Chapter Four #2
“It’s fine,” Twig said with a tired smile. “I’ll just stay here and close my eyes for a few seconds.”
“You do that,” Palmer said gently.
He closed the curtains around the bed to give Twig a little more privacy.
He knew that Rune wasn’t a doctor, but he’d been helping him in the library for days now, and they really did work well together.
He might be able to think of dragon illnesses that Palmer couldn’t recognize.
They’d go from there and hopefully find a way to help Twig.
If Rune couldn’t help, well, Palmer wasn’t doing this on his own.
There were plenty of healers around him who would be eager to help, and he was sure that Twig would agree to it if Palmer told him he wasn’t sure how to help him.
The most important thing was to help Twig feel better.
Palmer didn’t really care who made it happen.
He stepped away from the bed and pulled out his phone, scrolling through his contacts until he found Rune’s number. He hesitated for just a moment before hitting the call button, hoping that Rune would be available—and that together, they could figure out what was wrong with Twig.
* * * *
RUNE BURST INTO THE infirmary, looking for his brother. When he’d gotten the call from Palmer, he’d been surprised and hopeful, but that hope had gone right out the window when Palmer had told him that Twig was back in the infirmary.
What had Twig done now? Rune was ready to bet he hadn’t rested like Palmer had told him to, and he hoped it hadn’t worsened Twig’s situation. He wasn’t sure what he’d do if it had. Maybe he’d really sit on Twig to make sure he stayed in his nest rather than go flying with his friends again.
One of the healers was talking to a patient and looked up when they heard Rune.
Rune half expected them to stop him, but instead, they pointed toward a bed that was surrounded by a closed curtain.
He nodded at them and rushed forward, slowing down only to clear his throat so that the people behind the curtain would hear him. The curtain moved, revealing Palmer.
“I came as soon as I could,” Rune said, slipping behind the curtain.
His brother was sitting on the bed, looking pale and shaky. Rune’s first instinct was to reach for him, but he looked at Palmer instead. He didn’t want to do anything that would worsen Twig’s condition. Palmer looked worried, which didn’t help.
“What’s going on?” Rune asked.
“You don’t need to worry,” Twig said.
“I’m supposed not to worry? You’re in the infirmary, Twig.”
“Only because I wasn’t feeling great.”
“Which is exactly why I’m worried. What’s going on?”
Twig and Palmer exchanged a glance, and Twig shrugged. “You can tell him.”
Palmer nodded at him. “All right. Well, I’m not sure what’s going on at the moment.
We’re running some tests, but Twig came back feeling worse than he did the last time I saw him, and I thought it would be a good idea to call you.
If he was human, I’d suspect the flu, but I know that you dragons don’t get the flu. ”
“We do have similar illnesses. It won’t be the same as what you call the flu, but we still get sick.”
Palmer nodded. “I know. I’ve been reading everything I can on dragon illnesses, but this could be any of them.”
“You should probably talk to a healer. I can help you find information, but I can’t help you diagnose my brother.”
Palmer glanced at Twig, who seemed perfectly happy to keep his mouth shut. “I suggested that, but Twig said that he trusted me. I promise that I’ll pull in other healers if I can’t find anything. I won’t let anything happen to Twig.”
There had to be a reason Twig and Palmer wanted Rune to help rather than people who knew what they were doing. Rune wasn’t a healer. He could find books for Palmer, but that was where his expertise ended. What was he supposed to do?
Palmer seemed to realize that Rune was all over the place. He took a step away from Twig’s bed, smiling gently at him and reaching over to squeeze his wrist. “Rune and I will be right back. Try to get some sleep if you can.”
Twig’s eyes were already drifting shut. “Don’t mind if I do, Doc.”
Rune followed Palmer. He wanted to stay with his brother, but he also wanted to know what was happening. He didn’t like how worried Palmer looked.
“I tried telling him that it would be best if he saw another healer,” Palmer murmured. “He refused. He says that he trusts me, and I don’t think that’s warranted.”
Rune frowned. “I don’t see why you shouldn’t be trusted.”
“I’m going to do my best to help him, but I’m not a dragon healer. I’m sure that if any of them saw him, they’d understand what’s going on and would be able to help him more easily and faster.”
“Is he in danger of dying or of getting seriously injured?”
Palmer hesitated, then shook his head. “I don’t think so, and I won’t let things get that far. If I can’t get answers today or tomorrow, I’ll have to ask for help.”
“You do that. I’m sure that Twig will understand. He might be young and a little na?ve, but he won’t put himself in danger. I guess he just trusts you to find out what’s going on with him.”
“I don’t understand why. We don’t know each other that well.”
Rune shuffled his feet. He couldn’t exactly tell Palmer that he’d been talking about him to his brother. “I’m sure he’s heard about you,” he said instead. “And I don’t think he’s wrong to trust you.”
“I hope not. He’s going to be fine here for a while. Shall we go to the library?”
“I have a few books in mind,” Rune told him. He might not be useful for much, but he’d made a point of making lists of medical books so that Palmer would have an easier time finding them. It was the only thing he could do while Palmer was researching. It made him feel useful.
He wasn’t sure what Killian had been thinking, assigning him to Palmer, but he suspected it was a mix of not wanting Palmer to be alone for hours at a time in an isolated room in the palace and wanting to give him legitimacy while he looked over the books.
Since Rune was with him, it was a sign that Killian had authorized him to be there.
He could’ve chosen any of their siblings, but he’d chosen Rune, and that meant something.
Since they were dealing with Twig, it meant even more now.
The walk to the library felt familiar. They’d done it a few times now, and they fell into a routine that felt easy.
Palmer grabbed a few books and dropped into his seat, while Rune went hunting for more books that could be useful.
Once he had a good pile, he brought it back to the table Palmer was sitting at and dropped them onto it.
Palmer looked up with a smile, reaching for the book on top of the pile as Rune did the same to hand it to him.
Their fingers brushed together, and for a second, both of them froze and looked at each other.
Rune had no idea what was happening. He wanted to grab Palmer’s hand, but he reminded himself why they were here.
Twig needed help. He was sleeping in the infirmary, and they were waiting on the tests Palmer had ordered, but they needed answers. That was why they were here.
Rune pulled his hand back. “Sorry,” he murmured
“It’s fine. Thank you for the books.”
Rune nodded. “Of course. I hope you can find something to help my brother.”
“I’m sure I will.”
Rune prayed that Palmer was right. Either way, they had work to do. Rune might not be able to help much, but he could read these books and try to find something that resembled the symptoms Palmer described. He already had several illnesses in mind.
He grabbed the book from the top of the pile and cracked it open, settling in for what he suspected would be a long afternoon. Palmer was already absorbed in his reading, his brow furrowed in concentration.
Every so often, he’d make a small sound, like a hum of interest or a frustrated sigh, and Rune would glance up to see if he’d found something.
The library was quiet except for the sound of turning pages and the scratch of Palmer’s pen as he took notes.
Rune tried to focus on the text in front of him, but his mind kept wandering back to Twig, pale and exhausted in the infirmary bed.
He’d looked so small and vulnerable, and it made Rune’s chest ache.
“Here,” Palmer said suddenly, his voice breaking the silence. He slid a book across the table toward Rune, his finger marking a specific passage. “Does this sound like what Twig described? The fatigue, the shakiness?”
Rune leaned forward to read, grateful for something concrete to focus on. If they could just find the right answer, everything would be okay. It had to be.