Page 48 of The Dragon King's Curse
“You should drink your tea.” He nodded to the cup on the bedside table. “I’ll help you sit up a bit.”
He carefully arranged the pillows behind me before helping me into a sitting position. In all my years, I’d never felt such fatigue. Such weakness. Gods how I hated vampires.
I did my best to sip the herbal brew despite its bitter taste. I kept sneaking glances at Noxx over the rim of the cup.
Finally, he said, “Spit it out already. Say whatever it is that’s on your mind.”
I nodded, holding the cup in both hands, finding comfort in the warmth. “Why didn’t you leave me?”
“What the hell are you talking about?” Noxx seemed almost annoyed at my question.
“When the vampires took me. Why didn’t you leave? There was nothing stopping you from continuing on to your realm.”
“Of course there was.” His irritation grew until he openly scowled at me. “There was you, princess. Did you really think I would let them have you and just walk away? After everything we’ve been through? Do you really think so little of me?”
Damn, I’d really stepped in it this time. Trying to cover my ass, I said, “No, of course not. I just meant that.… I don’t know. I guess I thought—”
“Let me ask you something, Feryn. If it had been me instead, would you have left me behind?” Noxx held my gaze, the intensity in his gold eyes spearing deep into me.
I should’ve kept my mouth shut. This was a question I didn’t want to answer. Knowing that he would see a lie in my eyes, I had no choice but to speak the truth.
“No. I wouldn’t have left you behind. Forget I asked.”
“Gladly.” Folding his arms over his chest, Noxx silently fumed beside me.
I hadn’t meant to offend him. Who knew the Dragon King would take my question so personally? More importantly, why?
I wasn’t ready for the answer to that one yet, so I did not dare speak it aloud. Instead, I continued to sip my tea as an uncomfortable silence fell between us.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
FERYN
We remained at the inn throughout the day. I slept on and off as much as the pain and discomfort would allow. By the time night fell, I felt significantly better.
The healer’s herbs had helped along with my body’s natural healing abilities. I wasn’t quite back to full strength yet. That would take another day or two.
I hadn’t yet left the bed when Noxx woke me by frantically gathering our things. He had a leather satchel that he’d obtained from the innkeeper. He stuffed it full of water canisters, bread and fruit, as well as some smoked meat for himself.
“Ready to get moving, rose petal?” Noxx chuckled when I frowned. “Not a fan of that one either? I’ll keep trying. You should get dressed. There’s a clean tunic and pants for you in the washroom. I figured you would want to wash up first.”
I still had splatters of vampire blood in my hair. As I rolled out of bed, my head spun for a moment. Noxx’s expression changed to one of concern, but I waved it away.
“I’m fine. Give me a few minutes to get ready.” On my way into the washroom, I tossed back over my shoulder, “And no, I’m not a fan of rose petal. Would it really kill you to use my name?”
“Of course not,” he called after me. “That doesn’t mean I’m going to do it though. Not all the time. I need to keep things interesting.”
I hurried through getting cleaned up and dressed. After combing my long locks, I tied my hair back in a braid. When I emerged from the washroom, Noxx looked me over, his brow quirked.
“What? Why are you looking at me like that?” I got busy securing my sword in its scabbard to my back.
“I don’t know. Just wondering why you choose to dress like that. Is it a warrior thing? Do you never wear dresses?” Noxx slung the bag containing our supplies onto his back before securing his sword on his hip.
I glanced down at my attire. “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing? It’s comfortable. Do you really think a dress is fitting for these circumstances?”
“No, probably not. Don’t get me wrong, princess, you’re gorgeous no matter what you wear or don’t wear. I was just curious.” Opening the door to our room, Noxx peered out before waving me along behind him.
We left the inn, keeping a close eye on our surroundings as we made our way out of town. Our plan was to head south toward the Fire Realm. It was too far to walk the entire way. We would stop at the next town a few days away and try to send word to his people. They would send a cavalry to safely accompany us the rest of the way.
