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Before replacing his shirt, he applied a fresh bandage to his back. He was unable to see the damage, but Ali looked nauseous, so he figured it must still be gnarly. The ointment helped to numb the pain.
“How much longer until I can do this myself?” he asked as the healer slipped on his shirt.
The healer inspected the bruises on his chest and side, pressing gently. “It’ll likely be at least another week, maybe two. You’re healing pretty quickly, but you can’t put more stress on this. It’s still going to hurt, but you should be able to move around more freely soon. Be patient.”
He sighed, then winced as the deep breath irritated his side. The healer cleaned the wounds on his face and added a fresh layer of ointment there, too. He didn’t know what his face looked like either, but he was sure it was mangled by the way everyone stared. It felt like the swelling had gone down, at least. He could breathe through his nostrils again as the bone had been set back in its place.
“I’ll be back in a few hours. If you need anything in the meantime, call for me,” the healer reprimanded.
Eli rolled his eyes.
The healer exited the cell and took his bag of medicine with him. Eli didn’t miss the glance he gave Ali, a nonverbal warning to keep him in bed.
“I brought you breakfast.” Ali approached his bed, staring at him with puppy-dog eyes. A cheap trick, but Eli’s stomach growled when he caught the scent of the sausage and breakfast potatoes.
He reached his hand out to take the bowl from her. Her eyes lit up and he was quick to tear her back down. “This doesn’t mean anything. It just means I’m hungry.” He shoved a spoonful of potatoes into his mouth and stifled a moan. The delicious bites settled his belly, and it made him feel alive for the first time in days.
Ali sat on the edge of his bed and stared at her hands. Her mouth curved down in a frown and if he weren’t so mad, he might’ve felt sorry for her. How had she managed to make him feel sorry for her? It should’ve been the other way around.
It was getting harder to ignore her. Being isolated was for him, and the only human contact he got these days was the healer and Ali. Was he doing more harm to himself than good?
He cleared his throat and poked at the sausages. “What’s new?”
She whipped her head in his direction, startled that he was making conversation. But her mouth perked up and her eyes widened. “Nothing really. Work is quiet, meals are boring. Honestly, time seems to be standing still since you’ve been gone. It’s not the same when you’re not with me.”
He nodded along as if he totally understood what she was saying. He didn’t, though. She was free. She wasn’t stuck in a cell all day and night. He couldn’t think of anything else to say, so he filled his mouth with more potatoes.
“Listen, Eli, I feel like I need to be honest with you—” she started, but before she could finish, Sam interrupted.
“Eli! You’re awake. I have someone here who’d like to see you.” A man he’d never seen before appeared next to Sam. Dark skin and dark hair; he was even more stoic than Sam. He gave a curt nod to Ali, a greeting and a dismissal. He could tell by the way Sam regarded him that this was a man of high position.
Eli didn’t know which was worse, having Ali confess whatever was on her mind or entertaining this new stranger. He didn’t want to be alone, but both options also sounded awful. He’d rather the healer come back to keep him company.
“Ali, can we have a moment with Eli? Alone, thank you.” Sam excused her.
She stood and approached the door of the cell cautiously, clearly uneasy about leaving Eli alone with this new person. She kept her eyes on all of them until she disappeared behind the walls of the cell.
“Eli, I want to introduce you to Jameson, our Head Commander.” He waved a hand in the new man’s direction.
“Head Commander? You’re in charge here?” Eli had an unexplainable knotting in his stomach. He could only think of negative reasons why the head of Rysburg would come to his cell. Was he angry about the fight? Was he here to punish Eli further? Would he be exiled?
Exile doesn’t sound half bad, actually. That’s not a punishment. More like a reward. Maybe I’ve been going about this all wrong.
Jameson stuck out a hand to shake Eli’s. He didn’t seem angry; he stood tall and regal, and his expression gave nothing away. Eli’s eyes flicked to Sam, but his face had that same bored expression he always had. Jameson dropped his hand when he realized Eli had no intention of shaking it.
“What can I do for you?” Eli cringed at his question. It was the polite thing to say, but he didn’t want to do anything for them. He wasn’t offering them anything in good faith. He only wanted to know what the hell they wanted, and how to get them out of his cell.
“I heard about the incident in the courtyard last week,” Jameson said.
Incident? Is that what we’re calling it? Eli tried not to scoff and roll his eyes.
“It may surprise you, but I rarely condone such behavior. I’ve spoken with General Colin to let him know of my distaste for his methods. However, he has never failed at protecting our town, and I give him more freedom to use his own discretion to keep the peace.”
Keep the peace?
Jameson continued, “I think in your case, he may have gone too far. I would like to offer my apologies. Nik has told me this was all a misunderstanding and that you never meant to do any harm. He spoke very highly of you, actually, and insisted that you deserve one of our more prestigious positions. We need an additional guard at the gate if that interests you. You’d need to be trained, of course, but we can wait until you’re healed properly. And I have to know that we can trust you. Nik has spoken on your behalf, but you’ll be supervised until you’ve proven yourself.” He continued on, but Eli was lost in his own thoughts.
Nik said what? What is he playing at? Is this just a ploy to get me away from Ali?
