To Stand Beside Her

by B. Kristin McMichael

  “You can get your first lesson. How to remove stitches,” Roger said to Anatolio entering the room.

  Anatolio brought Leila to the hospital ward of the palace, and Nalick finally was left to get his work done. With Leila around, Nalick's unfinished work load seemed to only increase day after day. Nalick finally understood why his father always had extra men to help him.

  The hospital staff quickly cleared several rooms for Roger to use. Leila sat alone as Roger and Anatolio cleaned his tools in the nearby room. She was bored with waiting, but they had not left any sharp tools in the room for her to do it herself. Roger returned along with Anatolio.

  “So I hear you have not tried to remove the stitches in your leg?” Roger asked.

  “No, I could find anything sharp enough,” Leila said truthfully. Had she found anything that would cut, she would have removed them a week ago.

  Roger smiled and patted Anatolio on the back. “Then I guess for once I get to do the honors.”

  Leila carefully pulled the edge of her skirt up to her thigh to reveal the stitches. Anatolio was shocked to see how many there were. Roger moved closer and studied the area.

  “Did you take all of the medicine I gave you?” Roger asked.

  “Yes, all of it,” Leila said also looking at her leg.

  Roger began to worry. He explained the procedure thoroughly to Anatolio and then began cutting the stitches, pulling slightly to remove them. When there were only a few left, Roger offered his small scissors and tweezers to Anatolio and asked him to try. Leila watched as the young man meticulously copied the movements Roger had made. Roger stood beside Leila watching also. Roger moved next to her broken leg. He examined it.

  “It has healed enough for you to put a little pressure on it.” Roger examined her leg with the cast removed. “Now I am not saying you can walk on it, but you can use it to balance your weight when standing. You can use crutches to get around now, but I will need to check back in a few weeks to make sure it is still healing. It seems your leg was further away from the poison and not as affected which is fortunate for you,” Roger explained as he reached over and took her hand. Quickly he pricked the tip of her finger.

  “Thanks for the warning,” she said sarcastically. Roger put a drop of her blood on a tin plate. Leila watched as the blood turned from a red color to yellow. “What’s that mean?”

  “You still have some of that poison in your blood. It should have been out of your system by now,” Roger explained. “There must be more left in you. I need to take a look at your back.” Roger rummaged through his bag. “I tested the stones reactions and found something that will indicate where the left over piece is - even through skin.”

  Leila sat on the table and began unhooking the straps of her dress. Anatolio quickly looked away and began to blush when he realized she was undressing in front of him. Leila laughed moving her top to her waist and laid down on the table with her back exposed for Roger. Leila was not shy around Roger.

  “Roger, I think your new apprentice has never seen a naked woman before,” Leila teased.

  “Leila, be nice,” Roger scolded. “He is just a young one.” Roger began to remove the stitches in her back.

  Leila laughed again. Anatolio’s reaction amused her.

  “I guess the best way to lose you when you follow me is to just undress.” Leila cringed feeling Roger spread a cold cream on her back. “You could at least warm it up first,” she complained to Roger.

  “And you could at least be a bit nicer to this boy. He will be around for quite a long time,” Roger replied. He too found it amusing that Anatolio was embarrassed to see Leila’s body, but Roger needed to defend the young man.

  “This is not good,” Roger commented.

  Leila picked up her head to view Roger’s reaction. Over the years she had learned to read his facial expressions, even through his attempts to cover up the truth. Roger was obviously not happy and a bit worried.

  “Leila, how have you been feeling?” Roger asked as he began removing more of his tools from his bag, setting them aside on another table in the room.

  “More tired than normal,” Leila replied giving a yawn to prove her point. Leila had known since the day she left him in Cath something did not seem right, but she assumed it was from being poisoned.

  “I count six more pieces in your back,” Roger said.

  “Good thing Roger came to visit,” Leila said to the entering Nalick as she lowered her upper body slightly to keep herself covered. Anatolio noticed and chuckled to himself. She was modest with Nalick, but did not seem to be with Roger.

