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“The palpitations I have learned to control, for the most part, but you may actually make them worse.” Mendex smirked.
Confused at the statement, I confirmed, “Mendex, I promised that I would not harm you. I have been trained to lower the heart rate, and my abilities cannot go far enough to stop the heart, anyway.”
He gave me a long glance. “That isn’t what I meant, but I still appreciate the reassurance.”
Well, what the hell did he mean then?
“I need to be in perfect health to properly attend and watch over the prince, so I may need to call you often to treat wounds or muscle aches.”
I was annoyed at the idea of constantly having to work him into my schedule. I didn’t care if that made me a selfish healer—I became one years ago.
As if he could read my thoughts, he cleared his throat and said, “However, I have also learned to tend to my own wounds and have trained well enough to avoid injury, so I will only call you if necessary. I promise, I won’t be too much of a bother.”
I smiled in appreciation. I’d heard stories from the other healers in the castle who had been assigned long-term patients that took advantage of them and their abilities. Every small headache, minor inconvenience, or even a paper cut had them calling to their healers for help. What many people didn’t know was that our Artis blood had limits. Using it too often or too much at once was draining, physically and mentally. We needed to give our blood time to restore before we healed again, or the magic would not cooperate.
“It is standard for me to show you my craft in case you choose to deny my help. Would you like for me to show you now?” I asked.
“Absolutely,” he said enthusiastically.
“How is your heart rate right now?”
He shrugged. “It’s fast, but nothing I haven’t become used to.”
“Okay, I am going to slow it down a bit. This will help any unnecessary anxiety or stress that comes with the palpitations and will relax any tension in your body. If you want, you may close your eyes. It will only be a few moments until you feel some relief.”
I stretched out my left hand and placed it on the center of his chest. His heartbeat was extremely fast. From what I could tell, it felt like it was beating at about one hundred and forty beats per minute. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, letting my craft take over and my magic seep into my hand. The tingling sensation and adrenaline flowed through my veins. I felt the heartbeat begin to slow and opened my eyes to ask, “Are you doing okay?”
“Stars, yes. You can keep going,” he said with a groan.
I continued using my craft until his heartbeat sat at about eighty beats per minute before I removed my hand from his chest.
I noticed that Mendex’s posture had slouched slightly, the tension now released from his shoulders.
He looked at me with utter amazement. “Rhia,” he stuttered. “You’re incredible, thank you.”
My cheeks warmed slightly at the compliment. “As much as I appreciate the flattery, any healer is capable of this, not just me.”
When I stood up from the settee, he grabbed my wrist and again said, “Thank you.”
I smiled in return and wondered how much of a strain the palpitations were having on his body, and suddenly felt guilty for getting annoyed at the thought of having to consistently heal him.
Mendex walked me to the door and added, “I feel it is only right that I offer something to you in exchange for your help.”
“You don’t owe me anything, it is my job to help those who need it.” I gave him a reassuring smile. “My needs are covered here in the castle by the king.”
“Still,” he added, “let me offer you protection. Bennett often refuses my guardianship anyway, so if there is ever a time you feel you may need my assistance in anything, please ask, and I will be there.”
I almost said that I didn’t need his help and that I was perfectly capable of defending myself, that I could even be protecting him if he wanted it, but instead I opted for a simple, “Thank you,” and strode out of the room, down the hall, and to the bed that had been begging me to rest.
???
How a week had already passed was astonishing. Time was not on my side as I walked to meet Bennett in the training room. Every one of my steps took effort, as if my body was trying to warn my mind that this was a bad idea.
I had spent every day in the training room with Miles, except for yesterday, to give my body time to rest and prepare. I visited Mendex twice this past week, once to calm the palpitations and another to heal a slice on his arm caused by the sword of a fellow guard during training.
Both visits went respectively well, and I had to admit that so far, I liked Mendex. He was always kind to me during our sessions and matched my energy, which I appreciated. I could honestly see us becoming fast friends. I was happy that we got along so well, especially after Miles expressed his newfound friendship with him, too. Miles had always been best friends with me and Amica, but I often wanted him to find a guy that he could befriend, too. Someone who could relate to him on a different level. That used to be Bennett, and when he left, it was almost as if Miles didn’t feel like searching for another companion and became comfortable with just having Amica and I.
I, of course, shared every detail of my healing sessions with Amica and began to notice how her eyes would wander to Mendex when we would watch the guards train after dinner. Amica had to visit Bennett nightly to relieve his migraines, and, to my surprise, she told me that he did not refuse or disregard her help, but every one of their sessions had been completed in silence, aside from the typical greeting and farewell.
