Page 89 of The Thief
Now all he had to do was give her a big enough dosage and the man in black would be king. It was just a matter of time. And he was a very patient man. He was nervous, however, that he would be found out. So even though he had patience, his time might be running out.
He decided then to give her the large dose, large enough to finally be rid of her.
His attention was drawn back to the other people in the room when someone moved. Alastair stood and headed out of the bedroom door, shutting it behind him. Rhys crept out from the curtain and walked over to the cup, opening the vial and pouring the entire contents of it inside the glass.
He kneeled down at the edge of the bed and grabbed the cup, pressing it to Scarlett’s lips. Scarlett, still mostly asleep, opened her mouth and drank the liquid, emptying the cup. Rhys’ feeling of victory was short-lived as Alastair came back into the room, surprising him.
“You!” Alastair shouted, making Rhys drop the cup. The glass shattered when he dropped it on the floor and stood slowly, stepping away from the bed and the now awakened lady inside it.
“Alastair…” she whispered, sleep and fear in her voice.
“Don’t worry, My Lady, you will not have to fear for your life much longer,” Rhys said, the words sending a chill down both Scarlett and Alastair’s spines.
“What did you do?” Alastair snarled, staring at the man through the dim light in the room. He was able to almost see him due to the candle he left in Scarlett’s room.
“I did what I was told,” Rhys growled, then rushed into the sitting room and out of the bedroom, leaving Alastair and Scarlett alone.
With one last look at Scarlett, Alastair gave chase, rushing out the door he had just come in and down the hallway. He called out to Ronald when he saw him standing at the bottom of the stairs, letting him know that Rhys was in the castle.
Ronald shouted that he had seen him and that he was going after him now, and that Ragan had already headed out after him. Alastair rushed down the stairs and out the door, following Ronald as he trailed Ragan and Rhys. Rhys reached the halfway point on the bridge, halting for a moment, then taking off when he saw that they had given chase. He took off again as Ragan gained on him.
He reached the market before Ragan and then he disappeared into the darkness. Ragan, Ronald, and Alastair halted at the edge of the marketplace and Alastair said, “Let him go. This way at least we know that he is not in the castle anymore. We need to get back to Scarlett. When we get back, make sure to close the gates.”
Ragan gasped out between taking deep breaths, “Yes, sir. Just take care of Scarlett.”
Alastair clapped the heaving man on the back and sprinted back to the castle, running as fast as he could to get back to Scarlett. When he finally arrived, both of their mothers were in Scarlett’s room, fawning over her to ensure that she was all right. He was relieved when she looked fine.
However, he did not want to take any chances so he called for Bard to bring the antidote. Bard brought it quickly and Alastair gave some to Scarlett, the lady in question taking the medicine in haste.
“Everyone go back to sleep,” Alastair said, reassuring Babette that if there was any change, she would be the first person to be told. Reluctantly she left, heading to tell Graham what happened.
Antoinette kissed Alastair on the head before heading out of the bedroom as well.
Alastair sat in the chair next to her bed and reached out to take her hand, squeezing it tightly in his. He could see her clearly now with all the candles that had been lit in her room.
“You will be all right,” he whispered, more for his benefit than hers. Scarlett squeezed his hand in return.
“I know I will. I have you to take care of me.”
He smiled as brightly as he could and leaned over, pressing a kiss to her forehead as he tucked her back in bed.
“I’ll be right here,” he whispered. She whispered something unintelligible and fell back asleep, surprising Alastair. Usually after something scary like that, she would not be able to sleep.
He was suddenly very worried.
An hour later, his worst fears were confirmed when Scarlett became violently ill, her face pale and drawn. She threw up for almost a whole minute. Alastair was unable to do anything but hold her hair back as she retched.
He called for Bard to come and when the old man arrived, he asked him to ask Owyn to come here so he could speak with him. The old man nodded and headed to get the prince, running as fast as he could without looking like he was running. Alastair couldn’t help but chuckle, even if it was inappropriate. The old man was nothing if not dignified in everything he did.
A few short moments later, Owyn, Bard, and Elsa appeared in the doorway. He was going to ask why Elsa was there, but the look on Owyn’s face told him not to ask.
He looked at Scarlett, doubled over in pain, and asked, “We need to go to Malachite Expanse. There is a mineral there that is the main ingredient in this antidote. Would you want to accompany us home or stay here?”
Owyn looked at Elsa, and then back at Alastair. “We will accompany you. I have my boat, The Comte, already docked. We could be ready to leave by tomorrow afternoon at the earliest.”
“I’d appreciate it,” Alastair said, helping Scarlett back to lay down.
“Will she make the three-day journey?” Owyn asked, not reassured by her pale face.
