Chapter Five #2
“She’s not as ill as Twig right now, and she told me she wants to go back to her rooms, so I’ll get her started on the same treatment I gave Twig. She’s going to have to come back if she feels worse, though.”
“She will,” Rune said.
Palmer raised a brow. “Oh?”
“I’ll tell her. If her and Twig want you to be their doctor, they have to follow your instructions.”
Palmer snorted. “I don’t think I’ve ever had one patient who actually followed my orders. That hasn’t changed after I moved to the palace.”
Rune took a risk and gently patted Palmer’s arm. He wanted to comfort him since he was visibly worried, but he wasn’t sure how to do it. “I’m sure they’ll be okay. We’ll find something, and if we don’t, we’ll ask for help.”
“Your brother really doesn’t want me to,” Palmer murmured as he turned to look at Twig’s sleeping form.
“He’ll agree eventually if things don’t get better.
He’s stubborn, but he wants to be okay.” Twig wouldn’t put his own life in danger just because he didn’t like healers.
Rune didn’t have the entire story, but he knew enough, and he understood.
He also understood why Twig trusted Palmer, but he’d drag his brother to a dragon healer himself if Twig proved to be too stubborn.
One way or another, he would get better.
Rune would make sure of that.
He walked back over to where Yorga was sitting on the edge of the infirmary bed, looking pale but determined. She glanced up at him as he approached.
“Palmer says you can go back to your rooms, but you need to rest and take the medication he’s prescribing,” Rune told her. “And if you feel worse, you come straight back here. No arguments.”
Yorga nodded slowly. “I will. I promise.” She hesitated, then added quietly, “Thank you for bringing me here.”
Rune was surprised by the gratitude in her voice. They’d never been particularly close, but maybe this illness would change that. “Of course,” he said. “We’re family.”
“Yeah,” she said softly. “We are.”
Palmer returned with a small bottle of medication and a list of instructions. He explained everything carefully to Yorga, making sure she understood when to take the medicine and what symptoms to watch out for. Rune listened too, filing away the information in case he needed it.
Once Yorga left, Rune found himself alone with Palmer again. The infirmary was quiet except for Twig’s soft breathing from the nearby bed and two patients quietly talking on the other side of the room.
“Two patients with the same symptoms,” Palmer said, running a hand through his hair. “That can’t be a coincidence.”
“No,” Rune agreed. “It can’t. Do you think it’s contagious?”
“I don’t know yet. But we need to find out quickly, before anyone else gets sick.”
“We will,” Rune said, trying to sound more confident than he felt. “We’ll figure this out.”
* * * *
PALMER HATED NOT BEING able to do more. He looked at the pile of books on his dresser, then at the one on the small table in the sitting area of his room.
He’d been reading medical texts every spare second he had, but the problem was that the symptoms Yorga and Twig exhibited were too generic.
It could be anything, and Palmer wasn’t able to identify the illness, which meant he couldn’t find a treatment that worked.
He initially hadn’t been too worried, but that was starting to change.
Nothing he was doing helped. Hell, he suspected that Twig was getting worse, and Yorga might, too, if her illness followed Twig’s progression. Palmer had to do something.
But what?
When someone knocked on his door, he was both annoyed at the interruption and grateful for the distraction. He could take a step away from the books for a few minutes. It would probably do him good.
The door opened before he could reach it. His brother walked in as if he owned the place, and while Palmer was annoyed, he didn’t have it in himself to argue. “Close the door behind yourself,” he muttered as he raked a hand through his hair.
Taylor blinked but obeyed. Once the door was closed, he watched Palmer, and Palmer knew what he was doing. He was trying to read him so he knew what to say.
“You don’t look too good,” Taylor eventually said.
Palmer snorted. “Thank you.”
“I’m not kidding. Have you been sleeping?”
“When I can.”
“Which means not enough. That can’t be good for you or for your patients.”
Palmer put down his book and leaned back into the couch. He rubbed his face with both his hands, feeling the exhaustion weighing on him. “I don’t have time to sleep.”
“Again, I don’t think that you collapsing from exhaustion is going to help you or your patients. How’s Twig doing?”
Palmer didn’t ask how Taylor knew his exhaustion was about him. Of course he did. “Not well. His symptoms are worsening, even with the treatment I’m giving him.” He looked at his brother. “Everything I’m doing is failing. I am failing.”
