Page 16

HEAD OVER HEALS

Ember

E mber sat up at the muffled sounds of two voices.

She pressed the blue-covered book to her chest and listened, but the words were unclear, just like the ones on the pages.

It didn’t matter that she couldn’t read, though, she’d been captivated by the book all day, both its neatly lined symbols and the messier squiggles around the edges, so much so that she hadn’t noticed the moon slipping away as evening broke beyond her window.

There was a feminine laugh, and that made Ember’s ears perk up. Perhaps Severath had invited someone for dinner—and he was welcome to do that in his own home, of course, but it sure didn’t seem like him. Well, Vitae help her if she’s going to have to suffer through his cooking.

Footsteps on the staircase made Ember stand from the bed and wait silently.

When a knock came, she carefully placed the book on her pillow, took a breath, and pulled open the door.

The healer was standing there, nearly as tall as Severath but practically glowing she was such a sunny yellow.

How she got that color without access to it in the world around her, Ember wasn’t sure, but she didn’t think on it too long which was probably the best thing to do for heroine and reader alike.

“Balran is here to fix you,” Severath blurted, and the female demon rolled the blacks of her eyes.

Ember felt her brows dip down and her lips pinch together.

“Do not ,”—Severath held up a finger, and she considered if biting it off would be worth the mark against her in her assessment—“say you are fine. You are still walking unevenly.”

Ember’s bubbling fury cooled. She thought she’d improved concealing her winces and careful steps since he hadn’t mentioned them after that first night, but apparently he’d been watching all along.

Balran took a deep breath, and with it came a pleasant tension-breaking smile. “I’m sure we can sort out whatever the trouble is. May I come in?”

Ember stepped aside, and the demon followed before swiftly turning and slapping a hand on Severath’s chest. He halted with a foot hovering over the threshold.

“Not you,” she snapped, and even Ember recoiled at her harshness. “My patient is getting undressed, so ladies only.”

“I—” Severath’s mouth moved, but no more intelligible words came out. His face, however, grew even redder. Finally, he stepped back, but his arms came up to cross with his typical defiance. “What if she attacks you?”

“She won’t.”

“Oh, wonderful, you’ve completed her assessment then? I suppose we should alert the council.”

Balran clicked her tongue and gave him a gentle pat. “Listen to me, cousin: you know how to do your job, and I know how to do mine. Go.”

His jaw tensed and his tail flicked, but he stepped back, and Balran shut the door.

“I don’t think I need?—”

Balran held up a hand to stop Ember from going on, and the demon called over her shoulder, “All the way downstairs, Sev.”

“But you can’t hear nudity through the door,” he mumbled from the other side.

“Now,” she growled, a fang slipping down over her bottom lip, and the footsteps that followed were so heavy the whole neighborhood probably heard.

“He’s so dramatic,” she muttered, flashing a normal set of teeth as she flipped the long fall of her blonde hair over a shoulder.

“You don’t really need to undress—I just don’t want him hovering.

Sev insists we missed something back at the infirmary, though, and he used his official squadron leader tone, so I can only assume it’s urgent. ”

Ember worried the hem of her tunic, the one that had been embroidered by the other woman and fit especially well. “It’s just that my feet hurt sometimes,” she finally admitted.

“Oh, that’s all? I was worried I’d accidentally fused a joint!

Well, hop up there and let me take a look.

” Balran took off her satchel and came close without even a flicker of hesitation, kneeling on the floor.

“Really I should have checked in with all of you in case you were suffering aftereffects of my magic.”

Ember sat herself on the bed and admired Balran’s golden horns.

They were quite different from Severath’s, shorter and swooping away from her temples, but coupled with the tone of her skin, she couldn’t imagine the woman not having them.

“I think this happened in the forest. Or—I think you call it the Dreadmoor? I ran through these black ferns, and I’ve had pinpricks in my feet ever since. ”

“Attea nettle?” The demon inhaled sharply, her black eyes widening as she grabbed Ember’s foot for inspection. “Why didn’t you say? I’ve had guards sobbing in the infirmary from brushing up against the stuff.”

Ember shrugged. She had already felt so fussed over and so exposed and so angry, not to mention that complaining had never been safe. And really, the pain wasn’t that bad .

“Oh, blazes, there are nettle hairs embedded all along your sole. The best solution for this is a special soap, and lucky for you, I just picked up some from Kizros at the apothecary.” She pulled out an amber-colored bar from her satchel and handed it off before going to the attached bathing chamber and flitting a hand over the faucet.

“I’ll let you take care of the scrubbing, and then we’ll see if that resolves your troubles. ”

Ember followed and took a sniff of the bar, and it was like walking through the spice market in Ankerick in autumn, warm and sweet with a hint of sharpness. Only she wasn’t overly laden with purchases, forced to carry them home for someone else.

“Be careful not to get that anywhere too sensitive,” Balran warned as she paced to the other end of the smaller chamber and peered out the high window.

Ember waited a moment, but apparently the healer was staying, so she sat herself on the edge of the tub and stuck her feet under the running water.

“Ember, may I ask you something?”

And there it was, that twist in Ember’s stomach that made her wish she had been thrown in a dungeon, comfy bed be damned.

She touched the brand on her neck as she peeked up at the demon.

Balran was drumming her fingertips together in a way Ember would have considered nervous if she didn’t think of the woman as totally composed.

“Yes, of course,” wobbled its way up her throat.

“Is Severath using the pain tincture I gave him?”