  Roger put Leila back to sleep and then removed the extra pieces of poison he had missed. Anatolio watched as Roger delicately cut the skin on Leila’s back. Afterwards he carefully sewed the incision closed and checked again. Anatolio was amazed by the quickness and accuracy that Roger was able to remove the stones. After Roger was finished, Anatolio went to get Nalick.

  “All finished,” Roger explained showing Nalick the small pieces he had removed. “She should heal much quicker now.” Roger placed the stones in a small container. Gently Roger pulled her dress top back on and rebuttoned it. “You can take her upstairs. If you could get me some hot water, we will join you shortly to wake her back up.”

  Nalick tenderly scooped Leila into his arms leaving Roger and Anatolio to clean the surgical instruments.

  “So do you have the stomach to do this?” Roger asked Anatolio who had just seen his first surgery ever.

  “Yes,” Anatolio replied continuing to help clean everything. “Who trained you?”

  “No one,” Roger replied. “In all honesty, I am never quite sure what I am doing, but she depends on me to figure it out. Someday it will need to be you that she looks to.” Roger watched the young man clean each tool. Anatolio was perfect for the job. “You will have a lot to learn, but between me teaching and Leila getting hurt often, I think we will be able to do it.”

  “So you have never seen a naked woman before?” Roger asked, changing the subject and causing Anatolio to blush again. “Well, I will tell you, she pretty much ruins seeing any other woman.” Anatolio was surprised. “I may be old, but I still know who is beautiful. She is probably the most perfect woman you will ever see - clothed or not.” Roger chuckled as he continued to place each instrument in its correct designated location in his bag.

  Anatolio and Roger returned to Leila’s room to find Nalick sitting on the bed watching her. Neither man wanted to interrupt him as they stood in the doorway and watched him tenderly touch her face. The love Nalick felt for Leila was obvious.

  “The water is in the pot on the table,” Nalick said finally noticing. Roger quickly brewed the tea and brought it over to Nalick who gently sat Leila up and helped her drink the tea. After he handed the cup back to Roger, Nalick again laid her down on the bed. A few minutes later, Leila slowly opened her eyes.

  “It better be the same day,” she warned Roger who laughed.

  “See,” Roger said to Anatolio who still stood in the doorway. “Good as normal.” Roger was on his way back home, and Leila was left to spend two more weeks recovering.

  Since Roger had given Leila his approval to move around carefully, she spent every morning working with Anatolio and Theo the following two weeks while waiting for Roger’s return; she tried her best to teach Anatolio how to fight better without physically showing him how to do anything. She was quite surprised to see how quickly Anatolio progressed and had no doubts as to why Nalick had chosen him. Each day they worked on a new move, and by lunch time he had mastered it. With Leila able to move more, Nalick could go back to his work full time, but Nalick was even more distracted without her around. The day before Roger was to return for the second time, Nalick left his office before lunch to check on Leila. She was in the training court yard. Nalick was surprised to find that she was not just there with Anatolio and Theo anymore.

  “Why are so many people here?” Nalick asked the nearest man.

&nbs
p; “I heard Nikias agreed to fight Anatolio,” the young man said eagerly.

  Down below, Nalick watched as several people helped Leila sit back down. She did not see him in the crowd nor did she seem to see the crowd at all. Nalick stood with the men and watched as Nikias approached Anatolio. The match up was unfair; Nikias had many more years of experience, but Anatolio did not seem to mind. Nikias made the first move, and Anatolio quickly evaded it. Nalick watched Leila study the two men’s movements. The match lasted longer than Nalick had expected, though Anatolio lost in the end. After they were finished, Leila made Nikias repeat his last move as she walked Anatolio through how he should counter it and use it to his advantage. When the men standing around saw how Leila could have easily won the match, they cheered. Leila smiled up at the men watching her and finally noticed Nalick.

  “You are not supposed to be walking,” Nalick said, scooping her into his arms.

