Alicia sat upright, and discreetly looked down at her own figure momentarily.
“Did you love her?” she asked.
“I did. I do. I’m not sure,” Kestrel started on the newest ale to arrive, slumping forward and struggling to drink it. “I knew I had to leave her, but I think we could have been happy together. She knew I was an elf, and it didn’t bother her. She’s got such a good heart. I could trust her,” he sighed deeply, then sat back and his head tilted backwards as he began to snore.
Alicia took several coins from her purse and placed them on the table, then came around the corner and lugged Kestrel’s arm up over her shoulder, and began to walk him out of the tavern, him dragging more than moving his legs. As soon as she reached the gate of the base a pair of guards came to relieve her, and took him to her designated surgery room.
Silvan was there waiting for her. “How’s our volunteer? Did he spend the afternoon cursing you? I’m sorry you had to put up with that,” the colonel comforted his wife as she began to tie the straps in place.
“No, he was well-behaved. We talked about male virility,” she looked up at Silvan. “He says he doesn’t have any problems.”
The colonel’s face colored faintly, but his wife continued. “He sold the yeti parts for one hundred twenty golds, and gave most of the proceeds to a pretty human widow. I’m fairly confident that if you ever couldn’t find your agent here, he’d be at a house over a leather goods shop.”
Alicia placed the blocks beside his head, and strapped his head rigidly in place, then opened a skin of the healing water and placed it within reach. “I’m going to start cutting now, so you might as well leave the room and let me concentrate on this now.”
Silvan obligingly departed from the room, and Alicia picked up one of the finely honed cutting knife. “Poor Kestrel,” she whispered. “So much confusion in that good heart of yours. I’m afraid things aren’t going to get any easier from here on out.”
And then she put her blade to work, reshaping his identity once again.
Chapter 28 — The Operation
When Kestrel awoke, Giardell was standing in the room keeping watch over him.
“Can you release me?” Kestrel asked, rattling the straps that held his wrists in place.
“I’ll go wake the doctor, and she can tell,” Giardell answered. He stepped out of the room and returned within two minutes, Alicia coming behind him and hurriedly wrapping a robe around herself as she arrived.
“How are you Kestrel?” she asked, as she started to unwrap his bandages.
“I’m thirsty, and my ears hurt,” he said.
She stopped working on the bandages and held a straw to his lips. “Here, drink slowly,” she instructed.
“Why do my ears hurt?” Kestrel asked.
“I didn’t use as much of the healing water this time,” Alicia explained as she finished taking the largest bandages away. “I got to thinking that it might contribute to the restoration of your elven features, so I really only used a light touch of the water this time to help you heal.”
Kestrel could suddenly see light as she removed the gauze from his eyes and begin to touch his eyebrows. “They’re still a little swollen, but within a couple of days they’ll be fine,” she spoke to herself.
“Can you unstrap my arms and legs?” Kestrel asked.
“Will you promise not to try to harm me?” Alicia asked, stepping back from him.
“I’ll promise, this time,” Kestrel agreed, making Giardell give a quick guffaw as he stood watch over the doctor and patient.
Alicia unbuckled the straps on his wrists and upper arms, then his ankles and legs. She returned to his head as he massaged his hands. After she had the blocks removed and the bandages off his ears, she picked up a small mirror.
“Sit up and take a look, Kestrel,” she told him.
He accepted the mirror and examined himself.
“They’re still a little swollen, but that’ll be gone before you get to Firheng. By the time you get back to Estone, Merilla will be ready to welcome you as a handsome human lover with open arms,” Alicia told him.
“But no elf maid would have me,” he retorted.
“You don’t know that,” Alicia snapped back.
“Go wake the colonel,” she told Giardell.
“Didn’t he wake when you woke up?” Kestrel asked as the guard left the room.
“We aren’t sleeping together,” she replied. “Tonight,” she added after a second’s thought. “I slept apart so that I could come see you if needed.”
They remained silent after that, as Alicia bent her face down close to Kestrel’s, peering closely at the relocated eyebrows, as his eyes examined her complexion and her features, noting the seeming perfection of her skin and her chin, on which he noticed a very slight cleft, and especially her lips. Her robe hung loose and gaped slightly, allowing his vision to follow her throat line down to her chest, and the slight swelling of her breasts, a clean smooth surface of flawless light skin.
“Well, how’s the subject?” Silvan asked as he entered the room.
“He’s in good shape,” Alicia responded. “There’s more swelling than last time, but I think that’s only because I used less of the healing water.
“I’ll fix some willow bark for you right now,” she looked down at Kestrel’s eyes as she stepped away from him.
“If you want me to hold him here, or if he wants to stay here for observation, we can plan to do that. Otherwise, I think your new human is ready to be sent up to Firheng and Estone; he knows the way pretty well by now, don’t you, Kestrel?” she continued.
“What would you like to do, Kestrel?” Silvan asked. “Leave once the sun is up, or stay for a day or two to be sure this is good?”
“I’m not a ‘new human,’” Kestrel said testily. “The ears don’t make me more human. I’ll trust her; I’ll be ready to go this morning. Will this be the real assignment, or just more practice and testing?” he asked.
“This will be the true assignment,” Silvan began.
“I’m sorry Kestrel; I didn’t mean to say it offensively,” Alicia interrupted, returning to hand her patient a small mug of painkiller.
“It’s okay,” he muttered in reply, then began to drink from the mug, and looked at Silvan for more information.
“We will assign you to travel up to Estone, to take a ship from there to the Great Sea, and then back through the Inland Seas to Graylee. We want you to learn what is happening in Graylee and Hydrotaz; they are the ones attacking us,” Silvan told Kestrel. “With the seasons starting to change, we’ll want to get you moving before the shipping lanes close down, and we’ll want to get you into Graylee in time to join their forces before they begin attacks next spring.
“I’ll write most of this up and send it with you in a messenger tube to Firheng. You can spend a few days there practicing your skills, while I put together more details and plans that I’ll send up to you in the next few days,” Silvan explained.
Kestrel nodded his head as he finished sipping the bitter drink Alicia had prepared.
“Let’s let Kestrel get some sleep,” Alicia suggested. “We can send him on his way in the morning.”
Once they all departed, Kestrel lay back on the thin cushion of his cot and thought about his return to human form. He’d have to skulk along the roads for the next few days to get to Firheng, and he’d need to keep a hood up at all times, as well as sleep in trees, no matter what the weather. And he’d have to remember to take another skin of healing water back to Belinda, he decided, so that she could continue to treat her husband.
Amid those random thoughts, sleep overcame him. He awoke the next morning to the sight of Alicia, dressed and active, preparing another dose of willow bark for him to take. “And here are the powders for three more,” she gave him a small leather pouch.
“May I have a skin of healing water?” Kestrel asked.
