Kull scooted closer to me, and I avoided his gaze as he lifted the gauze and inspected my wound. A black scab had formed over the gash, and as he touched the skin surrounding it, thick green liquid oozed out. He wiped the fluid away.
“That’s disgusting,” I said. “What is it?”
“The spider venom had already begun to transform your blood. If left untreated, your blood would have been completely taken over by the poison. But now you have nothing to worry about. Your body is only expelling the remains of the blood that had been transformed.”
He wiped away another drop of the tarry substance as it trickled down my leg, making me remember the legend of the witch who drained blood. Perhaps we had the answer to Heidel’s legend.
“Where is Heidel?” I asked.
“She’s preparing our midday meal,” he answered as he found another strip of white fabric in his pack. “You will need to change your dressings regularly and keep the area as clean as possible.”
He spoke in his overbearing, know-it-all voice. I hated that voice.
“Also,” he added, “we have lost time as it is, and if you feel you cannot keep up, then it would be best for you to remain here until Heidel and I return. I have already wasted precious time tending to you, and after I have finished wrapping your wound, you must be responsible for your own care. I will not do this for you. You are still at risk for infection, so you must keep a close eye on the wound.”
Prince Charming today, wasn’t he?
“Am I at risk for infection?” I asked, feigning ignorance. “I had no idea.”
He eyed me. “You do not believe so?”
“Nope, no idea. Although I spent five years of my life in medical training, I am glad you are here to explain basic wound care to me.”
He growled. “I see you are back to your usual, difficult self.”
“Difficult?”
“Yes. Difficult. If you will please do me a favor and avoid any further injuries, I believe our quest will go much smoother.”
“I see. As it happens, I wasn’t alone when I was injured. In fact, I was fighting alongside some guy wielding a huge broadsword—one that he claims can defeat anything, except, I suppose, four-foot-tall wood sprites with sharp, pointy rocks tied to sticks.”
His eyes narrowed. “It was dark, and we were ambushed.”
“When did that ever matter? You’re supposed to be able to fight anything. You killed a jagamoor with your hands tied up. Your tears can cure any ailment. You’re a freaking Asgardian god for goodness’ sake. Since when did a little ambush in the dark matter?”
He flexed his jaw.
I was getting under his skin. Good. I was feeling better already. Maybe I should do this more often.
“We never should have made this quest together. Were you one of my subjects, I would charge you with blasphemy and send you to the dungeons.”
“Is that so? I’ve heard you’ve done quite a bit of sentencing lately.”
His eyes darkened, but it didn’t deter me.
“You should know I count my blessings every day that I am not one of your subjects. And while we’re talking about it, I would appreciate a little more respect. You’ve been on my case since we got here.”
“I have not.” He wrapped the gauze too tightly and pinched my skin, making me draw back, forcing him to unwrap my wound and start over.
“You have been on my case, and I can prove it. I restored your life after you were attacked in the forest, yet you never thought it worth your time to thank me. You’ve spent more time sulking in your chambers than you’ve spent helping us search for the fairies’ stone. You’ve not said a single kind word to anyone since you arrived in Earth Kingdom. I don’t know what’s worse, being treated as if I don’t exist, or being yelled at. It’s no wonder my magic is so screwed up—I can hardly function with you around.”
“One could say the same about you. And for the record, I did thank you after you healed me.”
Did he? Even so, it didn’t matter. It didn’t exonerate him from the rest of his crimes.
“This was a pointless quest,” I mumbled, turning away from him. “We’ll never find who took the unicorns’ stone as long you keep acting like a royal pain in the ass.”
“What did you call me?”
“A pain in the ass,” I said, enunciating each word. “It’s no wonder everyone is too afraid to be around you. Your own men wouldn’t even check on you when you were almost dead—that’s how afraid they are.”
“Enough!” He stopped wrapping the gauze. “You cannot speak to me this way. It is enough that I was duty bound to make the quest to Earth Kingdom. Had it not been for that oath, I would have never in a million years willingly made the journey. You have no idea how hard it was for me to leave my warriors behind—during a key skirmish in the Northlands, no less—to seek out the lost starstone. But my ancestors swore an oath—one that I seriously contemplated breaking—and I had no choice but to journey to Earth Kingdom.
“I have come to learn that I must set an example for my people. They watch my every move. They search constantly for my slightest weakness. When I tell you it is not easy being king, I am certain you do not understand, for you have never had such responsibilities in your life. But hear me now—I will not allow you to speak to me in such a manner. For if I let anyone, even you, treat me in such a way, then the entire kingdom will soon follow. They loathe me as their king as it is and wish nothing more than to have my father return and be their ruler.”
The anger I’d harbored for him diminished a tiny bit. Did he seriously believe his people hated him that much?
His hands were shaking, so I took the gauze from
