Kei's Gift (79 page)

“Thank you, my lord,” Arman said, delighted he hadn’t even had to ask to be allowed to see Kei again. “I’ve just had an idea as to how we can avoid the signal beacon problem, by the way.”

“Oh? Tell me more.”

Twenty minutes later, Arman hobbled back to his room with a sense of a job well done. He’d brought Kei to his Ruler’s attention and the medical text as well, which might ensure it actually got distributed, and Arman would be able to tell him the good news and much besides in person. Better than that, Kei was to work with them on the project. The thought lifted Arman’s mood despite his intense weariness. He would sleep well tonight.

~~~~~~~~

Kei tried to move and immediately had to turn his head to throw up, his nausea overwhelming him even more than the horrendous throbbing in his head. Someone touched his face and he cried out at the added agony. The touch and everything else disappeared then....

He kept waking and being sick and in pain, people close by him making him cringe away from their touch and their emotions. He begged them to leave him alone, to keep away, but he couldn’t tell if they heard him and he couldn’t stay awake long enough to find out. It went on and on until he was exhausted, unable to fight either pain or distress. At last, he was given something to drink that was icy on his tongue, and the pain, at least, disappeared and the world faded out again.

There was bright sun in the room when he woke, still nauseated, and he couldn’t remember where he was. He felt someone close by—he turned his head. Reji, lying asleep, looking drawn and worried. Kei raised a shaking hand to the pain in his head, and found a lump with a cut or graze on it, above his temple. How had he been injured? Why did he feel so sick and...disconnected?

Carefully, so not to wake Reji or fall over, he got up. He had to hang on to the bed to stand. What was wrong with him?

His shirt was vomit-flecked and covered in blood, so he pulled it off, grimacing at the state of it. The only clean one to hand was one of Reji’s but he didn’t think he could manage trying to find another so he took it. He wanted to use the washroom to clean up, but where were his boots? He looked around and spotted them by the door. As he bent to pick them up, trying not to pass out again, he saw a note had been put under the door. He sat on the only chair to shove his feet into the boots and then unfolded the note. His vision wouldn’t behave—he had to squint past the blurriness and the throbbing in his head to read it, but eventually he realised it was a message from Arman. “
I need your help,
” it said.

Gods! Arman was in trouble. Reji was still asleep—should Kei wake him? No, he looked tired. Money? Did he need it? He couldn’t ride a beast, but maybe he could pay someone to take him to the city...did he have enough for that? He had no idea.

He couldn’t think. Best to get moving and hope for the best. He put the purse of coins in his pocket, kept a firm grip on Arman’s note and opened the door quietly. The stairs were a challenge, but he hung onto the rail grimly. The innkeeper said something to him but he didn’t want to talk to anyone, so he just waved and got out of the inn as fast as he could.

The sun was too bright, and he feared he would throw up again, even though he felt completely hollow. For a moment, he couldn’t even remember which way he had to go.

“Are you all right, lad?”

He squinted at the elderly man looking at him in concern. “Rulers’ House,” he mumbled. He brought up the note. “Here.”

“Oh, you want to go east, that way, lad,” the man said, pointing the direction. “But you don’t look in any state to walk that far.”

Kei peered at him in dismay. “Cart?”

“A cart? A wagon might give you a lift, if that’s what you mean.”

“I have money,” he said, going for his purse.

