Page 88 of Spirit Rites
Farrah waves away my concern. “Don’t worry about it. We’ll, uh, find another room,” she says, glancing at Rysden. I know for a fact they’re running out of rooms.
“So, he’s here?” Reika asks, still palming her weapon.
I turn back to her. “How’d you figure it out?”
“Jespar. We couldn't keep up with him when we got close.”She looks to Jorren and Taren and scowls. “Thanks for the updates.”
Rysden takes Farrah’s hand in his. “We’ll give you some privacy.” The two of them leave, and then it’s just the four of us standing in the entryway.
“I’m sorry we didn’t come back right away, but things were not what we thought they would be here.” Jorren’s voice is hard.
“Why is he here?” Reika asks.
When the guys don’t say anything, I fill her in. “Rysden’s soldiers found him. We think the guivre dropped him there. He’s,” I pause. “Not in a good way. He’s got wounds all over his chest and shoulders. They’ve been keeping his wounds open, so they can get all the poison out. He hasn’t woken up yet.”
“Well, Jespar is here now, so he can do his thing. Then Kal will be back on his feet.” She glances at the three of us. “Right?”
“I don’t know.” My voice isn’t quite as strong as I want it to be. “He's in a bad way.”
“Let Jespar work his magic,” Taren says in a quiet voice. I glance over at him. He’s been pretty quiet yesterday and today. I know he’s struggling with guilt at what happened to Kaldar. At some point, we’re going to need to address it; but there just hasn’t been time. Everything's been happening so fast. I feel like my mind is being pulled in all directions. “Okay. I need to get upstairs. I’m going to make sure Jespar got into Kaldar’s room okay, and then we can go from there.”
I start up the steps. “You can’t stay here,” Reika says from behind me. “You need to get back. We need a figurehead. Thingsare crazy after yesterday. By now, everybody has already either seen or heard about the man that turned into a guivre. You can’t hide here; you have a kingdom to run.”
“Reika,” Jorren growls.
“She needs to deal,” Reika says in response. “It’s her job now.”
I turn back to face the three of them but don’t step down. “Do you think I don’t know that?”
Reika crosses her arms over her chest and gives me a cool look. “Well, seeing as you’re here and not back in our kingdom, where you belong, it looks like you don’t.”
“Reika, stop,” Jorren starts again, but I cut him off.
“I know exactly where I’m supposed to be. Mymateis lying upstairs in a room fighting for his life. I’m not leaving his side until I know he’s going to be okay. If you have a problem, find yourself a different queen because I am not your woman.” Without another word, I walk up the steps. It takes me until I get to Kaldar’s room to calm down. Something brushes against my leg, and I look down and see Veyra. She doesn’t say anything, but just her being beside me is support enough. I open the door to Kaldar’s room and take in the jaguar on floor beside Kaldar.Was Jespar able to help Kaldar?
Of course. The poison is out of his body now. Now, the wounds can start healing. And with Jespar’s secretions, they will heal much faster. So, now we wait.
It takes me a little bit before I push off the door and walk over to him. I'm careful not to step on Jespar, who lies so still on the floor. My eyes trace the wounds on Kaldar’s body. They don’t look any different, but I guess it’s going to take some time. Veyra walks over to Jespar and joins him on the floor. I watch the two of them and feel a kind of yearning. I wish Kaldar was awake right now; I wish I could talk to him. I take his hand and stare down at him a few minutes. Reika’s words run through my mind.You can’t hide here; you have a kingdom to run.I sigh because she’s right. As much as I don’t want to leave him, I gave him my word that I would do what he needed me to do. Right now, that’s run his kingdom, until he can do it himself.
Chapter 42
I allow myself to hold his hand a few more minutes before I finally stand and place his hand back on the bed. I lean forward and kiss him gently on the cheek. “I have to go and take care of business. Jespar’s here with you, so you’re not alone.” I take a deep breath. “I need you to heal, Kaldar. You hear me? The Jaguar Kingdom needs its king, and I need my mate. So you heal, okay?” I watch him carefully, but there’s no sign that he heard me.
Veyra, I have to get back. Do you want to stay here with Jespar, or—
My place is where you are. I will go with you.
Are you sure?
Yes.
I don’t question her again. “Jespar, take care of him, okay?”
He lifts his head and locks eyes with me. I shiver at the intelligence there. I open the door and Veyra walks out into the hallway ahead of me. With a last glance at the bed, I close the door behind me and steel myself for what’s coming. I have a job to do. I take a deep breath and head downstairs. Jorren, Taren, and Reika haven’t left the entryway. They’re talking intensely, maybe arguing. It's hard to tell. As soon as I get to the bottom step, I interrupt them. “It’s time to head back. Jespar will stay here with Kaldar, but it’s time for me to get back and do what I need to do.” My eyes meet Reika’s. “You’re right. I have a job to do, and I can’t do it from here. Are you all staying here with your king, or—”
“I’ll be with you,” Jorren interrupts me.
“As will I.” That’s from Taren.
