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“How about this?” I said.
He nodded.
I made a note on my clipboard.
“Is that good?” he said.
“It sure is,” I said. “Your body is on the road to making a full recovery. It’s going to take some time—even for a Titan—but it’s good news. I’ve been putting the Healer’s Touch ointment on every hour while you were asleep. It seems to be working.”
I shone the light over his arms, across his chest, and his face. Everywhere showed improvement… Everywhere but his face.
That was to be expected. After all, it was the worst affected location.
Then something struck me about the burns.
I recalled the explosion that happened at the palace that night.
“Plasma fire,” the surgeon had said during the surgery. “Nothing burns like liquid plasma.”
The Changelings had opened fire on the emperor’s palace using plasma cannons. Could he have witnessed the attack first hand?
“Were you anywhere near the palace the night the attack happened by any chance?” I said. “Is that how you sustained these injuries?”
Fiath took a moment and gazed at me.
If I had to guess, I would have said he was considering how he was going to reply.
With the truth? Or with a lie?
“I was near it,” he admitted. “A wave of it washed over me.”
“That’s what I thought,” I said.
Still, something didn’t quite sound right. I’d seen the explosion with my own eyes, even if it was from a distance. The blast had been very powerful but the liquid plasma cooled quickly and hadn’t spread far.
Maybe Fiath was a guard and now he felt guilty for failing to protect the emperor. The warriors might blame him for what happened. The atmosphere was febrile. All it would take to explode was a single spark.
“Are you married?” Fiath asked.
I blinked, taken aback by the question.
“Married?” I said. “Why would you ask that?”
“You’re very kind, smart, and beautiful. I would assume your husband back on your home planet would be very worried about you.”
“I’m not married. I was supposed to be married by now though.”
“You are betrothed?”
“Betrothed? No. We haven’t done that in years.”
“Then how are you supposed to be married by now?”
“I was engaged. Am engaged. I’m not sure which tense to use.”
“You’re promised to another?”
“Yes,” I said.
