Death Flag

by Richard Haygood

  CHAPTER 12

  Madison felt the pain in his side before he ever opened his eyes. Even when he was unconscious, it was a constant presence that his body simply couldn’t forget about. Every tiny movement sent a searing pain through his abdomen as his body threatened to rip itself open again. He wallowed in his own self-indulgence for a moment, feeling the warmth of the sunlight on his skin as it streamed through an open window.

  What in the hell was I thinking? Brief images flashed through his mind: his encounter with Lord Fox and Alyanna, his desperate flight through the halls of the main building, and his fight in the center of the quad with every student in the academy watching. He pressed a hand against his side and felt the biting pain that accompanied the simple motion. Pity wasn’t an emotion that he wasn’t entirely familiar with, but he was quickly learning that it often went hand-in-hand with stupidity.

  “Stop that,” a voice said lazily, swatting his hand away.

  Rather than answer immediately, Madison remained still for a few moments longer. “How long?” he asked finally. It was a question that he had already become accustomed to asking. How long was I out for? How long have I been here? How long do I have to stay here? How long before I’m strong enough to fight my way free? How long before I can get my vengeance?

  “Just two days,” the voice answered, and he felt a pair of hands smooth down the bed sheets as if tucking him in. “You just lie still. How are you even awake? They told me that you would be unconscious for a month or more based on the amount of healing you received.”

  Madison snorted derisively and regretted it when the pain flared up through his side. “Yeah, well. There are probably quite a few who wish I were dead at the moment. Putting me out for a month would be convenient.” He finally opened one eye and twisted his head around to peer at the young woman, a lopsided grin forming on his face. “And you’re one of them, I’m sure.”

  If she was bothered by the accusation, she didn’t show it. “And what makes you say that? Just because you were the cause of my brother’s death? Because you have pressed me into a compromising position? And in so many different ways that it’s impossible to even judge which is the worst? Because you injured men whom I have known my whole life and hold dear? Because you pressed a sword to my throat? Because you have left my people without a potential heir over the age of seven? Which reason would be the one that I would wish you dead for?”

  Madison relaxed and leaned back, closing his eyes again. “None of those. You don’t wish me dead for any of those reasons.”

  Only silence answered him, and he let it hang in the air as it grew thicker. All of her charges were absolutely true, and any single one of them would have been more than enough for her to slit his throat in his sleep—but she hadn’t.

  He figured she was trying to put together the pieces herself. After all, she didn’t have any reason to be by his bedside, much less for two days tending to him as a mother would. If the infirmary wanted him under observation, which they probably did, all they had to do was leave Rae like they had last time or any one of dozens of other healers. Any one of them would have been more than sufficient for a single unconscious man no matter how dangerous he might be deemed—and especially if they thought that he was going to be out of it for at least a month.

  Finally, when she couldn’t take it anymore, she asked, “Then why do I not want you dead?”

  Madison smiled roguishly and said, “Because you couldn’t stand the thought of falling in love with me without ever knowing my name, of course.”

  Alyanna blinked several times, clearly caught off guard by that assertion. “I know exactly who you are and what your name is,” she said slowly after she recovered.

  “Oh. Well, it must just be the falling in love with me part then.” He poked at her verbally, continuing to enjoy his little verbal game. There were still a few things he had to piece together, but now that he was starting to wake up, more and more information was coming back to him. Before she could answer and deny it outright, he somberly added, “But what’s bothering you isn’t what you know: it’s what you don’t know. You can’t stand the idea of not knowing.”

  “Not knowing?” she asked.

  “Not knowing why I protected you,” he explained. “Not knowing why I spared your life or why I decided that your punishment for attempted murder would be to remain here at K’yer Utane for three months.”

  “I think my father would like an answer to all of those things more than I would,” she answered carefully.

  “Your father is the one who wants me dead for all of those things,” Madison shot back. He attempted to sit up in bed, and he actually made it halfway up before the pain in his side forced him to lie back down again. He saw stars for a moment, and the effort made him feel lightheaded. “These healers are getting worse and worse every time,” he groaned. “At least they healed me last time before dumping me here . . . But you’re the one who needs answers, not him. I imagine he was in quite the fit after I pulled that little stunt.”

  “You could say that,” she answered. “You’re lucky he didn’t decide to take your head and have you killed for what you did.”

  Madison waved his hand dismissively. “No one here is going to kill me, and certainly not him.” He had gambled his life on that fact, actually, and he was more certain of it now than ever. His brows furrowed together, and he said contrarily, “And I didn’t kill them.”

  “What? You didn’t kill who?” she asked, clearly puzzled by the switch in conversation.

  “I didn’t kill those two big guys who were with your father. What were their names? Burton? And Royce? I’m horrible with names, you know. I’m great with faces, but horrible with names.”

  Quickly and defensively, she said, “You left them bleeding and in a heap on the floor! They were so embarrassed that they—”

  “But they were alive,” Madison interjected. “They were alive because I didn’t kill them. I had the chance, you know. You saw for yourself when you walked into the room.”

