A Dove's Tale

Chapter 76

The pain was still there when I woke up, but everything else was different. I was in a bed, a warm, comfortable bed, in a clean, soft nightgown. There wasn’t any dried blood crusting my hair to my skin, and I couldn’t detect a trace of damp, mustiness, blood, or any other foul odors at all. Just antiseptic and medicine, strangely comforting smells that reminded me of Mother. With my eyes closed, I could almost believe this was the most wonderful dream.

Except for the ever-present pain. It tainted all the pleasant sensations with a constant stabbing, throbbing, aching, and burning that immobilized me. Or maybe that was the many layers of cloth wrapped around my limbs, thicker in areas like my wrists, keeping me from even bending my joints.

Prince Chevalier hadn’t been a dream, had he? He’d really rescued me, right? This wasn’t just another sick way they’d found to torture me? Or were they just fixing me up enough to keep me alive a little longer?

Someone was touching my arm. I opened my eyes, and a face hovered above me - a face I didn’t recognize. An older man, heavily wrinkled, gray hair, bushy eyebrows and mustache, gray eyes, glasses.

“Well, look who’s finally awake,” he said, his wrinkled face creasing into a smile.

The anxiety that had been building within me erupted into a full-blown panic. I sat bolt upright, ready to run, but pain shot through me and I cried out, temporarily blinded by its intensity. The stranger was still speaking, and now I felt his hand on my shoulder, pushing me back down.

“It’s okay, no need to be afraid.”

His voice was kind, and the pain was unbearable, but still I struggled. I didn’t recognize him. I couldn’t trust him. It could be a trick; he could be just as cruel as the others.

Why had Prince Chevalier left me?

“Ivetta.”

His voice answered the cry of my heart, flooding me with relief even before I saw his face. He appeared on my other side, and I immediately stopped fighting. I looked up into his crystal blue eyes, panting for breath, as he gently brushed the hair out of my face.

He was here. He was really here. It really was over.

“He’s the doctor, Ivetta. You’re safe.”

I stared up at Prince Chevalier, his comforting words washing over me and washing the fear away. I’d begged him to stay, and he had.

This was better than a dream.

I felt the doctor’s touch on my other side again, and I flinched, but I couldn’t look away from Prince Chevalier.

“Don’t mind me, Miss Ivetta. All I’m doing is changing your bandages,” the doctor said reassuringly. “You’ve been through quite an ordeal. It’s really a miracle you’re alive. The blood loss alone should have killed you, and you have extensive injuries that will take some time to heal, including many broken bones and lacerations. I’ll have to insist that you stay in bed and rest until you’ve fully recovered.”

He wouldn’t get an argument from me. Even the bed shifting as Prince Chevalier sat next to me made me wince. I closed my eyes, already exhausted after that struggle, and Prince Chevalier took my hand while the doctor worked. Had he ever held my hand before? I couldn’t remember, and it didn’t matter. He was holding it now, his touch confirming the reality of his presence.

“There, all done. How’s your pain?”

I opened my eyes again and looked up at the doctor. Now that I had calmed down, I could see he was just a sweet old man. A sweet old man who had brought me back from the brink of death and didn’t deserve my initial reaction to him. I wished I could tell him the pain wasn’t bad, that he’d resolved it just by changing my bandages, but I knew neither he nor Prince Chevalier would accept anything other than the truth.

“Bad,” I said quietly.

His smile didn’t waver. “Well, now that you’re awake, I can give you something for it. Are you feeling up to eating?”

I couldn’t even think about eating without feeling nauseous. Everything just hurt so much.

“Not right now.”

“That’s okay. I’ll be right back with the pain medicine. It’ll still be another hour before that takes effect, but then you’ll start feeling much better.”

“Thank you. And…sorry,” I added sheepishly.

“Don’t worry about it. I know my face isn’t the nicest thing to wake up to,” he said, winking as he left the room.

The door closed, and I looked back at Prince Chevalier, his pale blue eyes focused only on me.

