Pika is at attention, her eyes pinned on Galinor. Irritated with the noise, Danver stands and stalks to the edge of the bed before he curls up again.
“I’m fine, Pika,” I say, exasperated.
She settles back but continues to watch.
Galinor all but ignores the cat and motions to my gown. “I need to pull the dress away from the arrow now.”
“All right.”
With great care, he slides the gown over the short stick and then apologizes as he tugs the skirt up.
Modesty is the last thing on my mind at the moment, and I yank the fabric over my knee, exposing the wound.
Even though I prepared myself, I feel a little sick when Iseethe arrow embedded in my leg.
Galinor sighs, and he sounds relieved. “It could be worse.”
Worse? Does he not see the arrow in my leg?
He laughs at my expression. If he were not the onlyone here to remove it, I’d probably give him another black eye where the first has finally faded.
“Calm down,” he says, his voice soothing. “I just mean it isn’t embedded very deeply. It’s barely in there at all, in fact.”
I look down at my leg. Once I get past the horror of the dripping blood and ripped-open skin, I realize I can still see the tip of the arrowhead.
“All that fabric saved you.” Galinor gestures to the layers of skirt. “And the fact that musicians and acrobats can’t make a decent bow or arrow to save their lives—much less shoot one.”
“Just get it out,” I snarl, irritated with his chatter.
He grins, obviously finding my irritation amusing. Heating his knife over a candle flame, he asks, “I don’t suppose you have any herbs on you? Something to numb the pain?”
I keep my eyes locked on his blade. “Do I look like an herbalist?”
He cools it now, waving it to speed the process, and I grow lightheaded.
“Anwen,” he says, smiling. “You're all right.”
“What is wrong with you?” I demand. “Why are you in such a good mood?”
The twinkle leaves his eyes. Suddenly, he leans in, wrapping one hand around my waist and cupping the other at the back of my neck. “When I saw you jump in front of that arrow, I thought it would kill you.”
I open my mouth to speak, but my mind is blank except for the nagging pain.
“When I realized it was in your leg, I thought itmight have hit an artery. If it had, you would have already bled to death.” His fingers twine in the hair at the nape of my neck, and he’s close enough I feel his breath on my lips. “So forgive me for being relieved you’re notdead.”
He smells like campfire and summer evening. My heart pounds in my chest, and if it weren’t for the arrow in my leg, I think I would lean in a little closer to see what would happen.
I think I might lean in a little closer anyway.
“This is going to hurt.” He looks down. “Remember to breathe.”
Galinor completely ruins the moment when he begins to remove the arrow. My vision blurs, and I press my forehead against his shoulder.
“Just a few moments more,” he says, but his voice sounds strangely distant.
I feel as if the cart is spinning circles instead of traveling down a road.
And then…the world goes black.
