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Chapter 24
Warmth. Dry warmth.
I had almost forgotten what it felt like. My toes wiggled happily as a rough wool blanket rubbed against my skin all the way up to my chest. My eyelids felt incredibly heavy, but I was able to open them slowly.
Was it all a dream? The whole journey? Was I about to wake up in my gold-painted bed, ready to be dressed, fed, and spoiled once more?
“She’s waking,” Henrike’s voice entered my ears.
My blurry vision slowly cleared as I sat up. I was in a small bed in some sort of tiny bedchamber with nothing more than a fireplace and simple wooden dresser. Alrick came storming through the doorway and rushed to my side, right next to Henrike, who was sitting on the bed with me.
“Thank the gods,” Alrick mumbled, pulling me into a tight embrace.
“You scared me.” His warmth felt incredible. My cheeks turned red.
“I...I’m sorry. Have I slowed us down?”
“Slowed?” Henrike laughed. “Alrick rode Fiona with you in his arms as if the gods of the underworld were after us.”
Alrick let go of me but remained close by my side. “You need to eat more.”
My hands slipped down to my growling stomach. I realized for the first time that I was wearing a strange wool nightgown. That, and nothing else! I pulled the blanket back up all the way to my neck.
“Alrick fed you porridge and soup all night, but you need more than that,” Henrike said.
“You have been feeding me all night?” I looked at Alrick, cheeks still red, blanket pressed to my chin.
He smiled. “Only half of it.”
“The rest of the night we spent rubbing your arms and legs to get you warm again,” Henrike said.
My gaze dropped to the simple, cream-colored cotton blanket.“I apologize. I tried to keep riding. I really did.”
“You have nothing to apologize for,” Alrick said, placing his hand gently on mine. “You made it farther than any of us could have imagined. For someone who has never been outside the comforts of a castle, I’m quite astonished.”
I gave him a smile, bathing in the warmth of his words.
“Your Highness is recovering,” a man in his thirties said, limping into the bedchamber with the aid of a wooden crutch under his arm. “Please, I apologize for my humble quarters.” The man bowed. He had a short beard with an unremarkable face. Neither handsome nor ugly.
“This is Conrad,” Alrick said. “We fought in the war together.”
“What His Lordship is trying to say is that I had the honor to serve under his banner for many years. Until this happened.” He knocked against his leg with the crutch. “Please rest for as long as you want, my home isn’t much, but it is yours. Make sure you have some of my dried meat and bread. I make it myself.”
“Thank you,” I said.
Conrad bowed again, then left, dragging his bad leg behind him in a slow limp.
“He knows who I am.” I looked at Henrike and Alrick to see if they were concerned about this at all.
Henrike handed me bread and dried meat on a wooden plate.“I think we can trust him,” she said. “Besides, we have no other choice. We had to get you out of the rain and feed you or leave you in the woods to die. The mighty princess, dead in the mud.”
I frowned. I was too tired for any verbal jousting now, so I took a large bite of the meat and bread. Alrick watched as I devoured my food like a wild animal.
“I will get fresh water,” Henrike said. She picked up a metal bowl from the floor and left.
I looked out the small window. The rain had turned from a hell-storm to a soft drizzle. It was dark outside, but the trees were still visible. It must have been late afternoon.
“How long have I been asleep?”