“Thank you, Prince Chevalier,” I said softly. For calming me down, for rescuing me, for a million reasons, none of which I could express adequately.

“There is no reason for you to thank me. It was your association with me that made you a target,” he said quietly.

No reason to thank him? He’d literally saved my life.

“It’s not your fault,” I said earnestly. If anything, it was mine.

“I’ve known of Flandre’s opposition to me for some time. He had been relatively harmless until he sent that assassin, but I deemed it more valuable to let him continue his activities than to arrest him, so I could use him to identify other, more dangerous individuals. I didn’t realize he would stoop to this level of imbecility and cruelty.”

There was a bitter edge to Prince Chevalier’s voice. What he said was true, and yet, I knew it just wasn’t possible to account for all the variables. Like me. He’d told me before how unpredictable I was.

“It was my choice to stay,” I reminded him.

He didn’t reply, gazing at me while his thumb gently rubbed the back of my hand. It was such a simple motion, but it made my heart feel fuzzy.

“Here we are,” the doctor said brightly as he returned. “These will help.” He set a few pills and a glass of water on the nightstand beside me. “Now, you’ll have to sit up enough to drink a little water. It’s going to hurt, but only for a moment. Okay?”

I nodded. Everything hurt already; what was a little more pain?

“Are you ready?” Prince Chevalier asked. I looked back at him, shifting to sit by my shoulder, and I realized he was going to help me up.

“Y-yes,” I said nervously.

His arm slipped under my back, gently lifting me, and the pain shot through me again. I whimpered as it squeezed the air out of my lungs and wrenched my insides, shutting my eyes tightly and gasping for breath.

“That should be enough,” the doctor said. “Now, when you’re ready, open up. And if you can, drink the whole glass.”

When I was ready. I just wanted to get this over with. My whole body was on fire, and it was so embarrassing that I couldn’t even sit up on my own, that Prince Chevalier had to hold me steady while the doctor put the pills in my mouth and held the glass of water to my lips. At least the water was cooling and refreshing to my parched throat. And, though the doctor had to wipe my chin like I was a child, his smile wasn’t patronizing, but encouraging.

“Alright. I’ll leave you two alone, but I won’t be far if you need me,” he said, giving me another friendly smile as he left.

I whimpered and closed my eyes again as Prince Chevalier gently lowered me back down onto the bed. He lay down next to me, keeping his arm under my shoulders and brushing my hair back from my face to place a light kiss on my forehead.

“I’m sorry, Ivetta,” he murmured, settling his cheek on the pillow next to me.

I shook my head slightly, too tired to argue that this wasn’t his fault. He pulled the blankets up to my chin and found my hand, resting his lightly on top of mine. His breath was warm and comforting on my skin, and although I knew it was too soon for the pain medicine to be working, I already felt better.

“You stayed with me,” I said softly.

“I promised I would.”

His fingers slid carefully between mine, and I realized he wasn’t wearing his gloves. Every touch was so light and gentle, as if he were afraid of breaking me. The terrifying, brutal force I saw in the dungeons was gone. I hoped I never had to see it again.

How long ago was that?

“How long was I…asleep?”

Or unconscious, but asleep sounded better.

“Three days. There are better ways to get your rest, little dove,” he added, the hint of a tease in his voice.

Three days. He’d stayed with me for three days. Longer. What about his work? The gala? No, that had to be over by now. But he had responsibilities other than me. I opened my heavy eyelids and turned my head to meet his warm blue eyes, so close to mine, on the pillow. He was smiling.

“I’ll be fine if you want to go.”

His hand left mine to trace a feather-light finger down my cheek. “I’d rather stay.”

“But-”

He silenced me with a kiss, or as close a facsimile as I could handle, his lips just lightly brushing against mine.

“I love you, Ivetta,” he murmured, his finger leaving my cheek but his warm breath lingering on my lips. “Go back to sleep. I’ll leave when you’re resting again.”

“Okay,” I mumbled, letting my eyelids fall shut. “I love you, too.”

