Traitor's Moon

younger Seregil being dragged into the darkness below.
    â€œWould you like to go in?” asked Kheeta, leading him back toward a doorway.
    A gust of cold wind whipped across the open plain, carrying the first spattering of rain. Alec shivered. “No. Not yet.”
    If Kheeta sensed his sudden discomfort, he choose not to pry. “Suit yourself,” he said amiably. “Since we have to go back through the Haunted City, how do you like ghost stories?”
    The gash Beka had gotten during the sea battle was healing, but she still suffered from sudden headaches. The brewing storm had brought on another, and by midmorning its effects must have shown, for Klia sent her home with strict orders to rest.
    Returning to the barracks alone, she retreated to her room and exchanged her uniform for a light shirt and tunic. Stretched out on the bed, she settled one arm over her eyes and lay listening to the soft clatter of gaming stones in the next room. She was drifting on the edge of sleep when she caught Nyal’s voice outside. She hadn’t exactly been avoiding him these past few days, she just hadn’t had time to deal with the silly flux of emotions he provoked in her. The approach of booted feet warned that there was no avoiding it now except to plead illness. Not wanting to be caught at a disadvantage, she sat up quickly on the narrow bed, then choked down the wave of nausea the sudden move cost her.
    â€œIt’s Nyal,” Urien announced, peeking in around the door. “He’s brought you something for your head.”
    â€œDid he?” How in Bilairy’s name had he known she was ill?
    To her horror, he entered carrying a little nosegay of flowers. What were the others going to make of that?
    â€œI heard you were feeling unwell,” he said. Instead of the flowers, however, he held out a flask. “I’ve picked up a fair bit of herb lore in my travels. This decoction works well for pains in the head.”
    â€œAnd those?” Beka asked with a wry grin, pointing to the flowers.
    He passed her those as well, as if they’d been an afterthought. “I don’t know all their names in Skalan. I thought you might wish to know what was in it.”
    Beka bent over the flowers, hoping he wouldn’t notice her guilty blush.
Bringing you flowers, was he? And why are you so damned disappointed?
“I recognize a few of them. The little white ones are feverfew, and these branch tips are from a willow.” She pinched a thick, dark green leaf, then took a nibble. “And this is mountain cress. I haven’t seen these others before.”
    Nyal knelt in front of her and pushed her hair back to inspect the scabbed cut on her brow. “This is healing well.”
    â€œThe Cavishes are a hardheaded bunch,” Beka told him, pulling back from the light brush of his fingers against her face. Opening theflask, she took a swig and grimaced. There was honey in the mix, but not enough to mask the underlying bitterness.
    â€œI didn’t see any wormwood in that bouquet of yours,” she sputtered.
    He laughed. “That’s the little pink blossom we call ‘mouse ears.’ ” He poured a cup of water and handed it to her. “My mother used to hold my nose when she dosed me. I’ll sit with you a moment until we see if it’s going to do its work.”
    An awkward silence ensued. Beka wanted nothing more than to lie down and sleep, but not with him sitting there. The little room was stuffy; she could feel sweat trickling down her chest and back and regretted putting on the tunic.
    After a few moments, however, she realized that the throbbing behind her eyes was nearly gone.
    â€œThat’s quite a brew!” she said, sniffing the flask again. “I wouldn’t mind keeping some of this on hand for the others. Sergeant Braknil does most of our healing for us in the field when there isn’t a drysian handy.”
    â€œI’ll see he gets the recipe.” Nyal rose to go, then paused, eyeing her critically. “The air is so still today, perhaps a walk would do you good. I could show you some more of the city before the rain comes. There’s so much you haven’t seen yet.”
    It would have been a simple matter to plead illness. Instead, she smoothed her hair back and followed him out, telling herself that as the head of Klia’s bodyguard, it was her duty to learn the lay of the land. In case of