I sniffed the air, freezing when the wrong scent reached my nostrils. I rubbed my eyes, realizing the dark hair was far too short and curly to be Benedict’s. An odd clanging sound met my ears, and my arms felt heavy. Where were the sounds of the leaves? Of the wind racing through the trees?

I twisted around and Thad’s face came into focus. I made a noise of distress in my throat and his dark eyes shot open, boring into mine with razor focus before shifting away. With a surge of despair, I felt the chains and collar around my neck and arms, and I cried. Thad’s arms curled tighter around me, and then he slowly sat us both up.

“Do you . . . do you feel better?”

My body ached and I felt dirty, coated in sweat and grime. My head pounded and my stomach growled. Yet, for the first time in days, I felt like I might not die. Physically, at least. If I hadn’t felt like my heart was breaking all over again, I might have laughed at the look of utter helplessness on Thad’s face.

“Your fever has finally broken. I want to take the opportunity to get you to the baths. Severn has been gone for the past week, so we don’t have to worry about running into him.”

The world tilted crazily when I tried to stand, and I would have fallen off the bed if Thad hadn’t lunged across it and caught me.

“You . . . you know I didn’t mean escape, right? I don’t want you thinking that . . . ” He trailed off, flushed and embarrassed. My head fell back against his chest, his hand swiping my hair out of my eyes. He flushed when he realized what he’d done.

“If I give you my cup, will you actually drink from it? You haven’t eaten in a while. This might help.”

I nodded, too weak to refuse anything that may help. Being weak here could get me killed. Thad went over to his small table, fiddling with the cup and a few vials of herbs and spices. An old, weathered canteen stood on top as well, and he held it upside down over the goblet. He practically snarled when he realized it was empty. Thad caught me staring and I looked away, embarrassed. He fiddled around for a few more minutes before finishing up, taking care to ensure his back was to me the entire time. I narrowed my eyes.

“I mashed up some fruit to put in it. I know you like fruit.”

I covered my head with my hands, trying to squeeze the tension from my temples. Thad shoved the goblet under my nose, and I sniffed it warily.

I took the goblet from him, noticing a cloth tied roughly around his palm. “What’d you do to your hand?”

He pulled away, a slight blush tinging his cheeks. “It was probably you. You thrashed around enough to shred a few blankets while you were sick. Your body couldn’t decide between forms.”