Blinking, I opened my eyes to the chamber with the two couches and the tutor. A solid, warm wall braced against my back. No, not a wall. A battle mage, easily twice my height, shifted so I could lean against the couch. His reddish brows knitted, his topaz eyes narrowing, unconvinced by my answer.
“What happened?” I asked.
Laerune stepped closer, her height nearly matching his even as he remained seated. The room threatened to tilt once more, and the stranger allowed me to lean into him, his hands settling at my shoulders, steadying me.
Gods, it needed to stop spinning.
“You burned out,” she said gently, guiding a cup of water into my hands. “It happens when the body is depleted. If you do not eat properly before lessons, it simply cannot keep up.”
Somehow, I managed to lift the cup and drink. The edges of the room finally began to settle.
My memory returned in fragments. Laerune pulling me back from a dark abyss. Blood-red petals drifting over my eyes.
I brushed my fingers over my temples, half expecting to feel the velvety pressure that had sealed my lids shut in the vision.
The battle mage adjusted slightly at my side.
“Thank you…” I said, glancing over my shoulder.
“Heil,” he replied. “Are you feeling better, My Lady? I can take you to Hildegard, or back to your quarters.”
“Not Lady,” I murmured, bracing my hands against the cushions to create a little space between us, even as my legs remained tingling and numb.
“You need to eat, Miss Darling,” Laerune reminded me.
I nodded to her, but my attention went to the name I finally recognized. “Heil, as in the captain of the battle mages?”
His grin was a flash of white teeth against fair, freckled skin. Reddish brown strands barely reached his nape, and his uniform, a black leather jerkin embroidered with sigils and leather trousers, looked like something Gwin wore.
“Heilrich, yes. Most people call me Heil. A pleasure to meet you, My—”
“Jane,” I said quickly. “Thank you, Heil.”
“Fortunately, the captain was nearby when we needed him,” Laerune added.
“Should someone stay with you during practice?” Heil asked me, studying my face with clinical interest, and only then did the full embarrassment hit me.
I had collapsed in front of the tutor and, probably the most capable guard in Mountheim, of all people.
I wished the floor would swallow me whole.
Before I could answer, Gwin’s voice drifted in from the doorway. “She’ll love that. A governess to follow her around.”
She slunk inside, amusement plain on her face, Joy following behind her.
“Are you all right?” my sister asked, her eyes flicking between me and the large man beside me on the couch.
“Fine,” I said, adjusting myself in the seat and flicking a glance at Heil. “No governess.” I turned the last part toward the tutor. “How long have I been out? Is Ms Evenwood already here?”
I was supposed to have the next tutoring session after this.
“Not long. She should arrive in an hour,” Laerune replied. “We can still finish our lesson, but you should eat before we continue, or you’ll be too depleted for thisandthe next lesson.”
“Why don’t you fetch your sister something?” Gwin suggested to Joy.
Joy blinked. “I don’t even know where the kitchen is.”
Heil cleared his throat, the sound low and courteous, as he shifted away from the couch. “I can escort you, if I’m no longer needed.”