Even the butterflies were too tired to do more than raise their wings in a single, weary flap in my stomach. His hand found mine again, larger and stronger, but infinitely tender. Just like the rest of him. He was as close to me as possible without touching me anywhere except his arm under my shoulders and his hand on mine, his breath warming my face, and I smelled the roses again, wrapping around me and lulling me to sleep.

He was gone when I awoke, the pillow empty beside my head, but I wasn’t afraid, even though someone was pulling the blankets away. I opened my eyes to see the doctor’s kind face.

“Hello again,” he said, his wrinkles deepening as he smiled. “How are you feeling now?”

“A little better,” I said truthfully. The pain had dulled a bit, though it was still overwhelming.

“Ready to eat?”

“Not yet.”

“Well, that will come,” he said, keeping up the conversation while he examined me. “The best thing for you right now is sleep. If I don’t miss my guess, you’ll be hungry as a horse tomorrow.”

“Where…where is Prince Chevalier?” I asked hesitantly.

“In the study working, I expect,” the doctor replied, his mustache twitching. “I’m sure he has a lot to catch up on, after sleeping on that sofa for three days.”

I felt a stab of guilt and embarrassment. “Sleeping on the sofa?”

The doctor’s gray eyes twinkled. “He refused to leave until you were awake.”

“Oh.” Heat flared in my cheeks. I hadn’t realized he’d stayed in the same room with me for three days.

“Don’t you worry,” the doctor said, chuckling. “I didn’t let him see anything he shouldn’t.”

That only made my cheeks hotter. Of course, I had to be changed and cleaned. I’d done the same for Mother before she died, and I knew how much it embarrassed her to have her daughter attending to such tasks. I hadn’t even thought of the doctor doing that for me, or the possibility of Prince Chevalier seeing me.

“I can’t really blame him for sticking so close,” the doctor continued. “You were at death’s door when he found you. When that soldier burst into the hospital tent telling me Prince Chevalier was bringing me a patient that had to be seen immediately, I don’t mind telling you, that irritated me. The sickest, the most badly injured, they get my attention first, regardless of rank or royal favor. And I was already grumpy about being dragged out of bed in the middle of the night, nevermind marching nonstop all day and then having to set up my tent in the dark with less than an hour of rest. But then I saw you, and, well, you certainly needed the most attention. I’ve never seen Prince Chevalier so upset.”

That answered and raised a lot of questions. He was an army doctor. I hadn’t realized that, but it made sense. He was the only doctor available when Prince Chevalier found me. That would also account for Prince Chevalier’s trust in him, since they’d probably worked together quite a lot through the years and the many battle campaigns that marked Prince Chevalier’s history.

Prince Chevalier raised an army in the middle of the night for me.

“Thank you for taking such good care of me, doctor.”

He smiled kindly down at me, his gray eyes twinkling. “I was just thinking, I’m getting too old for all this, and then you came along. Now, I’m under orders to stay with you until you’ve recovered.”

“I’ll try to behave,” I said, smiling back at him.

He chuckled. “I don’t really mind. One patient in a quiet country estate? It’s not retirement, but it’s close enough.”

“We’re not at the palace?”

“You won’t be making that trip for a while,” he replied. “This is the former Baron Flandre’s estate. He’s the one who put you in this state, and now he’s financing your recovery. Speaking of which, you’d better get some rest. Prince Chevalier won’t be back until the morning, and if you don’t want him sleeping on that sofa again, you’re going to have to show some improvement.”

I still had more questions, but my head was hurting again anyway, so I did my best to put them out of my mind and follow the doctor’s orders. It wasn’t hard. Between strong medicine and a spent body, I slept most of the day, waking only when the doctor was attending to me. His cheerful manner and steady stream of conversation helped distract me from what he was doing, something I needed as the pain progressively lessened and embarrassment came flooding back. He had to do everything for me. Everything. I couldn’t even lift my hand to help.

This was going to be a long recovery.