  “If you say so . . .” she responded doubtfully.

  Madison opened his eyes and looked at her again. She was wearing a simple light-blue shirt that almost matched the color of her eyes, and her long hair was tied back. She was just as beautiful as he remembered, and it was hard not to get lost teasing her. He had a bad habit of teasing women he found attractive. It was something he picked up in school as a way of flirting with girls, and he had never grown out of it. It was a bit juvenile, and he knew it, but it seemed to fit his personality, so he just went with it.

  “What?” she asked warily. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

  “Do me a favor,” he began. “Go find someone and ask why I still hurt like this.”

  “You hurt like that because Ryder almost cut you in half,” a deep voice answered from the doorway.

  Madison twisted his head around to glance past Alyanna, but there was no way he could miss the hulking form standing in the doorway, even with her in between. “How do you even fit through doors?” he asked sarcastically. “Tiny giants shouldn’t be able to move around as freely as you do.”

  Davion snorted as he walked into the room, his wide shoulders almost brushing against either side of the door frame as he made his entrance. “You can’t be too injured if you can make jokes like that.” He rubbed his chin, scratching his beard. “Why are you awake? You should be passed out for a while yet.”

  “Why are you here if you thought I wouldn’t be conscious?” Madison asked flatly and pointedly. “Visiting the sick doesn’t do much good if they aren’t awake, and you don’t strike me as the caring type.”

  “Who said I came for you?” Davion responded meaningfully. “Your father is set to leave,” he said, looking down at Alyanna. “He asked to see you before he left.”

  “And you run messages for people now? How far have you fallen while I was napping the last few days, Davion?”

  Davion shrugged indifferently, his massive shoulders risin
g and falling slightly. “Just consider it a courtesy. Some little jerk did try to kill his daughter and his men while they were under our care. If someone hadn’t stopped him, who knows what would have happened.”

  “I’m not sure I like this side of you, Davion. Last time you were all talk and no play, and now you can’t seem to stop with the veiled hints and sarcasm. Just say it plainly: You’re here to make sure that I haven’t somehow risen from the dead and stabbed a sword through her heart. You’re checking on me in person to find out exactly how bad the damage was.”

  “Is that what you think?” he asked, becoming as straight-faced as he had when Madison first met him.

  “Amongst other things,” Madison answered vaguely. I can play this game too, you know. He twisted around and tried to position himself so that he wasn’t lying flat on his back while carrying on a conversation, but the stabbing pain from his side reminded him what a horrible idea it was to move. “Okay. I’m about fed up with this. Isn’t there something you can give me to make this heal up a little faster? Or at least make me care less that it hurts so much?”

  “No,” Davion answered. “If there was, you’d have it already.”

  “What about the hot springs?” Madison asked. “That seemed to help last time.”

  “Hmm . . .” Davion scratched at his beard again. “I suppose they might. But they’re better off for negating the effects of magic than they are healing serious physical wounds. They can take care of the small stuff, but something this serious wouldn’t be fixed so easily.”

  Madison rolled his eyes back into his head as he considered his options. “So, there’s no way to make this go away?” he asked. He lifted up his shirt and exposed his side. There was a nasty-looking red line that ran from around the right side of his body from his stomach to his back where Ryder’s sword had cut him open. The flesh had been magically stitched back together, but it was still very much an unhealed wound.

  “No, I’m afraid not,” Davion answered.

  “It’s less than you deserve,” Alyanna added condescendingly. “You’re lucky to even be alive after a blow like that.”

  “That’s the truth,” Davion agreed appreciatively. “You have the constitution of an ox.”

  “And the brains of one too,” someone said from the doorway.

  Madison sank back into the pillow for a moment, smiling despite himself.

  Madison heard the other two turn and look at the speaker. He knew her by the sound of her voice, however, so there was no need for him to even look. “No one told me it was playtime!” he said mischievously. “Can someone get the blocks out of the cabinet and set them up for her on the rug?”

  “Hmph. We get it. I’m small,” Shayna said. He couldn’t see her, but he knew that she had crossed her arms over her chest and held her head up as he said it. “I happened to be passing by, so I wanted to see what the fuss was about. I didn’t realize that they were renting out rooms to delinquents these days.”

  Madison smiled even more broadly. “Wow, I’m so proud of you! Crossing the street and going to visit the doctor all by yourself. You’re getting to be such a big girl!”

  Shayna growled and stamped her foot. “Shut up!” she demanded, stamping her foot again. “Shut up, shut up, shut up!”

  “What in the world?” Alyanna asked, clearly unsure what to think of their exchange.

  “Davion was just escorting the princess here back to her father to say farewell,” Madison said, actually answering a questioning and reminding the two that they also had a purpose. “He was checking in on me, but now that he’s seen I’m alright, he can report back to the other Guardians like the good watchdog he is.”

  “Oh, yes,” Alyanna gasped, standing up. “Please, Guardian Davion. If you would . . .”

