Chapter Five
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TWIG WASN’T PALMER’S only patient. As much as Palmer wanted to only focus on him and his illness, he had other people to see.
Maybe it would be good for him. He’d been obsessing over what was going on with Twig since the dragon had walked into his infirmary, but obsession wasn’t good in medicine.
It wouldn’t help him solve the mystery of Twig’s illness.
He hoped he was doing enough to do that.
He and Rune spent every minute of free time reading books. Palmer had brought up asking other healers to help several times, but Twig had refused, as if he truly believed that Palmer could do this. Palmer was grateful for the trust, but he didn’t like seeing Twig so weak.
He was going to talk to other healers. Even if Twig didn’t want them to examine him, they could give Palmer tips and hopefully identify the illness plaguing Twig. First, though, Palmer had another patient to check in on.
“How’s everything going?” he asked Curran, smiling at him.
Curran rubbed his growing stomach. “Well, I feel like I swallowed a watermelon, and the heartburn is no joke, but I think that all in all, we’re doing well.”
Palmer nodded. “That’s to be expected. I can prescribe you something for the heartburn that should make it easier for you to sleep.”
“That would be great. That’s when it’s worse.”
“Well, your stomach doesn’t have a lot of space left, considering how big the egg is getting.”
“It’s almost over.”
“It is.” Palmer had studied how long a dragon pregnancy lasted. Since they laid eggs, it wasn’t nearly as long as human pregnancies, which meant that Curran would be laying his egg soon. Palmer was excited, although the feeling was slightly dampened by what was happening with Twig.
He went through all the checks, making sure that Curran and his baby were healthy.
He couldn’t find anything wrong, which was a relief because he was distracted.
He kept thinking about Twig and comparing his symptoms with some of the illnesses he’d found descriptions of.
Several of them could fit, and he needed to order more tests.
“Is Rune on your mind?” Curran asked suddenly.
Palmer blinked at him. “I’m sorry?”
Curran gestured at Palmer’s face. “You’re distracted. Is it Rune?”
“Why should it be? No, it’s his brother, Twig. He’s not feeling well.” Palmer wouldn’t be talking about this to anyone else, but Curran was close to Killian. He probably already knew.
Sure enough, Curran nodded. “Killian mentioned something about that. Do you know what’s going on yet?”
“Unfortunately, no, and so far, I haven’t made any progress.”
“I’m sure you’ll find out.”
“I wish I had as much faith in myself as you and Twig clearly do. I don’t understand why he doesn’t want to see a dragon healer. I’m sure this would be much faster and less painful for him.”
“Maybe, but he trusts you.”
“Why? He doesn’t know me.”
Curran hesitated. Palmer’s question had been rhetorical, but now, he wondered. It seemed like Curran knew something, and maybe it was something that Palmer needed to know, too.
“I don’t know Twig’s history, but I’ve heard enough. You know what the old king forced us to do, right?” Curran eventually said.
“You mean the pregnancies?”
Curran nodded. “Yeah. I was lucky because of my brother. He’s close to Killian, and the old king didn’t want to make waves. I’m sure I would’ve been forced into pregnancy soon enough, though.”
“I thought the king didn’t force his own children into it.”
“Not as such, but he made sure that they got regular checkups to see if they were healthy and fertile. I don’t know what happened to Twig and if it’s just a general distrust of dragon healers since then, but I think that if he trusts you to do this, you should continue doing it.”
“I will. I’m just confused. I’m doing my best, but I don’t have the years of experience that dragon healers have.”
“That’s already a lot. I’m sure that if it becomes necessary, Twig will agree with whatever you decide, but you’re showing him that he can trust you by not pulling in another healer just because you’re confused.”
“I just don’t want my confusion and his fear to cause irreparable damage.”
To Palmer’s surprise, Curran reached over and squeezed his forearm. “You won’t,” Curran said, sounding like he truly believed that. “Twig trusts you, and so do I. There’s not much I can do, but I’ll try to help, too. Maybe I could talk to him?”
“I didn’t know you were friends.”
“We’re not, but in a way, we’re family. Maybe it’s time we grew closer. I don’t know a lot, obviously, but I’ll do what I can to help.”
“As long as you don’t overexert yourself. Also, make sure to wash your hands and be careful when spending any time with Twig. I don’t want you to get ill.”
“You think it’s contagious?”
“It doesn’t seem to be, but you never know.” Palmer wasn’t going to tell Curran he couldn’t visit Twig because he was pretty sure that Curran would tell him to go fuck himself, but he hoped that everyone would take the necessary precautions. He needed both Curran and Twig to be okay.
