It seemed like the worst was over.
Tarinne's temperature had decreased, She was breathing more easily now, The medical staff had replaced her sheets, brought her medicine and new herbs, and one even gave a hopeful smile. Elora had stayed right by her daughter, Every sixty minutes, she put a cool, wet cloth on her head, held her hand, and told old tales she hardly recalled from when she was young.
"She is getting better," one of the healers said softly, "You should try to get some sleep."
Elora did not say anything,
She was unable to rest, Not just yet.
Raydar did as he promised, she was stuck in the room, and they were watching her every move, They brought food to the entrance, Messages were passed through the people guarding her, She didn't know what he was up to, who he was talking to, or if he even believed what she said.
All she was sure of was that her child had opened her eyes that morning and smiled.
It was a small, quick smile, but still, she smiled.
Elora started to think they might finally be safe,
Then Tarinne suddenly got sick again.
It happened fast and was intense, One second, she was drinking soup, holding the cup softly with her fingers, The next second, her eyes went blank, and the cup fell to the ground, with the soup getting the rug wet.
"Tarinne!" Elora yelled, catching her before she fell off the bed.
She yelled for someone to come help. The guards ran in, and after a moment, the medical people came back, looking in their bags, asking for things, and whispering about her heart rate and temperature. Elora could hardly hear them, Her ears were buzzing and Her hands were shaking.
Raydar came in quickly after that.
He just looked at Tarinne's face, which was pale and not awake, and that was all it took, His whole body tensed up, His feral side was near, too near, and the smell of anger got stronger around him.
"What happened?" he said in a harsh voice,
No one spoke up quickly enough,
Raydar faced the closest medical person, "What Happened."
"She got sick again," the woman said, stuttering, "We.. we are not sure how, "
He didn't wait for her to finish talking,
"Put more guards on duty," he ordered, while already walking toward the door, "No one is allowed to leave the pack, No one is allowed to come in, I want them to check all the food, Ask all the people who work here questions."
"Alpha, " someone tried to say,
"I want everything locked down," he yelled, "If someone poisoned her, they must still be here."
The hallway was suddenly full of action, Orders were shouted, people ran, and fighters began moving everywhere, Elora stayed still by the bed, holding Tarinne, who was weak, in her arms.
Raydar came back a few seconds later with two guards and pointed to Elora,
"She is not allowed to leave this room, Not for any reason, Put guards outside her door, If she needs something, get it for her."
Elora's eyes sparked with anger, "Are you putting me in prison again?"
"I am keeping you safe," he said sharply, "Until we find out who is doing this."
"I already told you who is responsible, "
"I will find out," he stated, "But until I do, you are staying here."
The guards went outside and stood watch,
Raydar glanced down at Tarinne and then looked again at Elora, A little of the anger went away from his face.
"I will not allow her to die," he stated calmly,
And then he walked out.
Elora stayed there in the quiet after he left, her heart full of sadness and anger, She kept her daughter near and kissed her wet hair.
She did not know what made her more afraid, the person trying to hurt them who was still hiding with them,
…or the reality no one wanted to say out loud.
Raydar did not go away,
From when he came back to the room, he sat in the chair near Tarinne's bed and hardly moved at all, He seemed to fill the whole room, strong, watchful, and steady. When the doctors came in to feel her heartbeat or put on new bandages, he stood up, holding his hands tightly behind him, watching everything they did.
Elora tried to stay far away on the other side of the room.
She took care of little things, folding the sheets, cleaning the water bowl, arranging the herbs she could not use, She did anything to keep busy, She did anything to stay away from him.
But Raydar always noticed her,
When she bent down to touch her lips to Tarinne's head, he watched, When she sat against the wall far away and watched her daughter sleeping, he looked at her, watching her without saying anything, He did not say much, But he was always watching her.
And slowly, that quiet feeling started to come nearer to her.
On the second night, he let her use his chair as she rubbed her sore legs, On the third morning, he gave her tea, nothing special, just hot and strong and given without a word.
She tried not to take it,
Tried not to let him get near,
But when he talked, it was never pushy,
"I don't know how I missed it," he said one evening, his voice quiet under his voice, "That she belonged to me."
Elora didn't say anything,
"I should have known right when I saw her, She's got my stubbornness, And your passion."
"She has her own," Elora said softly, still not looking at him.
Raydar didn't pressure her.
But each day, the silence between them became less, less like a wall and more like a string.
That string was pulled even tighter every time Janna walked past.
She didn't come into the room, but she stood in the hallway often, standing just far enough away to not look suspicious, but just close enough to see. Elora felt her there every time the door made a noise, Sometimes it was to check on how the healers were doing, Other times she brought food or messages, always given with fake smiles and careful looks.
But she was watching,
Elora noticed how Janna's eyes got smaller whenever Raydar touched Tarinne's forehead, How her lips tightened each time he touched Elora's shoulder or stood a little too close when talking.
The tension in the room felt like heat before a storm,s
Elora tried to move away, to stay apart, but Raydar kept pulling her in, softly, and on purpose. He asked questions about Tarinne's favorite foods, He told her about the time he was almost stabbed by a wild pig while on patrol when he was younger, He even laughed once, deep and quiet, when Tarinne mumbled in her sleep about frogs wearing crowns.
And when Elora smiled, just once, he looked at her like the world had changed.
That scared her more than anything,
She couldn't forget the whispers, The threat of the ritual, and The way Janna had smiled while giving a warning hidden in politeness.
And still, Raydar sat beside her now, placed his elbows on his knees, his head down in quiet focus as if protecting the child between them was the only important thing.
Elora stood slowly and pulled the blanket up over Tarinne's shoulders, She could feel his eyes on her, close, and steady.
When she turned, Janna was in the hallway again,
Watching everything,
And she was not amused.