Ember almost slipped on the smooth stone surface but only flailed a moment. That was not what she was expecting, and so she half laughed as she wiggled her toes under the running water. “You mean the one Brioni brought this morning? I haven’t seen much of him today, so I don’t know.”

“That was a second dose.” Balran sighed, leaning against the wall, head tipped back.

“I gave him the first at the infirmary, but it was only a few days’ worth.

He didn’t come to me for more, but there’s no way he’s not in any pain, his eye is…

” She rubbed at the place where her horn met her head.

“Well, it’s fucking gone, so how in blazes is that not excruciating? ”

Ember was surprised to hear the demon swear, but it only added to her relief.

She held the soap under the running water, its spicy smell filling the bath chamber.

“He has bumped into a lot of things the last few days.” Severath certainly tried to cover his poor balance, but he wasn’t the only one keeping a close eye on their prison mate.

“Well, that’s to be expected.” She plucked at a strand of her hair and smoothed it between her fingers. “He’s had exceptional sight his entire life, and he was the best shot on the guard until last week. Of course he’s not going to slow down or give himself any kind of grace.”

“Last week?” Ember had a good lather in her hands but fell still as she stared down at the bubbles.

She remembered Severath’s muttered words about things that could not be healed, and it was like she’d just wiped away mud caked on an entry floor to reveal the rich connecting veins of the marble beneath. “Oh, fuck .”

Balran gasped and pushed off the wall. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Ember held up a soapy hand in hopes she wouldn’t come closer.

“I just didn’t realize what happened to him…

happened because he helped me.” Gods, the words were so fucking pathetic as they fell stupidly out of her mouth because she did realize, didn’t she?

But admitting it meant there would be guilt, and fucking hells, it flooded into her so terribly she thought she might vomit.

Of course Severath’s injuries were new, and they’d been earned saving a foolish and worthless human from more human sorcery.

She scrubbed her feet, and the pain flared like fire from her toes to her ankles, but she didn’t relent.

Stupid, stupid, stupid , she screamed into her mind as she scrubbed, doubled over and eyes squeezed shut.

The sound of running water wasn’t enough to deafen the thought of every time she’d snickered at him missing a shot or bumping into a door.

He wasn’t teaching himself archery. He was discovering he’d lost his skill, every murmured curse not frustration but grief.

And as if Heck itself had betrayed him, he was no longer out protecting the city he only spoke of with admiration; he was stuck in this big empty house with her .

“Ember.” Balran’s voice was just a whisper as a warm hand lay flat on her back. “Please be gentle with yourself.”

She jolted under the touch but for the second time that day, did not fling a stranger away. Her own hands slowed, and the fire melted out of her feet until they felt normal, a first since she had come to Heck.

Ember sat up, and Balran’s hand disappeared, taking with it the tenseness in her shoulders. “Is there anything you can do for him?”

“Time and severity are a mix I can’t always overcome, and when sorcery is involved?

” Balran held out her hands, palms turned up.

There was power there, Ember had felt it when the gash along her arm had been healed, but the simple gesture was now full of frailty.

“I did what I could. All I can offer is pain relief, and he won’t even take that, the stubborn ass.

But why in the hells would he be any different now than when we were children?

” She laughed lightly. “He’s always punishing himself for something.

I hope he hasn’t been too cruel about it to you—he often says things he doesn’t entirely mean.

His brother can certainly attest to that. ”

Oh, gods he even has a brother he’s not seeing because of me.

Ember shook her head. He hadn’t blamed her once. “He’s only a little grumpy.” She finished rinsing her hands. “I’ve been worse to him.”

Balran reached over, and with a graceful flick, stopped the water from flowing into the basin. “I doubt that very much.”

There was a rapid knock from the other room, and they both leaned over to peer into the bedchamber, the shadow of boots blotting out the sliver of light under the door.

“Ah, speak of the demon,” Balran whispered, that comforting smile creeping back. “We’re decent,” she called, handing off a linen.

The door remained shut for a long moment as Ember dried her feet but then opened with the timidity of a child doing something they really ought not. Severath did not cross the room’s threshold but only poked his head in. “You are both still alive, and no one has anything catching?”

“She only had a standard Dreadmoor plight,” Balran announced, sweeping into the bedchamber. “Human skin is a little more delicate than demon, though, so she should probably stay off her feet. I recommend getting a bell.”

“A bell?” He straightened, nose wrinkling.

Balran turned her back to Severath as she gathered her satchel, eyeing Ember and grinning wickedly. “For when your guest needs something, of course! She’ll ring it, and you can come running to give her whatever she wants.”

Ember let out a snort, but it did nothing to change the struck look from Severath’s face. The demon appeared to be contemplating his entire life until Ember walked herself out of the washroom and held up her hands. “It was just uh-tee nettles or something. I’m fine—and I really mean it this time.”

“Oh, aren’t you both just two halves of the same kerra melon.” Balran swept past Severath giving him a pointed look up and down. “Use the tincture,” she said and escorted herself down the stairs before he could retort.

Severath remained in the bedchamber doorway studying the floor. Ember watched him as she finished drying her hands on the linen. “Thank you for calling her,” she finally said after she heard the front door close.

“You are feeling better?” He looked up at her sharply then, but the familiarity in his glare settled the tumbling in her stomach, and she nodded.

“Good. I would advise you to rest then as I will be asking for your assistance in the kitchen in the coming days since you are so much more skilled than I.”