The Werewolf King's Bride

Chapter 486 Family

(From Doctor Dimitri's Perspective)

I had been Her Highness's doctor for more than two years. I had been at the palace and wherever my life took me to look after Her Highness's health. I had seen the King, I had seen the Queen and I had seen how their relationship worked.

Just as no one ever thought of watching the sun rise in the west and set in the east, I never thought of seeing what I was seeing.

"Do something! Treat him! Anything! Save him! I beg you, please!"

The man, the most powerful man in Querencia, the mighty and proud King, now was nothing. He lay on a shallow and small bed, his body still toned, but the weakness was showing. His lips were black, completely black. His veins were showing as if trying to get out of his skin.

They were black.

"How…?" I mumbled. I found out I was shaking.

"… He is dying…"

The weak voice that spoke, and the helplessness I saw in Her Highness's eyes made me remember who I was. I was a doctor. I had seen things like this before. I just had to work.

But how? How could I save a man whose veins were completely black? The poison had spread all over his body. It was in his blood.

I stepped ahead and started examining him quickly. He was alive. Barely.

"The arrow… It was coated with poison," I heard her mumble. "Some kind of poison. If only… If only I knew what… The poison… Someone… Why…? Why…? How…?"

The hand that was holding her husband's hand tightly was shaking. I dared a glance at her while I worked. Her gaze was distant and she was mumbling something. Her lips were shaking and she was not blinking.

"No one knows… The doctor could not find anything," she kept saying. "Some kind of… Some kind of poison that they could not trace…"

I focused on my work, trying to ignore her trembling voice. Why was Lord Luc not here? If His Majesty, King Ford, or at least, Lady Ruby was here… Someone needed to hold the Queen, no, the woman who was going to lose her husband soon, who was going to watch her husband die slowly.

"Your Highness," I said. I noticed my voice was not as firm as it usually was. No matter how hard the situation was, I never let myself get carried away, or feel something. But it was different. I had lived with these people for a long time. Their ranks might have been very high, but I dared to call them my family.

"… Say it…"

"It is a poison, I think. To be honest, there is no trace of anything," I said.

"I will need to check the blood."

"Leave it to me," she said. Her voice was still faltering, but she tried to keep it firm. "Can you keep him alive? Just for a while."

I took in a sharp breath. There was a way to keep the dying patients alive. I would send them to a coma for a little while with medicine. They would feel nothing. There was a chance that they would not get up ever again. But at least, they would not die for the time being.

It was risky.

But both of us knew, if not this, he might not survive the night.

When did his condition worsen? Why did I not notice anything? Was there something more to this world, to the world of medicine? I had learned all I could and I was still learning. Where was I lacking?

"It is risky…"

"Do it," she said.

How much could you possibly love someone to be so desperate? I could see the determination in her eyes. If she could, she would not hesitate to give up her life to save her husband's life. Was it worth it?

She did not need to answer. Her eyes said it all.

It was worth it.

I brought the medicine. I had almost all kinds of medicine in hand. Sometimes, I just kept the ingredients with me and mixed them before using them. Some needed to be made a long time ago, and some could be used by making only minutes ago. But thankfully, I had it prepared. There was no answer to why I had a medicine like this prepared.

Probably, I knew there could be a time when I would need to use it.

I watched her take a syringe full of the King's blood and put it inside one of the small glass bottles she took from me. Her hands were shaking, but her eyes were too firm. I felt shivers through my veins. What was she planning?

"Is it here?" she asked.

"Yes," I nodded.

She watched expectantly as I put the medicine in his blood with a syringe. His breath steadied. Even if it was for a moment, I could see her relief. At least, he was not dying for now. The poison would work slowly, very slowly. But when the power of the medicine would wear off, it would work more rapidly and he would die instantly if no antidote was given.

But how could there be an antidote for a poison that could not be traced?

"Doctor Dimitri, you might have to work more than your contract with us says," she said. "It is… a request. Can I request your service?"

"Your Highness, I will do anything in my power, whatever you ask of me. I will work not because I am ordered. I will work because… I consider you and His Highness my… I dare say, family."

"Yes, let's work together," she smiled weakly. I really wanted to cry, after all those years.

She looked down at her belly and cradled it with both of her hands. "If something happens, I want you to get the baby out. I know you can do something to save it."

I did not know what she was planning, but there was no doubt it was something dangerous. Explore more stories with empire