en

ained, but as dawn broke over the jagged mountains, a very

annot control their

se, damp sheets, which was the primary catalyst for th

hospital, this was r

if I allowed him to sit in moisture and contaminants, my

im him before th

nt, secure, moistur

faced in my mind:

Find the thickest, softest boiled cotton fabric you can lay your hands on, along with a sheet of fl

n sheer bewilderment. "My lady

to protect his skin," I replied

off, I returned

morning light cutting across the sh

nconsciousness, and his platinum-blo

assist in cutting the cotton into a wide, contoured T-shape, la

sembled, I pulled back the linen

ly let out a st

, mottled crimson that rea

ing, holding both hands over her eye

can't! He's... he's a man! The Lord of the Keep! This is... this is so shameful! Sho

mly, pulling on fresh, sterile cotton gloves I had boiled earlier. "And inviting strangers into this chamber when poisoners

epping forward on tiptoe with

rast, were precise an

back, the sheer physical reality of the

midable, heavy build of a legendary warrior: a lean waist, defined abd

m toward you,"

s with a warm, antiseptic herb rinse, my k

ugh Boyce's muscular frame-an instinctual

p until it turned white, her cheek

.. did he j

enly, though my eyes remained la

ped the soft, moisture-trapping deerskin securely around his waist, and fastened the s

ack over him, smoothing th

for the next twelve hours," I said, peeling off

o her burning cheeks. "Praise the heavens... My lady, I don't know how you can do

sh water. "Dignity is a

the heavy door

dust-covered courier who had

sealed scroll bearing my father's wax crest, alo

venomous diatribe, accusing me of cast

nd paragraph before tossing the parch

al dispatch, howev

he assembled royal court, Deena's face and neck h

e horror and disgust, shouting that sh

arters, canceling her court privileges and sending

Reynolds had staked everything was

to the messenger, who bowed

med with triumphant, vengeful glee. "That

ly a taste,"

he bed-and my smile va

yce's bed had gro

pressed the back of my ha

hrough my skin like

ed, his chest heaving violently as dro

th a faint, chaotic reddish glow-the volatile remnants of suppresse

was skyrocketing in

water and every clean cloth in the room! Now!

psing under the dual strain

e within the hour, his brain tiss

ife had just entered