Page 40 of Kingdom of Death and Hope

“How long was I out for?” I ask.

“Three hours.”

Expected. It seems like three hours is the most I can get no matter the time of day. When is this going to get better?

When she’s dead.

But I have no idea when she is going to die. They need to figure out how to break the curse.

Have you gotten any closer? I ask Kieran.

“Everything is going to get better. I’m going to trade some jackets I made for some herbs that you can drink before you go to bed. Hopefully it will help you sleep through the night,” Mother informs me.

“What kind of herbs?” I ask.

“Ones that will hopefully knock you out so you won’t dream but get sleep.”

Shaking my head, I place my cup down. “I don’t want to be knocked out. What if she comes in the middle of the night and tries to do something?”

“You can’t think like that. She is not going to come in the middle of the night to get you. You need to sleep, and if this is how it’s going to work then we are going to do it. When you take it for the first time I will sit beside your bed the whole night to make sure nothing happens,” she says.

Not yet, Kieran replies.

“I can sleep perfectly fine when I’m with him,” I mumble to myself.

“But you can’t always be with him. For you to get the proper sleep you need, you can’t stay with him that long. It will bring too much suspicion,” she replies.

“I know. Maybe I can slip away in the dead of the night and get some good sleep.”

She shakes her head. “Did you forget what the prince told you? He has made sure there are more guards in town so that you’re safe. They patrol during the night as well.”

“I hadn’t noticed that they were,” I say as I look out the window.

Ever since I came back from being tortured, I haven’t been as focused at all. I don’t pay attention to details to make sure everything is okay or if I need to keep watch of someone.

My mind has been preoccupied.

“I knew from the day you were back that you would need someone to look after you and make sure they were keeping account of everything happening around you,” Mother explains. “I wanted you to not have to worry about anything else but healing properly.”

“Thank you.” I wipe away the lone tear.

Mother places her hand on my shoulder, giving it a little squeeze before walking off to get food.

“Can you go to Leah’s stall and get me some salt?” Mother asks as she turns around. “I seem to have run out.”

Guilt flows through me. It was always my task to make sure that everything was stocked, and if we were running low I would buy it before Mother noticed.

“Adeline, you were gone for over a month. It’s okay,” she says.

“I should have made sure when I got here that everything was okay and you had everything you needed.”

It was my job.

Guilt turns into anger and I clench my fist, taking a deep breath.

Mother kneels in front of me, cupping my hands in hers. “Adeline, I want you to listen to me carefully. Can you do that?”

“Yes,” I whisper.