  “Of course. Follow me, please,” Davion said, promptly leaving the room so quickly that Shayna had to jump out of the doorway to avoid being trampled.

  Alyanna looked over her shoulder as she left and said, “Don’t go anywhere. You have questions to answer.”

  Madison rolled his eyes as if to say ‘Where do you expect me to go right now?’ and then threw his hand up in a parting gesture. He waited until he heard her footsteps disappear down the hallway and then twisted around until he found Shayna. “Hey, want to return a favor?” he asked.

  “What?” She was instantly suspicious. “I-if you think that . . . j-just because you’re injured that I . . .”

  “What?” Madison interjected before she could continue. “Just help me get out of here the say way I did for you.”

  She stared at him for a moment and then started turning red. “Idiot!” she screamed.

  “Well?” he asked impatiently. “Will you?”

  “Mm . . .” She nodded, doing her best to hide the blush that spread to her cheeks by looking down.

  “Here,” he said, holding up both hands. “Help me up first. I’ll figure out the rest once we get past that.”

  “Where do you want to go so badly?” she asked as she crossed the room. She seemed to hesitate slightly before grabbing his proffered wrists, but then she grabbed ahold and jerked him up before he had the time to think about it.

  “Agh!” Madison gasped as his vision swam for the second time. She wasn’t strong enough to pull him up on her own, but it was enough more than enough motivation for him to sit up with her help. The room tilted on its axis, and he came close to passing out as a wave of pain hit him hard. He pressed his fingers against his eyes and focused on breathing as he steadied himself and waited for the pain and lightheadedness to pass. “If they can’t heal me, I think I can heal myself,” he answered at last, his voice slightly shaky.

  “How?” she asked dubiously. “You’re just going to end up getting yourself hurt again.”

  Worried about me? He thought about teasing her for a moment, but then he decided that it probably wasn’t the best idea to keep ribbing her while asking for a favor. “Just get me out of here, and I can take care of the rest.”

  “How?” she asked again. “You can’t even walk.”

  She was right, of course. His plan hadn’t actually extended that far. He just knew that he couldn’t afford to lie around any longer. It was bad enough that he kept getting hurt twice a day and having to stop and heal, but it was even worse that he hadn’t even been able to train or learn a single thing since he had arrived. The way things were going, he’d never make it back home. He’d never even escape the valley and K’yer Utane at this rate.

  Hell, I think I’ve spent more time unconscious in this world than I have awake at this point. His sense of time was seriously getting screwed up. He’d been in the world for almost two weeks by his best count, but there was absolutely no rhyme or reason to where he was or what he did. Even when he wasn’t passed out in a magically-induced coma, he rarely slept at night, and he had often jumped from one impossible situation to the next. He’d actually have to sit down and do the math if he wanted to know exactly how long he’d been conscious and how long he’d been comatose.

  “Ugh. Fine. Don’t look all pouty. Just wait here a moment.” She ran out of the room and down the hall in the opposite direction from where the other two had gone. A moment of silence passed, and he heard her return just as quickly as she had left. “Here, just chew on this,” she directed, passing him a large, black leaf.

  Madison looked at it for a moment. It was about the size of the palm of his hand, and it felt soft and wet to the touch. He sniffed it tentatively, and it smelled like raisins. He glanced up at her uncertainly, but when he saw that she was watching him expectantly, he just folded it over on itself and stuffed it in his mouth. Juices immediately exploded in his mouth as he bit down on the leaf, and he was reminded of a strange combination of raisins and citrus.

  “Don’t ask what it’s called,” she said, shaking her head. “It will buy you about thirty minutes at best.”

  Madison shifted the leaf around in his mouth until it was stuffed in his cheek, and he was able to talk aro
und it. He could already feel the plant’s effects going to work. The area around his wound was growing slightly numb, and he felt like he had a bit more energy. “Just keep chewing?” he asked. “Swallow the juices, but not the leaf?”

  She nodded. “Right.”

  Madison swallowed a few more mouthfuls of the strangely-flavored juice and then took a deep breath. “Catch me if I fall?” he asked. Then, without waiting for an answer, he pushed himself off the edge of the bed and onto his feet. He was a bit unsteady at first, and she actually rushed forward to help prop him up. Still, the leaf did its job. The pain was dulled enough that he couldn’t feel much more than a twinge coming from his side.

  “Idiot,” she said quietly, moving around so that she could help support his weight a bit.

  “Yeah, yeah,” he groaned, breathing in deeply before each step as he shuffled across the room with her help.

  He glanced down the hall once and then swung the two of them out as casually as possible. When he had snuck her out before, he wanted to appear as casual as possible so as to not draw attention to himself. Now that he knew that they were watching his every movie via their little magical closed-circuit camera system, he didn’t really care if they knew or not. Since they were going to be watching anyway, it didn’t matter who saw him. Everyone apparently thought he was about twenty-eight days too early to be conscious anyway, so there was no reason for anyone to be checking up on him or stop him as he limped down the halls.