Page 62 of Tangled Sails

We reached the door to the king and queen’s chamber and Tavric stopped, taking a moment to collect himself. Then he nodded to the guard, who opened the door.

The room still held the oppressive weight of illness and hopelessness. The queen lay fully clothed beside the king, her hand holding his and her face pressed into his shoulder.

Tavric stepped over to the doctor, who was close at hand. “Is she sleeping?” he asked.

“Yes, and she should not be woken if it can be avoided.”

“Of course,” Tav agreed.

“She was up most of the night worrying about him.” The doctor pressed his lips, his brow furrowed. “He is not doing well, Your Highness.”

Tavric swallowed but nodded. “Will you leave us for a moment?”

The doctor bowed his head and left immediately.

That was good. I didn’t want anyone but Tavric to see this.

Instead of walking straight over to the king’s bed, he hesitated. I could see the toll that seeing his father this way took on him, and I hated myself a little for letting his pain go on for so long.

“Do you ever wish you’d known about my power when you pulled me from the sea?” I asked in a guilty whisper.

“Why would I wish that?”

“If my hair hadn’t been cut, I could have healed your father.”

“If I hadn’t cut your hair, you would have drowned,” he stated.

“So you’ve never thought about it?” I found that hard to believe.

He gave me a grim smile. “Of course I thought about it when you first told me about your gift, but it was more like a fanciful thought than a real lament. The idea that he could be healed by magic is such a foreign one, and your gift was gone long before I knew anything about it.”

“What about now? What if I still had my gift?”

“What ifs are useless. I’m grateful I met you, and that has nothing to do with your powers.” His eyes slid in the direction of his father, sadness pulling at the corners of his eyes. “Besides, he’s been doing better lately. My brothers think I’m foolish to hope, but I can’t help it. There’s still a chance he’ll pull through.”

I swallowed hard and tamped down my nerves. “He will.”

He nodded, but a heavy hopelessness tugged at the corners of his eyes. “I truly hope so.”

“No, Tavric. I mean…” I pulled my hand from his and walked over to stand at the king’s side, then reached out my hand to take King Valtren’s hand, placing my other hand on his chest before looking back at Tavric. “He will,” I promised.

Closing my eyes, I started to sing. Heat rushed to my hands, and I allowed the full strength of my magic to gently flow into the king’s body. This time, I didn’t hold back. I didn’t heal a little here and a little there. Instead, I urged the healing magic to saturate his lungs, to strengthen his heart, to burn off any infection.

It was arduous work. There was so much that needed repair, and I was determined to heal him fully and completely. I willed more magic to pour from my hands, repairing damaged tissue—not because it was expected of me, but because I wanted to.

TAVRIC

I was entranced once again by her song. It was so beautiful, but on top of that, the way she held my father’s hand with such tenderness and strength brought a surge of affection and gratitude into my chest for this marvelous woman who had somehow found her way into my life.

Emotion washed over me as I watched, my eyes transfixed on her lashes as they rested on the curve of her cheeks, fascinated by the way her lips moved as the soft cushion of her voice filled the air. It was incredible, the way the air seemed to clear and lighten just by the sound of her voice.

Then my eyes went to her hand that rested on my father’s chest, right over his heart, and I stopped breathing.

There was a glow under her palm. I squinted, trying to make sense of what I was seeing, and stepped closer. It was there, I was sure of it. Pale golden light was emanating from underneath her hand.

Was she…?

As my father pulled in a full deep breath, the truth hit me. Lyri was healing my father.