Only when I sat up did I see the mural covering the wall.
The towering figure of the Divided Ones loomed over the room with potent energy. Calamité’s and Félicité’s painted eyes peered down with realistic flickers, watching with keen and discerning judgment.
I fought to free myself from the scratchy bedsheets, bewildered by the gods’ presence.
“Oh, you shouldn’t do that.”
An older woman in yellow and green robes hurried over to my bed. Her eyes were a startling amber, full of radiant peace. Dozens of the Divided Ones’ sigils clattered from the bracelets around her brown wrists.
“Where am I?” I felt embarrassed to ask it, ashamed to admit I couldn’t remember coming to this place.
“You’re in the Rift.” She tried to get me to lie back down, her bony fingers digging into my arms. “I’m Amandine, one of the priestesses here.”
There was a smattering of giggles behind her, and I leaned over to see a trio of small girls. They wore cotton dresses just like mine, and their pale blond hair was neatly plaited up and away from their little faces.
I stared at them in confusion, certain I knew them but unable to recall their names or where we would have crossed paths.
“That will be enough, girls,” Amandine called to the three. “What do you remember?” she asked me. Her kind eyes flattened as I threw my legs over the side of the bed, winning the struggle.
“I was at the palace,” I began, trying to pinpoint the last memory I had. I’d been with the king. He’d been in the bath. I stopped short as I recalled the deathshead. My heart thudded and I took a deep breath, trying to quell my rising anxiety.
“You fainted,” she supplied when it was clear I wouldn’t finish. “When they couldn’t wake you, you were brought here so we might pray for a swift return to health.”
“Oh.”
The priestess made a face of understanding. “We know of your…godfather, of course, but he has no temples within Châtellerault.Ours is closest to the palace. I hope the Dreaded End will show understanding and mercy. They were doing the best they could, under urgent circumstances.”
I tried to smile at her, grateful for the care they’d shown me. A wide band across the back of my head ached, and I rubbed the spot tenderly. “I’m certain he will. Thank you for your kindness. Are the guards still here? I’m afraid I must get back.” I tried to stand but quickly sank back onto the mattress as the room spun wildly.
“There’ll be none of that,” Amandine said, pushing me gently into the pillows. “Girls, water, please?”
The blond trio scurried out of the room, and their footsteps and whispers echoed down the corridor.
Woozy with vertigo, I allowed Amandine to tuck me back in. “How long have I been here?”
“A few hours, I’ve been told. Our high priest was with you at first. My charges and I took over after lunch.”
“I appreciate your prayers,” I said, pressing my fingertips at points along my forehead, desperate to relieve the building pressure. “But I truly must get back.”
“Not until you can sit up without keeling over,” she said firmly, and sat on the bed beside mine. “They said you struck your head on the tiled floors?”
I nodded, and it made me want to throw up. “There’s marble everywhere at the palace,” I confided.
“You’ve probably a concussion,” she surmised. “You need observation and rest.”
“You sound like a healer.”
“We’ve all had to take on new roles,” Amandine admitted. “Since the war began.”
“The war?” I echoed, surprised at her ominous term. “It’s only a few skirmishes, isn’t it? With the militia?”
A burst of laughter barked out of her before she covered her mouth. “Militia? Is that what they’re calling it?”
I nodded uneasily.
“Make no mistake, Mademoiselle Trépas. It’s an army.” She toyed with the charms on her bracelets. “I’m sure the palace doesn’t want to admit it, but Baudouin is drawing ever closer to Châtellerault, gaining more followers by the day. They’ve been ransacking villages on their way in from the north. So many lives have been lost. So many children orphaned. We’ve been taking in as many as we can. The three you saw have only recently come to us. They’re all that’s left of their village.”
I blinked, certain I’d misunderstood her. “What village?”
