Chapter 22
Keira
Keira drifted slowly into consciousness.
It might have been hours she existed inside of herself, unable to move, feeling the agony of the venom curling through her veins like fire.
When she finally found the will to open her eyes, she studied the flickering movements of shadows against the cave wall.
She struggled to comprehend what exactly she was seeing.
Her mind was more preoccupied with the tremors that had overtaken her body, unlike anything she had ever experienced.
She felt as though she were burning from the inside out and yet her teeth were chattering.
The juxtaposition made her want to crawl out of her skin.
“Keira, woah, I’m here,” Caspian’s voice floated around her. “Calm down- Keira, talk to me.”
It wasn’t until she felt the weight of his hands on her shoulders that she realized how violent her movements had become.
“I’ve got you,” he said.
Keira opened her eyes to see his face over her own. He was looking at her, not like she was some stranger, but at her. Like he used to. She forced an even breath through her lungs. Forced her body to still even as the agony continued to course through her.
He nodded, looking her up and down. “That’s right. I’ve got you.”
She chanced a glance at herself. He’d stripped her down to her undergarments, which were damp and clinging to her skin.
Around her was a bed of snow. An effort to bring down her fever, she recognized.
When she’d gathered the courage, Keira turned to the center of the pain on the right side of her chest.
It was worse than she’d thought.
Her shoulder was black, a mess of tainted veins spread down to her hand, across her chest, likely her face as well. She didn’t have much time.
Keira tried to sit, but her head spun dangerously with pain and thirst.
“Water, please,” Keira breathed.
Caspian moved at once, returning with a waterskin. Keira drank deep gulps until her stomach was so full she feared she might be sick. She let more cool water pour over her face. The relief, if only for a moment, was indescribable.
Her eyes were still closed when she felt a gentle touch wiping the water from her lashes. Keira blinked up at him.
“Caspian.” Her voice was shallow and strained.
“I’m here.” As steady as he sounded, his eyes betrayed how tired he was, how afraid.
Had he been awake, watching over her this whole time? How long had it been?
“I’m sorry,” Keira breathed, fixing her gaze on his.
He shook his head. “Don’t be sorry. Not now. Tell me how to fix this. Tell me how to help you, and then we can talk about everything. I promise.”
How could she fix this? Her brain was fever addled and murky. It took her several moments of wading through her thoughts to arrive at a solution.
“I need a stone,” Keira said finally.
He looked back at her, eyes narrowed in confusion. Nevertheless, a moment later he pressed a jagged rock into her palm.
Perfect. Keira let out a deep exhale. Now to sit up.
Shifting herself upright wasn’t as disastrous as she had feared.
She did not lose the contents of her stomach or faint.
However, it took three tries to overcome the dizziness.
The pain of even such a simple shift had her breathing sharply through her teeth.
Keira could feel her strength waning, time running out.
She needed to finish this and fast. Who knew if she would regain consciousness again before the venom completed its work.
Caspian sat beside her, half holding her upright and all the while looking at her with the greatest concern.
She could do this. She could, Keira told herself again and again.
The determination must have shown on her face, because Caspian said nothing as she began to carve into the wall of the cave.
The rock left behind clear marks as she drew a circle large enough.
Every so often, Keira would close her eyes, to steady herself or to recall the proper symbol.
In the end, Keira wiped her brow and sighed with a faint satisfied smile. The stone clattered to the floor as she placed her hand within the circle.
A tower on a lonely hill, the image conjured slowly, hazily into her mind. A green leather binding on a wooden shelf. She clenched her jaw against the effort it took to focus. The memory became sharper, stronger. She could see it clearly now.
Caspian’s body tensed beside her in surprise as her hand passed through the stone. Her fingers reached until they closed around the stippled leather cover.
Keira fell back into Caspian’s chest, clutching the book against her tightly.
“This has the answer?” Caspian asked.
Keira nodded, eyes still shut against the dizziness spinning through her mind. The last of her strength was waning, absorbed by the magic.
“Keira?” He shook her shoulder.
“Hmmm,” she managed. But she could feel herself slipping.
Her brain was shooting through the stars, orbiting the sun.
He said something else, but she couldn’t hear it.
He was too far away.