Page 21 of Monsters In Her Head

We found an empty wooden bench to sit on near a work table. The infirmary was mostly empty except a few drakes sleeping off last night’s revelry.

“Lazy drunks.” Beautine said, her eyes rolling at the drakes.

I smiled at her, turning to the supplies on the table.

The drakes didn’t follow the same kind of healing procedures as the physician at the palace. They didn’t have leeches or weird concoctions that stung the nose and eyes. Everything they had came from the forest or mountain around them. Lavender for pain relief. Garlic for a fever. It was different to say the least how a race so strong could only use such simple things to help them. I’d have said humans were the superior race before meeting them. Now I’ve begun to think we might be the ones who should be in hiding.

Picking up a cloth, I wet it in the bowl of water on the table. I turned Beautine’s hand over to me, slowly and carefully cleaning around the edges of the cut. Thankfully, the sword hadn’t cut her too deep. I didn’t even think it needed stitches.

My eyes focused on the cut, smoothing the cloth over it and around it. Even after it stopped bleeding I couldn’t stop looking at it. My heart raced in my chest and my head felt foggy. I blinked once, twice, three times. But I couldn’t get the sickening feeling in the back of my throat to go away.

Beautine placed her hand on top of mine. Her eyes filled with concern.

I blew out a slow breath, pulling my hands away from her injury and turning to the side. Why was this happening? I’d never had an issue with blood before. The gods know I’ve seen and cleaned enough of it during my time with Cal and his brother. Why did the blood on Beautine’s hand affect me so much?

After a few minutes, Beautine touched my hand.

I slowly turned back to her and found her injured hand covered with the cloth so I couldn’t see it. My eyes flicked up to her face and the pity there made me irrationally angry. I knew she was only worried about me. Beautine had been nothing but nice and understanding. Nothing in her face was saying she thought I was weak or undeserving.

Without a word, I stood and stalked out of the room. I hurried down the corridor, my eyes on my feet and not where I was going. It was no wonder that I didn’t run into someone. Unless they saw me and quickly moved out of the way. Which would explain why I ended up in the middle of a four way crossing completely lost.

Spinning around in place, I tried to figure out which way I’d come from. The markings on the wall weren’t much help. I didn’t know if I’d come from the east or the west. I’d been so focused on my own pain and self pitying that I had ended up somewhere I’d never been before.

For a moment, I grew angry. Even more so than at Beautine and her pity. I was angry with myself. My helplessness in this situation with Cal and the drakes. I thought I was being brave and taking his disgusting touch for the sake of my kingdom. Then I thought I had the kingdom’s good at heart when I came running to the drakes.

Now... I wasn’t so sure.

Did I really run from Cal for the sake of the kingdom or my own?

Was I so broken that I’d fool myself and everyone else into believing that what Cal did didn’t bother me? That it was just marks on my body and they could be so easily erased once I had Cal’s head on a spike?

Unable to handle my own thoughts anymore, I forced myself to start walking. I didn’t know where I was going but the further into the corridor I chose the more I realized I wasn’t going the way I should be. The ground inclined until my calves burned with the exertion it took to get up it.

For some reason the pain felt good. The more I pushed myself to go up the incline the clearer my head and lighter my heart felt until I burst forth through the top of the corridor and out into the open air.

My eyes drank up the area around me, not sure where exactly I’d come out of the mountain from but it was not on the ground floor. The sky seemed closer, the clouds within fingers reach. I edged out onto the grass ledge a bit further until I could just peak over the edge.

The distance up from the ground was so small that I swallowed and stepped back from the edge. I didn’t rush back inside. I took a moment to stand there and breathe. Maybe I’d stayed underground too long. It was messing with my head and making everything more intense than it needed to be.

I felt him before he came into my line of sight. Ira may not be the king of the drake’s but he had a presence to him that was hard to ignore. I glanced away from the skyline to the drake prince.

Ira’s one good eye crinkled. “Seems you’ve found my hiding spot.”

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