“No, lad, they’ll give you a ride for free. Let me find someone for you.”

Kei could only nod mutely in thanks, and hang onto the post at the side of the building where he stood. There were people everywhere and he felt them like shards of glass cutting into his skin. He tried to hide in the shadows, avoiding being brushed against. Only his hand tightly clutching Arman’s note gave him strength to keep upright.

He was close to passing out when his new friend returned. “Come on, lad, I’ve found a wagon driver heading into town who’ll take you to the Rulers House, or close enough.”

The old man laid hands on him, and Kei had to grit his teeth not to cry out from the pain of it. He would not throw up, he would
not
throw up....

He let himself be tugged along a short distance around a corner. “Is this the lad?” someone asked.

“Yes—he’s a bit unsteady, looks ill to me.”

“Maybe he’s drunk.”

“Oh, use your brains, man—does he smell of drink? And see? Look at that knot on his head. No, he’s sick—his friend will help him if you get the boy to where he’s to meet him.”

His friend.
Arman
. Arman would help...no, Kei had to help Arman. “‘m all right,” he muttered, and with the help of a strong arm, climbed slowly into the back of the empty wagon which smelled of cured jombeker hides and would have made a healthy man want to be sick.

He buried his nose in his shirt and breathed shallowly, but the jolting, smelly ride was pure misery for him. All he could do was rest his head and hope it wouldn’t take too long.

“Wake up, lad—come on, boy, you’re here. Are you all right?”

He looked up blearily—the wagon driver had climbed into the back of the wagon to find out what was wrong with him. He accepted his assistance to stand, and managed not to fall down again immediately despite his sudden dizziness. “Rulers’ House?”

“Right here. I can’t take you up the drive—can you walk?”

He nodded, and let the man almost carry him out the back of the wagon. At least the fresher air was a relief, although the sun was bad. “Do I pay you?”

“For taking you where I was going anyway? Don’t be daft. Look, lad, are you sure you are supposed to be here?”

Kei thrust the note, still clenched in his fist, under the man’s nose. “Arman needs me.”

“Er...all right. You head up the path there and find your friend. Don’t pass out,” the man added darkly.

Kei nodded, then stumbled his way up the path he recalled from somewhere...when? It was easiest if he just watched his feet—if he looked up, the world wavered back and forth. There were stairs, which were a challenge, but the rail helped. He shoved the big doors open with his shoulder and almost fell inside the cool, darker hall inside. The desk—he had to go to the desk first.

“Can I help you?” a woman asked him.

He pushed the note at her. “Arman needs me.”

She recoiled from his outstretched hand. “I beg your pardon, boy? You look drunk—you have no business here.”

“Not drunk,” he said, almost growling. This woman...he remembered, remembered she’d been pissing rude. “Should stick your pen where it hurts,” he muttered to himself.

Not enough to himself, apparently. “
What
did you say? Guards! Take this man out of the building!”

“No! Arman needs me! Look!” He shoved the note into her face again. “Look, he’s written! Lord...Lord Meki...he knows...please...I have a note...no, let me go,” he cried as his arms were seized, and his mind was scraped raw by the emotions of the men holding him. “Please, don’t touch me...just get Arman...just....”

His legs collapsed but he was held up. “Please...help me....” His vision went all funny again, and there were a lot of voices all at once, angry, worried, voices. He wanted to hide from them but they wouldn’t let him go.

“You should get him out....”

“...Lord Meki....”

“...injured, not drunk....”

“Get a healer...gods, he’s passing out! Catch him!”

No, can’t pass out, got to help Arman....

