I close my eyes and try to think. All it does is make my brain hurt. I look at Sage. “I don’t know, but I’m getting a headache.”
She stands and lays her hand on my arm. “It’s not important right now. Why don’t you try and get some rest. It’s the best thing you can do.”
A part of me wants to argue that I’ve slept enough, except the fatigue has been growing since before Ortak and Gannen left. I’d forced myself to not doze while they were here. I nod in acceptance and shut my eyes. Hopefully when I wake up, the brain fuzziness will start clearing up and my memories will slowly return.
Consciousness creeps in and a foggy sense of awareness runs through me that I’m lying down on a hard surface. An earthy, medicinal odor fills the air along with the faint scent of smoke and cooked meat. I open my eyes. An arched hide roof blocks my view of the sky, but streams of light filter in through narrow cracks.
My body aches—especially my leg—but not nearly as bad as it did yesterday. At least, I assume it was yesterday and that I haven’t lost more days. God, I still can’t believe I might have been in that hole for two days. Briefly, I try to recall the last timeI was in the human settlement or why I left.I lie there for a few minutes until puzzle pieces fit together.
I remember it was early in the morning. Long before most of the other residents rise. The sun hadn’t crested the horizon yet. In fact, both moons were still visible in the sky. I know I’d been talking to Alice and afterward I went into my tent to put my shoes on. I threw back the last swallow of cold coffee and chucked the mug onto my sleeping pallet, wincing at the harsh clunk sound and praying I hadn’t broken it. Everything after that is a murky mess. It’s like there’s a sieve inside my brain filtering stuff out.
“Fuck.”
“You are awake,” a masculine, and unfamiliar, voice announces.
I jerk my head and standing a short distance away is a slender—but still muscular—lavender alien with his golden hair plaited in some intricate design. Although the longer I look at him, the more I realize his hair is streaked with nearly white shades and portions of his skin is a faded gray, like he’s a bit on the older side.
“Apologies. I did not mean to startle you.” He bows his head. “I am Kyler, one of the Tavikhi healers. Sage will be here after she has seen to her mate and kit. Can I get you anything? Something to eat or drink? Anything for pain?”
The tension I didn’t realize I’d been holding loosens and I draw in a breath, which brings my focus to how dry my mouth is. I try to swallow, but it’s not easy. “Water, please.”
“Of course.” Kyler fills a small cup with water from a barrel and brings it to me.
To my relief, I’m able to hold it with both hands and drink without spilling any or dropping it. Once it’s empty, I pass it back. “Thanks.”
“How is your leg feeling? And your head?”
“They’re both a little achey, but otherwise okay.” I glance around. “What time is it?”
Kyler glances toward the door. “Only one moon still hangs low in the sky and the sun has crested the horizon. The morning meal recently passed, but the fire still burns low, and food remains if you wish for something to eat.”
I don’t know exactly what that means, but it gives me a general idea. “Is…um, is Ortak still here?”
He shakes his head. “He and Gannen left before the morning meal.”
“Ah, oh, okay.” I shouldn’t be surprised neither of them said goodbye. Doesn’t mean my feelings aren’t a little hurt. Like last night, they just…left.
Shake it off, El.
A sudden and uncomfortable urge hits. I dart a glance toward the entrance and say a short prayer that Sage walks through any second. She doesn’t. Apparently I am going to experience every humiliation known to man. I cough softly and then curse myself for doing so. Fuck. I don’t have a choice.
“Excuse me, Kyler?” Where’s the giant hole Ortak found me in? Maybe it will swallow me whole again.
“Do you need something?”
I try not to look at his kind face; at the same time I can feel mine burning up with fire. “Yeah, I, uh…god this is mortifying. I need to…”
“Ohh, yes. Come, let me help you up,” he says. “It is not safe to walk on your leg, so you will need to hop. I will make sure you do not fall.”
Crap. Hopping means bouncing and bouncing means gravity. After I get back to the human settlement, I am never returning to the Tavikhi village again. There’s no way I’ll be able to set foot in here after this. Kyler is gentle in sitting me up and draping my arm over his shoulders. He bears most of my weight as we make our way to a curtained off area of the larger tent.
Behind it are two raised platforms similar to the ones out in the main area as well as a type of wooden box with a round hole in the center. Resting on the surface of the box is a stack of folded pieces of leather, a basin of water, and a bowl of the berries that lather like soap. On the ground next to it is a small woven basket.We pivot and Kyler lowers me to the box.
“I will step outside,” he says, without looking at me. “Toss the cloths in the basket when you are finished, and call out when you are ready.”
Then, he’s gone, and I’m left in peace. We barely traveled fifty feet, yet I’m winded. My leg throbs, too. I glance down at the weird cast thing. I poke and prod to determine how hearty and sturdy it is. It’s definitely more than a basic splint. Not quite as solid and rigid as a real cast, but it feels secure enough to keep the broken bone in place. It’s not my first broken leg, but it’s definitely the first one that’s been doctored by primitive medicine. Christ, if my parents could see me now.
Quickly, I take care of my personal business and use the water and berries to cleanse my hands. I drop the used leather scraps into the basket and try my best not to be completely self-conscious of the fact I had to perform a normal bodily function. There is nothing to be embarrassed about.
