The room was dark, although sunlight peeked through a gap in the curtains to shed a thin beam across the end of the bed. The rest of the room was just how she'd left it; one of her dresses was laid neatly over the desk chair, with her shoes tucked into the corner. The trunk she had arrived with was still not completely unpacked, but she had made sure that it was kept out of the way, lid closed. The room hardly looked lived in, mostly because Alicia spent so little time actually in it.
Except for now, apparently. The light streaming from the curtains indicated it was midday, so why was she still in bed? Had nobody come to wake her? Even on a weekend, free from the classroom, she rarely slept in past seven o'clock. She didn't remember going to bed late, because she had tea with James and then went to the library to find a new book. Then...
After that, her memories were blank. Had she taken a book back to her room? When had she eaten supper? With a jolt, Alicia realized that she didn't remember anything past the moment she had stepped out of the library.
Something was wrong.Verywrong. She tried to sit up, but her arms refused to support her, and she flopped back against the cushions gracelessly. A small gasp left her lips as pain shot through her left temple - but her body refused to react to it. Even that simple attempt to sit up left her exhausted, lungs burning from the effort.
Alicia felt panic rising in her chest, but no matter how much she twisted and turned, she couldn't sit up. Her entire body felt drained of life, as if she was only a husk of a person. What had happened? Why couldn't she remember last night?
The bedroom door creaked open, revealing a thin streak of light from the hall. Then a tall, thin figure stepped into view. He was an older man - not as old as Archie, but at least forty. He didn't smile as he strode over to the bed - but when they locked eyes, his lips managed a small twitch. "You're awake, Miss Sempill?"
"Who are you?" she managed to splutter out. Her throat felt like sandpaper and her mouth was worse. "What happened to me?"
He winced, then. "You don't remember? Maybe that's for the best." There was a chair by her bedside, and the man settled into it with a heaving sigh. "I'm Doctor Ashburn, I've been caring for you while you've been unconscious. I'm afraid that the last few days have been quite chaotic, miss. You were poisoned, although the poison was meant for Lord Arvill, not you."
Her heart stuttered, breath catching. Something sparked in Alicia's mind, collapsing in a dark hallway, someone rushing to her aid. The pain in her chest as she tried to stand, unable to ask for help.
Wincing, she burrowed deeper into the bed sheets.
"You're weak right now, and you haven't eaten for a few days; but if you rest and have something to eat, you should make a full recovery. You're an incredibly strong young woman."
But Alicia didn't care about that.Poisoned?How - and why - would someone try to poison James? She knew that he wasn't the most loved person in town, but for someone to try andkill him...and then to poison her instead? It was too much, and her mind exploded with a million different questions all mingling together.
"I'm sure Lord Arvill will explain everything once you're back to full health," Doctor Ashburn said calmly, "but for now, it's best you rest. I'll have someone bring you a light meal, something you can keep down." He reached over to the bedside table, which was just as enormously oversized as the rest of the furniture in this manor. When he settled back, it was to place a glass of cool water into Alicia's hands. "Try to drink all of this, but in slow sips. All right?"
Alicia didn't have much hope; but this time, her arms decided to cooperate. She managed to awkwardly raise the glass to her lips and take a long, slow drink. Her hands wobbled with the effort, but itworked,and she felt a little twinge of pride.
Doctor Ashburn retrieved the glass and placed it back on the table. "Excellent. See? Stronger already."
She managed a weak smile, even as her mind continued to swirl with questions. "Strong enough to see James?" she asked - only to grimace as she realized her own words. James, not Lord Arvill.
Doctor Ashburn either didn't notice or didn't care, though, because he simply shook his head and gestured to the bed. "You need to rest, first. Perhaps after you've eaten, you can have visitors."
Reluctantly, Alicia agreed. It wasn't as if she had much choice, the state she was in. Her arms felt like lead and her whole body ached. Not to mention how grimy she felt, which made sense if she'd been unconscious and lying in one spot for two days.
God,she thought,two days. Whatever happened, I must have missed all of it. Perhaps I should be glad for that.She shuddered at the thought.
"Now, get some rest and I'll be back soon," Doctor Ashburn said with a faint smile, "try not to exert yourself."
He slipped from the room a moment later, letting the door fall shut on his way out. Yet Alicia knew that she couldn't fall back asleep - not until she knew what was going on. Her body was too exhausted to move, though, so she simply had to wait.
Alicia had never hated waiting so much in her life, until now.
* * *
A knock at the study door alerted James to another presence. "Come in," he said hurriedly, eyes darting upward. He expected to see Archie, because he had asked Agatha to come around for a proper apology, but it wasn't the kindly doorman that opened the study door.
It was Doctor Ashburn, looking happier than James had ever seen him. Although considering his usual calm expression and carefully composed exterior, seeing him happy at all was a rarity. "Lord Arvill," he said, sliding into the room and closing the door, "I believe I have good news."
His heart skipped. "You do? Please, take a seat and tell me everything." If it pertained to Alicia, he wanted to know every little detail about her recovery. Doctor Ashburn had been so certain that she would recover fully, and James had been not so patiently waiting for updates ever since. He couldn't help but shuffle to the edge of his seat as the doctor sat down.
He didn't quitesmile,exactly; but Doctor Ashburn's features relaxed just slightly. The harshness of his brow receded, and the set of his jaw didn't look quite so stern. "Miss Sempill is awake," he said after a moment, "and she's weak, yes, but doing much better than even I anticipated."
Relief washed over him, and James let out a heavy sigh. "Thank goodness," he managed, "I was so worried... do you think she's well enough for a visit?"
Ashburndidsmile then - it was just a quirk of his lips, really, barely noticeable, and yet somehow it left James gaping in surprise. "You know," Doctor Ashburn mused, "she asked to see you too when she first woke up. I don't wish to intrude, my lord, but can I assume that you have certainfeelingstowards the young Miss Sempill?"
James' cheeks flushed pink, but he didn't try to deny it. His lips parted, but sound simply refused to come out. Instead, he only floundered, wishing that he could at least saysomething.