  “Roger will be here tomorrow, and he will give me permission to walk gently on it. I am just getting a head start,” Leila explained, though did not ask to be set down. Being in his arms was comfortable.

  “So what do you think?” she asked, referring to the two men who were sitting and resting after their long match.

  “I am honestly amazed.” Nalick did not set Leila down. “But for your last day before Roger returns, I am going to insist you spend the rest of the day relaxing. Roger will scold me if you hurt yourself right before he gets here.” Nalick turned to carry her away.

  “Thanks Nikias,” Leila called and waved to the two men as Nalick carried her from the courtyard. Anatolio bowed his head to her as she left.

  Nalick took her straight to her room and set her down gently on the balcony. He began to pace, wondering how to tell her his thoughts. “I thought I would get so much more work done now that you can do whatever you want, but…,” he paused.

  “You missed me,” she guessed while grinning.

  “Yes,” he said while sitting down next to her and moving her to his lap. Leila casually put her arms around his neck. It was warm and inviting to sit so close to him. Her heart began to race, and she needed to concentrate to hear to him talking.

  “I have decided I am going to choose a few men to work right below me to help get all this work done. It was fine to spend all day working before you came along, but now I just don’t find it entertaining.” Leila was happy he wanted to spend time with her. “Life’s too short to spend behind a desk.”

  Leila nodded. “I figured that out when I was five-years-old. Glad to see you’ve finally caught up.”

  “Hey,” Nalick said while tickling her ribs. The knock at the door interrupted their conversation. Nalick rose and opened the door.

  “Early again?” Leila asked, turning to view Roger as he walked out onto the balcony behind Nalick.

  “Would you rather I was late? I can go back to the inn at which I plan to stay and return in a couple of days,” Roger suggested pretending to turn and leave.

  “No, no,” Leila cried, grasping into the air because she could not throw herself at him to stop him. “I am glad you are early.”

  “So, I can guess by the smile on your face you are doing much better this time around,” Roger said, sitting down next to Leila. He picked up her hurt leg and slowly unwrapped the support around it. “It looks good. Have you been following my advice and not walking on it?”

  “Do you think anyone around here would let me get away with walking on it?” she responded nodding her head toward Nalick.

  “I knew he would be good for something,” Roger joked before giving her the okay to walk on it.

  The next morning Leila rose excited that she could finally return to the market. Roger had given her consent to walk again with a cane. She was up before everyone and happily humming to herself while getting ready. Nalick was surprised when he finally woke to find she was already to go. He hurried to dress to not keep her waiting. Leila, though, did not mind waiting for everyone. After one month she would finally get to leave the palace. She felt cramped and caged. The one comfort she had in the palace was the garden, but she no longer felt safe sitting alone there. Only Anatolio had noticed.

  Leila led Roger along with her escorts to the market. Roger had not been to the Lexia market in years and was surprised to find Leila excited to go to it. She wished to hurry along with the crowd, but it was slow walking with the cane and her leg was not yet healed enough to walk without it. Nearing the first stand, Leila searched the crowd for the young children that met her there since she first went to the market. She did not see them and continued on to her favorite fruit stand. Leila introduced Roger to the people she passed on the way.

  “How many people know who you are?” Roger whispered to Leila under his breath.

  “Just a few,” Leila shrugged. Part of her charm and winning over people’s loyalty came from her honesty and openness to trust them.

  As the day proceeded and there was still no sign of the children, Leila began to wonder where they were. Did Phillip recognize me? she wondered. She had seen him in the crowd on their way back into the city after being kidnapped, but she was not sure he saw her. Leila joined the men sitting at a table enjoying snacks and drinks as she continued to search the crowd.

  “Is something wrong?” Roger asked her.

  “Normally I meet three children here: an older boy and his younger brother and sister. I have not seen any of them yet today,” Leila looked at the clock and could see it was getting close to the time Phillip would normally leave for work.

  “Could they just be late?” Roger asked. Roger remembered that she had mentioned the children to him before.

