Chronicles of Ylandre by Eressë

Author:Eressë [Eressë]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: MM Omni
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fifteen

Entreaty

Eiren started when Ashrian entered his consultation room at the Rikara Public Hospital the following morning. He grimaced as he rose to his feet.

“Why that expression?” Ashrian asked, feeling a little affronted. “Do you fear the sight of me that much?”

“Not at all,” Eiren said, coming around from behind his desk and extending a hand in greeting. “But the last time you came here, you brought news that was terribly embarrassing. For me, at least.”

“That’s true.” Ashrian chuckled wryly. “Rest you, the news I bear this time isn’t anything of the sort. It may be distressing but nothing to be ashamed of.”

“Is that supposed to make me feel at ease?” Eiren somewhat tartly said. “If it is, you’ve utterly failed at your objective.”

He motioned to Ashrian to sit beside him on the small couch beneath the window. Ashrian recalled how Eiren had demanded a room with a view when he agreed to hold office at the hospital. It was not that Eiren was finicky about such things. He simply disliked enclosed spaces, especially when he had to deal with a particularly serious medical case. A whiff of fresh air and a glimpse of something pleasant like a garden or Rikara’s impressive skyline was often enough to lighten his spirit and strengthen his resolve.

Ashrian wondered how to begin what he wished to convey and then decided to just get to the point. “Are you aware that Ilian was stricken with blight four years ago?” he asked.

Eiren’s eyebrows rose. “Was he? Well, considering his promiscuity, it isn’t all that surprising.” He sighed. “He should be grateful that’s all he contracted.”

“But it isn’t all he contracted.” Ashrian hesitated then continued. “Your brother is currently ill with a deadly strain. I gather it’s similar to what you treated Dylen’s father for.”

“What!” Eiren gasped. “How far along is he?”

“Third stage.”

“Sweet Veres! Why didn’t he summon me long before this?”

“You’ve never been on good terms with each other,” Ashrian pointed out. “And my … my liaison with him only worsened matters between you.”

“I won’t deny that,” Eiren agreed. “But, damn it all, Ash, this is his life at stake. He should have contacted me.”

“And would you have responded?”

“Of course I would have! I’m a healer. Our code demands that we do our utmost to preserve life even if we loathe its owner.” Eiren pinched the bridge of his nose a little peevishly. “I shall pay a call on him as soon as possible,” he muttered. He stopped and looked at Ashrian suspiciously. “How is it that you knew and I didn’t?”

“He sent me word,” Ashrian admitted after some hesitation.

“I see.” Eiren pursed his lips in apparent displeasure. “So you’ve remained close despite everything.”

Ashrian shook his head. “Nay, this is the first contact I’ve had with him in three years. The last I heard from him was in answer to a letter from me.”

“You wrote him? Why?”

“He passed his blight unknowingly to me,” Ashrian explained, his cheeks heating with renewed shame. “I wrote to confirm that it was he who had given me the disease.

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