Page 9 of Tanglewood Magic (The Three Sisters 2)
“There is a cure,” Rhys said. “But we must act fast.”
Tavyss swept Medea into his arms, and they raced for the carriage. Circe, Rhys, and Isis squeezed in, but there wasn’t room for Zelaria, Brody, and Tamsin, who gracefully stayed behind. The driver whipped the hounds into a frenzy, and Circe clung to the edge of her seat to keep from flying into Rhys at every turn. It didn’t seem fast enough. Her stomach clenched with every twitch and shiver that racked Medea’s body.
No sooner had the carriage come to a halt than Rhys took command. He ordered Tavyss to bring Medea to the infirmary while he raced to the storage room for the elixir they’d developed.
“Hold her!”
Circe did as he commanded, tipping her sister’s head back so that her mouth popped open. Rhys dribbled the orange sludge into her mouth, then dropped the empty vial on the counter. Medea’s mouth started to foam, and her eyes rolled back in her head.
“What’s happening?” Tavyss demanded.
Rhys backed away from the dragon whose voice had lowered to an animal growl. “It’s normal. The antidote has to neutralize the poison. It’s going to look scary for a moment, but it will work.”
Circe hoped he was right. They’d never tested the antidote on a human. She refused to think of the many things that could go wrong. This was Medea’s only hope.
As Medea’s body went rigid, Circe met Isis’s dark gaze. Shadows reached from the corners of the room toward her. Isis didn’t have to say a word for Circe to know exactly what she was thinking. If anything happened to Medea or the baby, the two of them would hunt down whoever did this and kill them. No one hurt their sister. No one.
Tenderly, Tavyss stroked the hair back from Medea’s face and pressed his lips to her temple. “Fight, my love. You can do this.”
Gradually, Medea’s mouth stopped foaming and her muscles relaxed.
Rhys cleaned her face with a wet towel and pressed his fingers to the side of her neck. “Her pulse is strong. I think we’re beyond the worst of it.”
Relief flooded Circe. He’d done it. They’d done it. The admiration she felt for Rhys made her want to pull him into her arms.
Medea squeezed her hand. Circe tore her gaze away from Rhys and settled it on Medea. The queen’s eyes blinked open. “What happened?”
“You were poisoned!” Circe cried. “Thank the Fates Rhys had a cure.”
She made room for Tavyss to pull Medea into his arms. He wrapped his wings around her. Scales broke out along his arms, and his eyes glowed with yellow fire. A growl rattled in his throat. At times like these, it was impossible to forget that Tavyss was a dragon and Medea was his greatest treasure.
“Tavyss? Tavyss, I’m fine.” Medea pressed a hand against his heart.
Wanting to give them privacy, Circe turned away. Rhys was standing outside the door, shoulders sagging. He looked exhausted but also…relieved. Both of them knew the entire situation could have gone another way.
She joined him outside the infirmary and whispered, “You did it. It worked. It’s okay.”
“Thanks to you.” His gaze bore into hers. “If it wasn’t for your magic and your brilliant mind, she’d be dead. People here, they don’t realize what they have in you.”
The intensity of being the sole object of Rhys’s attention was almost too much. She resisted the urge to look away. Was he talking about the people of Darnuith or someone far closer to home? A ghost of a smile raised her cheeks. “Thank you. I’m just happy that it worked.”
He nodded. “There’s one more patient we need to check.”
Circe froze. “The baby!”
From the laboratory, Rhys retrieved his enchanted glasses and stepped back into the room. With some prodding and explanation, Circe was able to convince Tavyss to let Rhys examine Medea once more. He stared at her abdomen while Circe held her breath.
“He’s fine,” Rhys blurted, his gaze finding hers and a rare smile dancing fleetingly across his face. Circe watched the tension ease from his body, and her heart thumped with joy. For a moment, it was as if they were the only two people in the room, bathing in the realization that something they’d created together had saved her sister’s life, her baby’s life.
“He?” Medea asked, breaking the intense connection.
“He,” Rhys confirmed, turning his smile on the queen.
Circe grinned at her sister. Isis wrapped her arms around Medea and Tavyss, pressing her forehead to the side of Medea’s head.
“You should stay here tonight,” Rhys said to Medea and Tavyss. “Just for the night. In case there are any side effects.”
Circe nodded her agreement. She had another reason for wanting Medea to stay in the infirmary tonight. They still didn’t know who in the palace had poisoned her.
