Chapter Seven
––––––––
PALMER HADN’T SLEPT well. He’d spent most of the night reading through every medical book he had, searching for anything that might explain the symptoms he’d been seeing.
Poisoning seemed like the most likely explanation, but there were hundreds of substances that could cause nausea, weakness, and fatigue.
Without knowing what he was looking for, Palmer felt like he was searching for a needle in a haystack.
He’d barely managed to get a few hours of sleep before his alarm went off, reminding him that he had an appointment with Kessa.
She was one of the oldest dragon healers in the palace, and from what Palmer had heard, she was also one of the best. Killian had arranged the meeting himself, explaining that Kessa had decades of experience treating dragons and might recognize what Palmer was dealing with.
Palmer was grateful for the help, but he couldn’t help the nervousness that had settled in his stomach.
What if Kessa thought he was incompetent?
What if she looked at his notes and realized he’d been doing everything wrong?
He’d been treating Twig for days, and his patient wasn’t getting any better.
If Palmer had missed something obvious, he’d never forgive himself.
The meeting was taking place in one of the palace’s private sitting rooms rather than the infirmary.
Palmer had brought everything with him—his notes, the test results, and the medications he’d been administering.
He’d even written out a detailed timeline of Twig’s symptoms and how they’d progressed.
If Kessa needed information, Palmer wanted to make sure she had it.
When he arrived, Kessa was already there.
She was an older dragon shifter with light purple and silver hair pulled back in a neat bun, and her eyes were a pale lavender that seemed to see right through him.
She stood when Palmer entered, and he was struck by how tall she was.
Most dragons were tall, even in their human forms, males or females.
“You must be Palmer,” she said, her voice warm and welcoming. “I’ve heard good things about you.”
Palmer tried not to show his surprise. He hadn’t expected that. “Thank you. I appreciate you taking the time to meet with me.”
“Of course. The king explained the situation, and I’m happy to help however I can.” She gestured to the table, where Palmer could see she’d already laid out several books and notebooks of her own. “Why don’t you walk me through what you’ve been seeing?”
Palmer nodded and set his notes down on the table.
He wished Rune could be here since they’d both wanted him to be, but they’d agreed it was more important for him to stay with Twig when Twig had asked him to.
He took a seat across from Kessa and opened his notebook, though he barely needed to look at it.
He’d been over these notes so many times that he had them memorized.
“The first patient was Twig,” Palmer began.
“He came to me about a week ago, complaining of nausea, fatigue, and weakness. At first, I thought it might be a stomach virus or food poisoning, but the symptoms didn’t resolve the way I expected them to.
I ran blood tests, and everything came back mostly normal, though his white blood cell count was slightly elevated. ”
Kessa nodded, listening intently. “What treatment did you prescribe?”
“I started him on antiemetics for the nausea and recommended rest and hydration. When that didn’t help, I tried a course of broad-spectrum antivirals, thinking we might be dealing with an unknown virus.
” Palmer hesitated, then added, “The antivirals seemed to make things worse, actually. His symptoms intensified after I started them.”
“Go on,” Kessa said, her expression thoughtful.
“Two more patients have come in since then, both siblings of the king. They have the same symptoms, so nausea, weakness, fatigue, and a general sense of not feeling well.” Palmer pushed his notes across the table toward Kessa.
“I stopped the antiviral treatment for Yorga because it wasn’t helping, and I didn’t give it to Ash at all, but I don’t know what else to do. I’ve never seen anything like this.”
Kessa picked up the notes and began reading through them. Palmer watched her, his anxiety growing with each passing moment. He couldn’t tell what she was thinking.
Finally, Kessa looked up. “You haven’t been doing anything wrong,” she said, and Palmer felt a wave of relief wash over him. “In fact, your instincts were good. You were right to stop the antiviral treatment.”
“But I made things worse,” Palmer said. “The symptoms got worse after I started the antivirals.”
“You didn’t know what you were dealing with,” Kessa said gently. “And to be fair, this isn’t something most healers would recognize. I only do because I’ve seen it before, many years ago.” She tapped the notes with one finger. “Your patients aren’t sick, Palmer. They’re being poisoned.”