~~~~~~~~

A clerk enter the room with a worried look on her face and went to Lord Meki’s side to whisper something in his ear. The Ruler stood. “Everyone, sorry to interrupt, but there’s some kind of disturbance I need to attend to. General, I think you’d better come.”

Arman frowned—they were right in the middle of some crucial planning, and from the looks of the others in the meeting room, he wasn’t the only one annoyed at the interruption. However, he knew Lord Meki well enough to know he wasn’t prone to wasting his own time, let alone anyone else’s, so he nodded and stood. “Please continue—we can’t afford any delay.”

Lady Jilki stood to take over the meeting as he and Lord Meki left the room. “What’s going on?” Arman asked, struggling with his bad leg to keep pace with the impatient Ruler.

“Someone’s come to the reception demanding to see you. It could just be someone with a grudge who’s heard you’re here, but I want to be sure.”

They could hear the shouting as they approached the entrance hall, and Arman arrived just in time to see Kei being lowered to the floor, apparently unconscious, surrounded by soldiers. “Kei! Please, my lord, get those men away from him!”

Lord Meki snapped out an order for everyone to get clear of Kei while Arman hobbled as fast as he could to Kei’s side. He lowered himself with difficulty to the floor and pulled Kei’s head into his lap—there was fresh blood on his face, trickling from a short, deep gash on a nasty looking lump on his forehead. “What happened? How did he get here?”

Lord Meki turned to the woman standing to the side of the soldiers, looking angry and afraid. “I don’t know, my lord,” she said in answer to his questioning look. “He just turned up, seemed to be drunk, demanding to see the general—he was here yesterday, being rude and demanding to see
you
, my lord,” she said defensively. “We can’t just let people walk in from the road to waste the Rulers’ time.”

“Kei’s not rude and he doesn’t waste time,” Arman said through gritted teeth. “For the love of the gods, will someone get a damn healer here? My lord, please, could you send for the lad’s friend, Reji. He was staying at the Inn of the White Hisk—he’ll know what’s happening. Or Captain Tiko.”

“Elsi, get healer Loti here,” Lord Meki snapped. “Sergeant, find this man Reji...of Ai-Albon, is it, general?” Arman nodded. “Reji of Ai-Albon and have him brought here—have him bring his belongings and this lad’s too. He can stay in the House if he needs to, but he’s to be at the general’s disposal until otherwise ordered. Elsi, why are you still standing there—go get that damn healer!”

The woman scurried off as Lord Meki knelt down beside Arman. “He looks dreadful,” he said.

Arman nodded, stroking Kei’s face. Kei had something clutched tight in his hand, something he hadn’t let go even in his faint. He prised Kei’s fingers away from it with surprising difficulty, and found it was his own note. He looked at Lord Meki in confusion. “He came in response to this—perhaps he was attacked on the way?”

“It’s possible. I’m sorry, general—we’ll make sure he’s looked after.”

“My lord?”

Arman turned and with relief saw it was Loti come at his Ruler’s command. “Loti, this is Kei—he’s been hurt.”

Loti dropped to his knees. “Oh, good gods.” He pulled Kei’s eyelids back, checked his pulse and breathing, and examined the badly bruised lump. “This is a few hours old—perhaps as many as twelve—and has had a healer’s attention. He shouldn’t be walking around in his state—he has a bad concussion.”

“Will he be all right?” Arman asked in frantic worry. Kei looked so pale.

“I think so, although he needs to be watched for a few hours. Was he on his own? No healer would leave someone like this unattended.”

“I think he might have had a friend with him,” Arman said distractedly. But why had the friend let Kei wander off on his own? “My lord, can we take him to my rooms? I know he’ll be easier if I’m close by.”

“Of course.” Lord Meki signalled to the soldiers, who lifted Kei carefully. “Loti, you stay with the boy until either I or the general order otherwise. General, we can spare you a few minutes, but this is a very bad time for an interruption as you know.”

“Yes, I know—if I can just be with him when he wakes, to reassure him? He’ll need rest more than anything, yes?” he asked Loti , following Kei as he was taken up the long staircase.

“Yes, that’s really all he needs, and fluids when he’s awake. Please, general, we need to get him onto a bed.”

Arman followed, praying the soldiers would realise how precious their cargo was and not drop him. With relief, he saw them reach the first floor, then they carried Kei with great gentleness along the long corridor to the residential wing.

Once in Arman’s rooms, Kei was laid on the bed and the soldiers dismissed. Arman watched anxiously as Loti made a further examination.

“I need to get back to the meeting, general.”

Arman turned, slightly startled to hear the words—he’d been concentrating so hard, he hadn’t even realised Lord Meki had followed them in. “Of course, my lord. I’m sorry for the delay—but this man is not only very dear to me, but he’s much too valuable to Darshian to lose.”