Finally, the door opened. Light flooded out into the darkness, blinding her for a moment as a silhouette approached her.
‘Xander,’ she choked out. ‘I need your help.’
6
‘Bisma!’ Xander cried. His face flooded with emotion as he took in the sight of her: drenched in rain, eyes red-rimmed. Immediately, he stepped toward her, slack-jawed with concern. His gaze shifted to Mei on the cart, and he sucked in a breath. ‘Come in.’
He reached to pull her inside, but she resisted. She didn’t want to drip all over the immaculate floors of his polished home, nor did she wish to be inside his expensive cottage, which looked cozy and clean.
She loved her home in the Enchanted Forest, she did, but being here made it glaringly obvious that this—his decadent house, his perfect life—was never an option given to her.
‘To the garden?’ he asked, sensing her hesitation. His voice was soft but clear above the rainfall.
She nodded. Then, with a shuddering breath, she moved to push the cart with Mei, but his long fingers came over hers, taking the load from her hands. His hand was warm; she cherished it for the moment it was over hers.
Xander sped Mei to the garden, then into an adjoining greenhouse, and Bisma followed close behind, cold rain falling across both their skins.
When they entered the greenhouse, she was glad to be out of the rain. It was a beautiful building, the size of a small cottage, rainwater rushing down the glass panels.
The greenhouse was filled with tall plants, reaching up to the ceiling, as well as various hanging pots and even more pots covering every table surface. The greenhouse seemed to be for Xander’s particular use; it had none of the clean organization of the Chapman Apothecary.
In a corner, she saw a rumpled bed, the blankets undone. Her cheeks heated; she looked away. Her gaze fell to Xander, who had cleared a table and was covering it with blankets. She went to help him, taking the opposite end of a blanket, then smoothing it down.
He smoothed it from the opposite end, until they both met in the middle, their hands brushing. A jolt went up her arm and she shivered.
Xander scooped Mei into his arms—oh, she was so small, being held so!—and set her down upon the blankets.
‘Mei, it’s okay,’ Bisma said, reaching for her sister’s hand.
Mei was trembling, her chin quivering as though she was in great pain.
‘How long has she been like this?’ Xander asked, wasting no time in beginning to examine Mei. He checked her eyes, her mouth, her pulse, searching and feeling for things beyond Bisma’s understanding. Immediately, she could see how competent he was, how efficient. That soothed her worry a little.
Bisma explained the past day, how she had given Mei the cure-all from the Apothecary, which had seemed to work until it didn’t.
‘So that’s what you were doing at the Apothecary,’ Xander said, more to himself than her. He let out a frustrated sound before turning to look at Bisma over his shoulder. ‘Bis, I wish you’d told me. I could have helped.’
‘I had it under control!’ Bisma snapped, then broke off because of course she hadn’t; the proof lay before them both.
At least Xander had the good grace not to point it out.
‘She was fine,’ Bisma continued, sounding defeated. ‘But now she’s worse. It wasn’t like this yesterday.’
‘The cure-all would have provided temporary relief,’ Xander explained. ‘But the poison remained inside her, festering.’
He left Mei’s side then, moving easily to one of the other tables. The sound of clinking bottles filled the air as he searched for something, then she heard his quick ‘Aha!’
Xander returned with a small purple vial. She noticed it wasn’t the special glass that the Chapman Apothecary used. This was ordinary glass from the local shop, and it held a thin liquid, clear like water but with a cloudiness to it. She recognized the smell of chamomile and something else, perhaps valerian root? But it held other notes she couldn’t recognize or decipher; it was a high-level potion.
‘What is—’ she began, as Xander returned to Mei’s side.
Xander released a breath, then turned to Bisma. His green eyes were bright, vivid.
‘Everything’s going to be alright,’ he said, placing his large hands upon her shoulders. They were warm, and she was too in need of comfort to push him away. ‘I promise.’
Xander turned back to Mei and gently lifted her head, emptying the liquid into her mouth.
‘What are you doing?’ Bisma cried, but it was too late. Her heart jumped into her throat Mei’s throat moved as she swallowed. A few moments later, the trembling in Mei’s body ceased.