Palmer had suspected as much, but hearing it confirmed still made his stomach churn. “What kind of poison?”
“Aconitum,” Kessa said. “It’s a plant that grows in the mountains. Most people know it by its common name—wolfsbane. The root contains a toxin called aconitine, and it’s extremely dangerous. In small doses, it causes the symptoms you’ve been seeing. In larger doses, it can cause cardiac arrest.”
Palmer felt his blood run cold. He’d heard of wolfsbane before, but he’d never dealt with aconitine poisoning. “How is it being administered?”
“That, I can’t tell you,” Kessa admitted. “But based on the progression you’ve described, I’d guess it’s being given in small, repeated doses. The symptoms build slowly over time, which makes it harder to diagnose.” She paused, then added, “The antivirals you prescribed, what were they?”
“Ribavirin,” Palmer said.
Kessa nodded slowly. “That would explain why the symptoms worsened. Ribavirin can interfere with the body’s ability to metabolize aconitine, which means the toxin builds up faster. You weren’t making them worse on purpose, Palmer. You couldn’t have known.”
Palmer wanted to feel relieved, but all he felt was guilt. He’d been trying to help, and instead, he’d made things worse. “What’s the treatment?”
“Activated charcoal can help if the poisoning is caught early, but based on your timeline, I don’t think that will be effective at this point.
The toxin is already in their systems.” Kessa flipped through one of her books, found the page she was looking for, and turned it so Palmer could see.
“What they need is atropine. It’s an antidote that counteracts the effects of aconitine.
You’ll need to administer it intravenously and to monitor their heart rates closely, especially for your first patient.
Aconitine poisoning can cause arrhythmias, and atropine will help stabilize them. ”
Palmer studied the page. Atropine. He could do that. He could help them. “How long until they recover?” He was especially worried about Twig. Ash should be fine since he hadn’t been sick that long, and he hadn’t taken the antiviral.
“If we start treatment immediately, they should begin to show improvement within a day or two. Full recovery will take longer, maybe a week or more, depending on how much of the toxin is in their systems.” Kessa closed the book and looked at Palmer seriously.
“You’ll also need to find the source of the poison and eliminate it.
If they continue to be exposed, the atropine won’t be enough. ”
Palmer nodded. That was something Killian and his guards were already working on.
If Pearl was behind this, they’d find out soon enough.
“Thank you,” he said, and he meant it. “I don’t know what I would’ve done if you hadn’t been here.
” Probably killed his patients, although it wouldn’t actually have been him. He’d still have blamed himself, though.
“You would have figured it out eventually,” Kessa said with a small smile. “You’re a good healer, Palmer. Don’t doubt yourself.”
Palmer wasn’t sure he believed that, but he appreciated the sentiment.
He gathered his notes and stood, already mentally preparing for what he needed to do next.
He had to get back to the infirmary, get Yorga and Ash to come, administer the atropine, and monitor his patients.
If Kessa was right, they’d start improving soon.
He just hoped it wasn’t too late.
* * * *
RUNE HAD LEFT THE INFIRMARY about an hour after Twig had fallen asleep.
He’d wanted to stay to find out how Palmer’s meeting had gone, but an emergency had come in, and he’d thought it would be better to free up some space and give the healers and injured dragon privacy.
He couldn’t help but wonder what Palmer was up to, though.
What had the healer he was meeting with said?
Maybe Rune could text him. They’d exchanged phone numbers after they’d started working together, and while Rune had never used Palmer’s number, Palmer wouldn’t be surprised if he did.
It was why he had it, after all. He knew that if he didn’t reach out, he’d obsess over it until tomorrow.
He wouldn’t be able to sleep. He needed answers, and he needed them as soon as possible. His brother’s life depended on it.
But he didn’t want to bother Palmer. If he got answers, he might already be busy using them and helping Twig, Yorga, and Ash. If that was the case, having Rune texting him might distract him, which wasn’t what Rune wanted.
He was grateful when someone knocked on his door. If he was distracted, he wouldn’t obsess over Palmer or bother him. He wasn’t sure how long that would last, but it was better than sitting on his couch, bouncing his knee, and overthinking everything.
He quickly got up, ready for the distraction. As long as it wasn’t Pearl, he’d take anything.