  “The oldest works and always made them leave at the midday bell,” Leila pointed to the clock above the market. “I hope they are okay.”

  After everyone was finished with their drinks and snacks, they stood to return to the palace. Leila continued to search as she followed but could see no sign of the children. Nalick put his arm around her as he could see she was worried. As they neared the last stand, Leila noticed Tim standing by himself. As soon as Tim saw Leila he ran to her and smiled. Balancing against Nalick, Leila carefully picked him up.

  “Where’s Phillip?” Leila asked looking around.

  “With Ruth,” Tim replied. “Ruth is sick and Phillip stayed with her to make her better.”

  “How long has she been sick?” Leila asked.

  “I dunno,” Tim replied. “Phillip told me to come and tell you we can’t see you today.”

  “Could you take me to them?” Leila asked. “My friend here is a doctor, and maybe he can help Ruth.” Leila sat Tim back down on the ground.

  Tim stared up at all the people standing with Leila. “I’m not supposed to take grown-ups to our home,” Tim said. Leila looked at the men around her.

  “Can Roger and Nalick come with?” she asked.

  “Nikias, Javed, Theo, and Macarius, go on back to the palace. We will stay with Leila,” Nalick said. The men followed their orders and walked back towards the palace.

  “Is this better?” Leila asked. Tim smiled and began to walk between two of the nearest buildings. Leila followed close behind him as quickly as she could. The young boy had failed to notices she was limping, but he slowed when she was not walking close to him. Soon they arrived at a broken down three story building. Inside Leila could see several children hurriedly hiding. Roger quickly stopped Leila from following the young boy into the building.

  “Leila, you are not completely healthy yet. You should stay out here just in case it is something contagious,” Roger warned as he and Nalick began to follow Tim.

  “Anatolio should be nearby, so you should be safe,” Nalick said, carefully entering through the broken half door. Leila watched as the remaining children ran from Roger and Nalick. They all feared adults.

  Once inside, Tim led the two men to the back of the building. In a corner near a window, Phillip was sitting with Ruth. Phillip was desperately trying to get Ruth to drink t
he small glass of water in his hand. When he saw Tim return, Phillip was relieved but then became startled to see the adults with him.

  “Tim, who are they?” Phillip asked as Roger approached in front of Nalick. “Is Leila with you?” Leila was the only adult that the children could trust.

  “She is outside. She has been sick, and I didn’t want her to get any worse. She sent me in to look at Ruth,” Roger tried to explain to the young man who eyed him anxiously.

  “This is the man who trained Leila and always fixes her when she gets hurt,” Nalick explained, and Phillip relaxed a bit. Roger moved near Ruth and carefully began to examine the young child.

  “How long has she been like this?” Roger asked Phillip reaching down to feel her face.

  “About two days. She has been not eating much, and anything she has eaten came back up,” Phillip explained, backing up to give Roger room to move. “I tried to get her to at least drink some water, but she stopped doing that this morning.”

  Roger felt the child’s forehead again before he began to prod around her body. “Has she been this warm the entire time she has been sick?”

  “No. Sometimes she is warm and other times she is not,” Phillip said.

  “Can we bring her back with us?” Roger asked Nalick. “I can do a better job back in the medical ward. Who knows what diseases they are passing around here.”

  “Of course,” Nalick said, moving to pick Ruth up. A scared Phillip stood by and watched.

  “Can you make her better?” Phillip asked the two men.

  “I will do the best I can,” Roger said.

  “Can we come with?” Phillip asked, not wanting to let the two men leave with Ruth.

  “Of course,” Nalick replied. “We will hurry ahead with Ruth, but Leila is waiting outside. She will bring you back with her.” Phillip and Tim followed the two men out of the building. Once outside Leila neared the men, but Roger quickly pushed her back.

  “We are heading back to the palace. Leila, you need to stay away for now. I don’t need you to get sick again,” Roger said to her. “She has some sort of infection. Until I find the source, you need to stay back. ”