James' throat closed up.Collapsed?But they had been together half an hour ago and she had seemed perfectly fine. Shaken over Agatha's outburst, but otherwise completely healthy. Fear spiked in his chest as he asked, "Where is she now?"
"Still there. I couldn't bring myself to move her, but Archie said he'd take her to her room." Nora was pale, sickly, and she looked ready to throw up. "She's in a bad way, my lord, but I don't know what's wrong-"
"Have Archie summon a doctor immediately," he cut in, before the poor girl got herself into a panic. Truthfully, James wasn't doing much better. His hands shook as he clasped them on his desk, and it took almost all of his self-restraint not to run to Alicia right there. "Please, don't waste any time. I'll be there as soon as I can."
With that, Nora flew out into the hall, already shouting for Archie. He heard her stumble and curse, before she vanished into the adjoining hallway.
James took a breath. Steadied himself. It didn't work because his chest was hammering against his ribs and his pulse raced. Hadn't Alicia been fine, not half an hour ago? Or had she perhaps been pretending for his sake? The thought madehimfeel ill, and he tried another deep breath to calm his nerves.
It didn't help, so he resigned himself and slowly inched into the foyer. It was eerily silent, out here, with not a soul in sight. He inched down the hallway and slipped into the servant's quarters, where the sound of commotion grew. He almost didn't want to look, couldn't bear to see his Alicia hurt; but he forced himself to take in the situation.
Two of the maids sat by Alicia's crumpled form. One held her head in her lap, gently brushing brown hair from her closed eyes. Alicia might have even looked peaceful, if not for the sweat clinging to her skin and the uneasy way in which her eyelids flickered. Whatever had happened to make her so poorly, it had happened fast.
"Archie and Nora are summoning a doctor," one of the maids, Georgette, murmured, "She feels so clammy, my lord, but it’s always cold in this hall."
James couldn't tell if it was cold or not; not when his heart pounded the way it did, his hands damp and sweat clinging to the back of his neck. "Let me take her upstairs," he insisted, crouching to Georgette's height. "She'll be more comfortable in familiar surroundings."
Neither of the girls complained. They let him carry Alicia without complaint, stepping back to allow him better access. When he looked down, his heart clenched. She had always been petite, but now Alicia looked sofrail.Pale skin, hair splayed out around her, eyes fluttering frantically beneath their lids; she looked nearly at death's door, when half an hour ago she had been full of life.
She hardly weighed a thing as James carried her upstairs. Edwin and the children were nowhere to be seen, thank goodness, because he hated to think of poor Jenny and Samuel witnessing her like this. He opened the door with his foot and slipped inside her bedroom; not even bothering with lights. Then he laid her carefully down on the bed, gently tucking the sheets around her.
Somehow, when he brushed a hand across her forehead, she felt hot and cold all at once. Her skin was burning like a fever, but the rest of her face was pale. Bending down, James couldn't stop himself from pressing a kiss to her forehead.
"The doctor will be here soon," a voice said from behind. James jumped, spinning to see Archie standing by the doorway. "Sorry my lord, I didn't mean to startle you."
James offered an uneasy smile. "No, it's all right. Thank you, Archie. Please, bring the doctor up as soon as he arrives."
"Of course." Then he slipped from the room, letting the door fall softly shut, and left James in darkness.
At some point, James must have moved; because he found himself sitting in a chair by Alicia's bedside, the curtains open to let in natural light, without even realizing he had moved the chairoropened the curtains. He didn't remember fetching another blanket, either, but when he looked down there was one tossed across his lap. It was a soft burgundy, soft beneath his fingertips, and he toyed idly with a loose thread while he waited.
Not once did Alicia regain consciousness, but he was too afraid to try and wake her. What if it made her worse? Instead, he reached out to take her clammy hand in one of his own and squeezed.
"The doctor is here," said a soft voice from the doorway. "Doctor Ashburn, my lord."
"Come in."
James' eyes flickered up as the doctor entered. He was middle aged, with a thick mop of graying hair and glasses perched atop his nose. He smiled kindly at James as he set down his medical bag by the foot of the bed. "Am I to believe that you're the lord of this house, Lord James Arvill?"
"Yes."
"And this is Alicia Sempill?"
"Yes."
He nodded, coming around to her bedside. He peered down at her for a moment, a frown slowly crossing her features.
"Is it a fever, doctor?" James asked after a moment, "She was fine this afternoon."
Doctor Ashburn shook his head as he pressed a hand against her forehead. "No, a fever wouldn't come on so suddenly, my lord. You said she was fine before? When did she start showing symptoms?
She had been alone when Nora found her. James swallowed, his throat like sandpaper. "She was fine not an hour before we summoned you. We walked through the gardens, had a cup of tea, and then she retired to the library to read."
"Tea, you say?" He lifted one of Alicia's eyelids, which fluttered when he let go. Then he tried the other. "Has she eaten anything today?"
"She often skips breakfast, and she ate the same thing my family did for the afternoon meal. We haven't had supper yet."
His frown deepened, and it made James' stomach turn. That wasn't the look of a man who had confidence in what he knew. "My lord, would you mind leaving my patient and I alone for a while? I'll need peace and concentration if I'm to know what's wrong."
