeet hadn’t lost sight of his part in the game: He’d made sure to dress in an outfit that evoked the white of the monks’ robes. The rest of the men were gathered around those two, and they seemed to be doing more nodding than speaking.
I stepped toward them, with my spine straight and shoulders thrown back, and Nallini walked behind me. Silence fell on the hall as we approached, and Aru stared at me. Vishwajeet winced when he saw the raja’s expression.
“My rani.” Aru closed the distance between us with long strides and reached for my hands. “Whenever we’re apart, I convince myself that my memory is playing tricks on me, that you could not possibly be so lovely. And every time I see you again, you prove me a fool.”
“It’s only fair,” I murmured, “given what you do to my heart every time you leave me.”
It was partially true, at least. Aru was breathtakingly handsome. I forced myself not to think about the fact that my husband didn’t even have the courage to ride to battle with his people.
Vishwajeet cleared his throat from behind us as the sounds from inside the infirmary intensified.
With a regretful exhale, Aru took a step back, but then noticed my wrapped foot. “Your cut hasn’t healed yet?”
“It is getting better every day.” I took Aru’s hand in mine, remembering my purpose in coming here. I needed him to missme, to listen tome. “Nallini, the monk that Vishwajeet sent, is an excellent healer. She has been meticulous with her care.”
I gestured toward Nallini, who was a few paces behind me, and Aru looked over my head to nod his thanks.
Vishwajeet stepped forward. “Speaking of care, Raja, we were discussing the injured soldiers.”
Aru ignored him, and he touched my stomach, caressing it gently.
“Yes, Vishwajeet, that’s why I came,” I said, acting as if Vishwajeet had addressed me. I took Aru’s hand off my stomach and kept it in mine. “I’m sure the healers are quite busy, and Nallini has generously offered to help. I’m convinced the treatment she created saved Parushi and could do the same for Banghervari’s brave soldiers. She should apply it on them as well.”
“Our soldiers are suffering with wounds the likes of which we have never seen,” Vishwajeet said. “And their suffering is the direct result of the decision to stop paying the tithes. They are paying the price for our choice.”
I inhaled sharply. I hadn’t expected Vishwajeet to use the soldiers’ injuries as a reason to start paying the tithe again. This was only the first battle in what was sure to be a difficult war, but it seemed like he was already encouraging surrender. Unfortunately, the rest of the council seemed to agree. Worse still, Aru was staring at the doors worriedly and flinching at every new cry.
“Yes, I know, and my heart goes out to them.” I kept my hand in Aru’s. “But Parushi also had an infected cut. I was sure we were going to lose her, but then Nallini came up with a cure. You should at least let her try it on these soldiers.”
“These soldiers have suffered enough,” one of the advisers said. I remembered little about him except that he sided with Vishwajeet. “They shouldn’t be subjects of experimentation. Trying untested medicaments on them would be a dishonor to their sacrifice.”
“There is no greater dishonor than to stand by and let them die!” I snapped.
I couldn’t hide the fire in my voice. Aru blinked at me in surprise, but Vishwajeet’s mouth twisted into a condescending smile.
Vishwajeet sighed and gave a gentle, almost understanding nod. “Although I have no doubt that the rani has good intentions, I fear her condition may be affecting her emotions and clarity of thought. I went to the rani’s quarters after hearing that Parushi was injured, and the rani herself assured me that Parushi’s injury was minor.”
I sputtered?—I’d trapped myself in a corner. I’d told Vishwajeet that Parushi’s injury was nothing to worry about, and now he was leveraging that against me. Most of the council was nodding sycophantically, and Kamaraya and his allies wouldn’t even look at me. Even Nallini seemed to realize the tide was turning against us and had made herself small on the wall behind the councilors.