Taylor flopped onto the armchair and kicked Palmer lightly. “Don’t talk like that. You’re not failing.”
“Twig isn’t getting any better. That’s the definition of failing.”
“You’re working through this. I’m sure you’ll find a solution.”
“I’d find one faster if Twig allowed me to ask for help.”
“Probably, but he’s not going to change his mind, is he?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Then you need to do what he wants, at least for now. I’m sure there’s a good reason he doesn’t want dragon healers to be involved.”
“I know. It would be for the best, though.” Palmer sighed. “Maybe Pearl isn’t wrong. Me being here is clearly keeping Twig from getting medical treatment. That’s not right.”
“From what I can see, Twig is the only one keeping medical treatment from himself. You’ve tried to find him help.
You can’t force him to accept it. That has nothing to do with you or with what Pearl thinks of you.
Also, she’s wrong. You’re a good doctor, and you want what’s best for your patients.
You don’t make any difference between humans and dragons.
You’re respecting Twig’s wishes, even though you want to do more.
That’s not someone who doesn’t care or who’s not good at their job. ”
“I just want him to be okay.”
“I’m sure that he will be. Besides, you’re not working on this alone, are you? How’s Rune?”
Palmer scowled. “I don’t want to talk about him.”
“Why not? He’s involved, isn’t he? I’ve heard about your little library sessions.”
“He’s helping me because Twig’s his brother. He wants him to be okay, and he knows that Twig doesn’t want me to involve dragon healers.”
“So you’re spending a lot of time together.”
“We are, but it has nothing to do with feelings.”
Taylor sighed. “I get that. I get that you’re worried and that everything happening with Twig is a mess. You need to relax a bit, though. Obsessing over this clearly isn’t helping. Maybe taking the evening off would help.”
Palmer rubbed his face again. His eyes burned. “Maybe. We’re not talking about Rune, though.”
“Why not? I was looking forward to teasing you.”
“There’s nothing happening between me and Rune. We’re focused on helping Twig, and that’s that.”
“But you’re fond of him.”
Palmer didn’t deny it. He was fond of Rune.
He’d felt that way even before everything that was happening with Twig.
He enjoyed spending hours sitting side-by-side, researching and only talking when necessary.
He wished they’d grown closer in different circumstances.
The dragon was always willing to help, and while that might be because his brother was ill, it meant something.
Palmer pointed a finger at his brother. “We won’t be talking about Rune.”
“Fine,” Taylor said as he flopped back. “Be boring.”
“I’m incredibly happy being boring. You, on the other hand, are too nosy.”
“But you love me anyway.”
“Of course I do, you idiot.” Just like Rune loved Twig.
That was why Palmer wasn’t too worried yet.
He knew that if he and Rune didn’t find a solution to this soon, neither of them would hesitate to force Twig to talk to dragon healers.
Hell, he didn’t even have to talk to them.
He just needed to allow Palmer to do so.
Palmer could do all the examinations and tests, and whatever healer agreed to help him could review his results and help him identify the illness and treatments that would actually work.
Palmer couldn’t do any of that tonight, though. Taylor wasn’t wrong. Maybe taking an evening off would help his brain relax for a bit and make something he’d been missing obvious.
Because he was sure he was missing something. He just didn’t know what.
“So what do you want to do tonight?” Taylor asked, stretching his legs out in front of him. “We could go to the kitchens and see if there’s anything good left from dinner. Or we could just sit here and talk about anything except sick dragons.”
Palmer considered it. The idea of leaving his room, of stepping away from the medical texts and his spiraling thoughts, was appealing. “Food sounds good,” he admitted. “I can’t remember the last time I ate.”
“That’s what I thought.” Taylor stood up and gestured toward the door. “Come on. Let’s get you fed before you collapse.”
Palmer hesitated, glancing back at the books scattered across his room. Part of him wanted to stay to keep searching for the answer that had to be there somewhere. But Taylor was right. He wasn’t doing anyone any good like this.
“All right,” he said, pushing himself up from the couch. “Let’s go.”
As they left his room, Palmer felt some of the tension in his shoulders ease. Maybe a break really was what he needed. And maybe, just maybe, when he came back to the problem with fresh eyes, the answer would finally reveal itself.