Page 62 of The Concubine King
The door opening made him want to drag the blanket over his head, but he couldn’t stomach the immaturity of such an action.Instead he closed his eyes and turned his face into the pillow.
“Your Divinity!”Gionan rushed over.“What are you doing still in bed?It is mid-morning now.”
“Who cares?”Ethyr mumbled.
A chilly hand on his forehead made him recoil on reflex.
“Are you ill, Your Divinity?”
“I don’t know,” Ethyr sighed.He just wanted to be left alone.“Maybe.”
Gionan’s footsteps retreated and the door closed.He sighed in relief and let his weight sink into the mattress.But a few minutes later the door opened again and the bustle of several people entering grated on his nerves.He refused to look up, but soon his shoulder was pulled and he was given no choice but to roll to his back.Lamora—the palace physician—was standing at his bedside with Gionan and Poyut.He tried to sit up but Lamora held him down.
“Do not exert yourself, Your Divinity,” she said gently.He stared up at her, discomfort twisting his insides.It felt like he was on his deathbed, lying there with everyone peering over him.“Do you feel sick?”She rested a hand on his forehead, then without waiting for his answer, pried his mouth open.He pulled his head back.
“What are you doing?”
“Looking at your tongue.”She moved her fingers to the top of his neck, beneath his chin.“You don’t appear to have inflammation.Does anything in particular hurt?”
“No!I’m… just…” His cheeks warmed with the three pairs of eyes on him.He couldn’t say he just hadn’t wanted to get out of bed; not now, after all the fuss.“I’m tired,” he lied flatly.
The physician hummed, looking him over.“You do appear sallow.”She turned and said something quietly to Gionan.He dipped his head and hurried out.“Are you too tired to stand, Your Divinity?”
Ethyr rolled his head, exasperated.After a second he pushed the covers off and got out of bed.
“Very good.Your guard will take you for a stroll around the gardens, provided you feel strong enough for it.”
“Yes,” Ethyr said quickly, the idea of escaping his prison of walls dashing any reluctance.“I am strong enough.”Poyut went to the chest by the wall to take out a tunic.Ethyr eagerly dressed.By the time he had laced his sandals, Yorith entered, Gionan trailing behind him.
“What is this about, then?”the High Priest demanded as soon as he’d stepped foot in the room.Lamora regarded him calmly.
“It is adverse to a young man’s health to keep him cooped up for days on end.He needs sunshine and exercise, which I am prescribing.Some socialization couldn’t hurt, either.Isolation never does anyone good.”
Yorith eyed Ethyr, who stood looking as meek and innocent as he could make himself.
“Rovus, Jamyr,” he beckoned the two guards stationed to either side of the door.“Accompany His Divinity.Don’t let him out of your sight.”
“Yes, sir,” they said with a bow.They gestured for Ethyr to go ahead.He looked around at the people in his room, then started out, Poyut by his side and the other two guards following close behind.As they left, Yorith turned sharp words to Lamora, but his reprimand faded to silence as Ethyr put distance between himself and the room.
Even with chaperones, his chest and feet were lighter than they’d been in weeks as he practically fled the palace for the surrounding gardens.He was sick of the gardens, too, but only because they were a poor substitute for real nature.It was still better than being stuck inside the palace walls.
He’d walked these paths many times with Poyut by then.Her company was patient, unassuming.The other two guards were a bristling presence, pushing against his back, but Ethyr refused to allow it to ruin his small reprieve of freedom and make him hurry.His fingers trailed over the smooth leaves of the same verdant bush for a fourth time as he circled the little curated paths.Really, he would have loved to explore the gardens in the city, but he doubted Yorith would ever allow that.
“Poyut?”
“Yes, Your Divinity?”
He paused on one of the smooth stones that filled the path.“What do you do when you’re not guarding me?”
“Train, of course.”
“Do you like training?”
“I think so, yes.”
“It’s probably more interesting than guarding.”
“What makes you say that?”
