Taste of Darkness

What if I brought the Peace Lily serum to him? It might accelerate his death like it had with me. He was going to die regardless. But it might work. It was worth a try.

Excited, I straightened. “No one else cares for this patient or even comes near him. Just us. Understand?”

“Yeah.”

“Good. You need to scrub your hands with soap and water before you leave this cavern every single time. Have you touched anyone else since checking him?”

Flea stood. “I don’t think so. I moved him this afternoon, and then you came.”

A bit of good news. “Stay here with him tonight. I’ll bring back a dose of fever powder to make him more comfortable before I leave.”

“Leave? Where are you going?”

“To find a Peace Lily.”

* * *

I debated between speed and safety. The man had a few more days until he experienced stage-three symptoms, and the monkeys would never forgive me if I left without them. Safety won. I fetched the fever powder, soap, and a water bucket for Flea before finding my friends. Despite the late hour, Loren and Quain hadn’t gone to sleep. They waited for me by the hearth.

“What’s going on?” Quain demanded.

“Is Flea all right?” Loren asked.

“He’s fine. There’s a very sick patient that needs care,” I said.

“So why all the secrecy?” Quain asked.

I lowered my voice. “He has the plague.”

“Flea!”

“Shh, Quain. Not Flea. The patient.”

Loren wilted and rubbed his face. “Not this again.”

“Not if I can help it.”

“The healers couldn’t stop it before,” Loren said. “And you’re not sacrificing your life again.”

“I’ve an idea.” I explained about the Peace Lily serum.

Quain jumped to his feet. “Let’s go.”

“What about Flea? Will he get sick, too?” Loren asked.

“No.” I smiled as they both accepted my answer without question. “Bring your packs, it might take us a couple days to find a Peace Lily.” The map wasn’t as accurate in this area and the Death Lily had only shown me its flowers.

“Should we clear it with someone?” Quain asked.

“I don’t need permission to take care of my patients.”

“And when Prince Ryne learns you left the infirmary with just us for protection, he’ll have a fit.” Loren rolled up his blanket.

“I don’t care.”

“Avry.” Loren gave me his don’t-be-stupid look. He usually aimed it at Quain, so I must be acting unreasonable.

“All right. I’ll talk to the person in charge of the infirmary’s security. Do you know—”

“Lieutenant Macon,” Odd said, joining us. He eyed our packs. “And I can guarantee he won’t let you leave with just two protectors.”

“We managed with just Hogan,” I challenged.

“And a dozen Lilys.”

True. And if we ran into an enemy patrol, I didn’t want Quain or Loren to be harmed or captured. Actually, I wanted them and Flea in a safe place like Alga Realm with Kerrick’s brother. But they’d just refuse.

“Wait here, I’ll talk to him.” Muttering under his breath, Odd strode away.

“Do we want to dash while Odd is distracting the L.T.?” Quain asked.

“Tempting, but Cellina is after Avry. And while we can easily handle a dozen...” Loren gave us a wry smile. “If she sent her dead-ufa pack after us, we’d be—”

“Snack food,” Quain finished.

Odd returned. “You can go as long as my squad goes with you. Let me guess, you want to leave now.”

“Yes.”

“I’ll go wake them up. This had better be important.”

“It is.”

Odd’s gaze met mine for a long moment. He nodded. “Give us a couple.”

While Odd roused his men, I consulted the Lily map. East would be the ideal direction to avoid any nasty encounters with the enemy. According to the map, a cluster of Lilys grew a day’s walk roughly northeast.

It seemed as if hours had passed before Odd and his squad were ready. I led them into the forest surrounding the cave. We all went silent and the odd squad practically melted into the darkness. A half-moon shone enough light so we didn’t stumble.

Odd stayed by my side. “Are you going to tell me what this is about?”

“It’s for a patient.”

“And it couldn’t wait for morning?”

“Yes, it could, but I like to bother everyone and drag them out of bed.”

“Okay, dumb question. Give me a break, I’m tired.”

“Sorry. Thank you for coming along.”

Odd grunted.

“I should warn you,” I said.

“This ought to be good.”

“You’re not going to get much sleep in the next two days. A man’s life is at stake.”

“Yeah, I figured. I’m not that tired. Lead on, boss lady.”

Boss lady? That was new. Was Odd being sarcastic? Or just being...well, Odd? He kept pace with me, moving with easy, graceful strides. No signs of tension. I relaxed.

No one said much as the sun rose and traveled across the sky. I spent most of the trip to the Peace Lilys mulling over a number of scenarios. If the Lily gave me its serum, should I inject it all? Or a portion? If the serum killed my patient, would my touch bring him back to life? What if the Lily refused? Tohon had harvested the serum using his life magic, stealing it from the Peace Lilys. Those he injected it into had remained dead, but the serum preserved their bodies, preventing them from decaying. One thing I did know, I wouldn’t steal from the Lily.