Once Upon a Romance 02 - As The Last Petal Falls Read Free Page A

couldn’t seem to stop snickering.
    “Look…” he wasn’t sure what exactly he was planning on saying, but she waved him off by flapping one hand at him, even as tears began to roll down her face and her laughter took on a panicked edge. He felt a surge of pity, but quashed it ruthlessly. He wanted answers, damnit, and she was going to give them to him, not sit there cackling like a loon.
    “See here…” He sat down forcefully next to her on the bed. Her laughter abruptly cut off, and she turned white as a sheet.
    “Could you… get off… my arm.” The words were gasped out. Fain leaped from the bed and threw the covers back, and then cursed foully. Her arm was obviously broken between wrist and elbow; he didn’t know how he’d missed it before. It should have been set while she was still unconscious; now she would have to go through it awake. Whether she was a spy or not, he wasn’t a monster. He cringed inside at the thought of any lady suffering through what was to come, but he knew it had to happen. Sticking his head out the door, he found one of the lads on duty.
    “Fetch Connelly, and be quick about it.” The man dashed off, and Fain returned to the room. The lass hadn’t fainted, and that was a pity. Still, he had to admire her guts. She sat, calmly inspecting her arm-still white, but completely composed.
    “It’s broken, isn’t it?” The words were spoken with nary a tremor or tear. There was none of the weeping or cringing he’d expect from a lady of quality.
    “I’m afraid so.”
    “Have you sent for a doctor?
    “In a manner of speaking.” That earned him a sharp look. Not crazy, not delirious with pain, not hysterical-or, at least, not because of the injury; maybe she was a spy after all. “Connelly isn’t precisely a doctor, but he can set a break easily enough.”
    “What, precisely, is he, if not a doctor?”
    “One of my men.” Again the sharp look. Not prying, just… vigilant. As though the giver of the look were intelligent and recognized a non-answer when she heard one. “He dabbles in medicine. Rest assured, I’ve seen him set many breaks, several far worse than this, and all have healed clean. Let’s get that sleeve off so he can have a look. You’ll be fine.” Fine after she stopped screaming from having the bone reset, that is.
    “Hmmmm…” She eyed him while he gently cut the lower sleeve away from her arm, as though carefully gauging how much trust she wished to afford him. Whatever conclusion she drew remained hidden behind her violet eyes. Fain wondered if he was looking at her the same way. He wondered if he was hiding his thoughts as well as she hid hers. Maybe those heavy lashes she had helped keep in her secrets.
    Her voice interrupted his musings. “Have you any brandy?”
    “Pardon?”
    “Brandy, whiskey, wine… have you got any?”
    “You want a drink?” He was baffled. Obviously it was good manners to offer a guest an aperitif, but now was hardly the time to be following drawing room manners.
    “I want several. I’ve seen bones set before.”
    Ah, well, that made more sense. The lass was quite right, the more alcohol he got down her throat the better. Grabbing a bottle of rotgut from the cabinet where he kept his personal things, he handed it to her. Quickly she gulped down several mouthfuls, and then stuck her tongue out and made a sound Fain had never heard before.
    “GlaghaaAhhhgh. Blehh.”
    “Are you all right?”
    “That is… really foul.”
    “Mostly we mix it with things.”
    “I imagine almost anything is an improvement.” The dark beauty gave the bottle a skeptical look, but she resolutely swallowed more. Fain was impressed. He’d seen grown men who couldn’t handle more than a mouthful of the stuff.
    “That’s probably enough. It’s strong.” She opened her mouth, and her eyes glinted with combative fire. The door opened and Connelly came in, but the lass ignored it.
    “I am quite capable of making that decision for