CHAPTER 9
Katy
T
his couldn’t be happening. Axel had guards for protocol and crowd control, not because he was ever in danger. Otto tagged along because the king insisted on it, not because Axel needed him.
The desperate arguments flitted uselessly through Katy’s head as she ran through the halls. She’d left the king, queen, and her shoes behind: she didn’t need to maintain royal dignity, and the shoes weren’t made for running.
Bertram’s story followed her denials. Concerned that the prince hadn’t returned, he’d gone to the courtyard to question the gate guards.
A carriage hurtling down the street had come to a sudden halt at the castle, the driver frantic and calling for a physician.
He had two royal guards, the driver said, both injured, one gravely.
A single glance through the carriage door told Bertram the truth. He’d ordered the guards to take the carriage straight to the physician and raced off to inform his monarchs.
So Katy needed to be in the infirmary. Now.
“Your Highness!” The nurse startled when Katy flew around the corner, but she quickly recovered. “Where are Their Majesties?”
“Coming. Where are they?”
The nurse waved to the left. “This way. They’ve only just arrived.”
As soon as Katy stepped through the door, her eyes landed on her husband.
He was sitting on a bed, eyes closed as he leaned back against the wall.
His clothes were torn and dirty, his right cheek was covered in long, red welts, and his white shirt was stained in multiple places.
A strip of black fabric was wound around his left bicep.
She rushed forward. “Axel! What happened? Are you all right?”
His brown eyes opened halfway at her voice. “Katy.” He started to reach for her with his left hand, but stopped with a grimace. “It looks worse than it is. I promise.”
“But Bertram said one of you was seriously hurt.” She lowered herself to the edge of the bed. Carefully moving his hair away from a bruise on his forehead, she asked, “Was he wrong?”
Axel brought his right hand around to brush against her curls. “No.”
“But you said—”
He nodded to the other side of the room, where the physician and several nurses were huddled together around a different bed, their voices urgent. A pair of booted feet was visible at the near end. “Otto.”
Of course. Whoever hurt the prince would have gone through his guard first.
“I learned my lesson. I’m never leaving the castle without my sword again.”
She could hear the lightness he injected into his voice, but his eyes were filled with pain. And not because of his wounds.
“It’s my fault, Katy,” he whispered. He dropped his eyes to his lap. “If we’d both been armed, they never would have touched us.”
How did she respond to that?
Squeezing his hand, she leaned carefully against his shoulder. But her eyes drifted across the room to the worried staff and her motionless cousin.
~
“For the last time, Kat, I’m fine.”
Katy ignored her cousin and settled into the chair next to his bed. Holding out the bowl of soup in her hand, she said, “Eat up. Don’t make me spoon-feed you.”
He snatched the bowl from her hand, shooting her a glare as he did so. The abrupt movement made him wince. “I’m not helpless. If you need to mother someone, go take care of your husband.”
She allowed herself a glance over her shoulder. Axel was sitting up, his left arm in a sling and a book in his right hand. He could have returned to their suite a few days ago, but staying in the infirmary allowed her to be near them both. “He’s not the one with a hole in his side.”
“It missed the vital organs; I’ll heal. He’s the one short an arm, so go feed him.”
“You’re cranky when laid up. How did I not know that about you?”
“Because I kept you away from anything dangerous. Seriously, Kat, there are nurses if I need something. And I have a wife who will be here soon to harass me about my health, so I don’t need it from you, too!”
The rustle of pages sounded behind her. “He’s right, my love. I can’t even read one-handed; you should give Otto a break and come bother me for a little while.”
Otto’s blue eyes bored into her. “I have the bowl. I’m eating.” He stuffed a spoonful into his mouth without looking at it. “Go away.”
A part of her was affronted, but Katy had been watching him grow more restless by the day. He couldn’t stand on his own, thanks to the slice in his thigh; he wasn’t supposed to sit up on his own because of his side. For someone who had always been active and independent, that had to be frustrating.
“Call if you need me.” She lightly patted his leg above the knee, careful to avoid his injury, but he still inhaled sharply at the contact. Withdrawing her hand, she sighed, “Sorry. I thought that was safe.”
He didn’t reply as she rose from her chair and crossed to Axel’s bed. Instead of occupying a chair, she sat on the bed and leaned against his right arm. Axel shifted, freeing his arm so he could wrap it around her. “I missed you.”
“I’ve been ten feet away,” she laughed. He buried his nose in her hair, his breath tickling her ear. “You act like I went home to Flussendorf for a few days.”
“Mmm, but I had to watch you fuss over another man, so you may as well have.”
“My cousin,” she reminded him. “Who was half an inch from dying a week ago.” If he hadn’t been wearing a cloak lined with chainmail…
Axel’s nose paused. “You’re right,” he murmured, pulling away. “He was.”
She couldn’t say the right thing, could she?
Swinging his legs over the side of the bed, he stood up and headed for the door. “I’ll be back in a little bit.”
“Axel—” She scrambled to follow him, but the door closed a little too loudly before she was halfway there.
“You need to get him out of here, Kat.” Otto’s voice was quiet. “It was my job, but he can’t accept that, and watching me struggle all day isn’t helping. He needs to move back to your suite.”
Katy turned to him with a small smile. “You just want me to spend less time in here.”
“I want you to help your husband. But yes, I could do with less of your mothering.” One side of his mouth pulled up, softening the statement.
It was the second time he’d used that word. Katy’s smile faltered as it echoed in her mind. Mothering…was she? She was another week past, but she still couldn’t bring herself to mention it to anyone. If it was a false alarm, they would be disappointed again. If it wasn’t…
They would be ecstatic. She would be frantic.
“Thanks, Otto. I’ll see what I can do.” Returning to the bed, she grabbed the book that Axel had dropped.
“Kat, before you go.” He grimaced. “Can you hand me my water? I can’t reach it.”
Rubbing it in wouldn’t be worth it, so she kept her mouth closed as she walked over, picked up the glass from the side table, and moved it the few inches to his outstretched hand. “Of course, sweetheart,” she cooed, leaning over to kiss him on the forehead.
She spun away before he could see the grin she was suppressing, but not before she caught his scowl.
Then again, a little bit of rubbing didn’t hurt.