Palmer finished up with Curran, making sure he had the prescription for the heartburn and reminding him to come back if anything felt off. Once Curran left, Palmer found himself alone in the examination room, staring at the notes he’d taken. His mind immediately drifted back to Twig.
He needed to figure this out. The tests would take time, but maybe there was something he’d missed in his research. Some detail that would make everything click into place.
Palmer gathered his things. He wanted to check on Twig again, even if there wasn’t much he could do right now. At the very least, he could reassure himself that Twig was resting comfortably.
He found Rune sitting beside Twig’s bed, a book open in his lap. Rune looked up as Palmer approached, and their eyes met. For a moment, neither of them spoke.
“Any change?” Palmer asked quietly.
Rune shook his head. “He’s been sleeping most of the afternoon. I think that’s probably good, right?”
“Rest is definitely what he needs,” Palmer agreed. He moved closer to the bed, checking Twig’s breathing and pulse. Everything seemed stable, at least. “How are you holding up?”
Rune gave him a tired smile. “I’ve been better. But I’m not the one you need to worry about.”
“I can worry about more than one person at a time,” Palmer said softly. He meant it. Rune looked exhausted, probably from spending all his free time helping Palmer search through medical texts and sitting at his brother’s bedside.
“I’m fine,” Rune insisted.
Palmer wanted to argue, but he knew it wouldn’t do any good. Instead, he pulled up a chair and sat down beside Rune. “We’ll figure this out,” he said. “I promise.”
Rune looked at him, and Palmer saw the vulnerability in his gaze. “I hope so,” Rune whispered. “I don’t know what I’d do if—”
“Don’t,” Palmer interrupted gently. “Don’t go there. We’re going to find out what’s wrong, and we’re going to fix it.”
Rune nodded, swallowing hard. Palmer wished he could do more to comfort him, but sitting beside Rune in the quiet infirmary, watching over Twig together, would have to be enough.
* * * *
SOMEONE SLID INTO THE chair in front of Rune. He sighed, putting down his book and looking up. He blinked when he saw his sister, Yorga. They weren’t close, but he also wouldn’t say they were enemies. They just were. “What do I owe this pleasure?” he asked.
She frowned. She looked a little pale, and her hands were slightly shaky. “You know that human doctor,” she said.
“I do.” He wasn’t sure he liked where this was going already.
“I’m sick. I need to see him.”
Okay, that wasn’t where Rune had thought it would go. “He works in the infirmary. If you want to see him, that’s where you should go.”
She nodded. “Let’s go, then.”
Rune had no idea what was happening, but he was getting worried. He leaned over the table, but he didn’t touch his sister. “What’s going on?”
“I’m not feeling well. I’m pretty sure I have a fever, and my bones hurt.”
That sounded like the symptoms Twig had described. Was Yorga ill, too? Rune had never heard of her being on Pearl’s side, but it wasn’t a possibility he could dismiss, and he didn’t want to put Palmer in danger. If his sister really was ill, though, Palmer would want to know and would try to help.
“Why are you telling me this instead of going to the infirmary yourself?”
“Because you know the doctor.”
“Plenty of people know the doctor. You don’t need me to go with you.”
“He’s your friend. I know he’s taking care of Twig.”
“I wouldn’t call him my friend, but yes, he is.”
“Just help me, please? I promise I’m not trying to hurt anyone. I just want to stop feeling like shit.”
That startled a chuckle out of Rune. He continued watching his sister, but he had to admit that if she was acting, she was a phenomenal actor. She really looked sick.
“All right,” he said with a sigh. “I’ll take you to Palmer.”
Yorga was a little shaky as they walked to the infirmary, but she looked better than Twig did at the moment. Still, Palmer was visibly alarmed when they reached the infirmary to talk to him. He looked from Yorga to Twig, who was sleeping in a bed close by, and quickly guided her to her own.
Rune hung back, not wanting to bother anyone.
He watched as Palmer worked, and he could see how serious the human was.
He knew that Palmer was frustrated about Twig not wanting to accept a dragon healer to help, and that eventually, he would have to give in.
They’d talked about it enough. Palmer wouldn’t let anyone put Twig in danger, not even Twig himself.
It took Palmer a little while to examine Yorga. He still looked worried when he stepped up to Rune, apparently ready to talk.
“It’s the same symptoms as Twig,” he murmured, taking off his gloves. “The problem is that they’re generic. They both have a fever, aching muscles, and nausea. It could be any of the illnesses you and I have been reading up on.”
“What are you going to do?” Rune asked.