“Won’t they burn through the table?” I asked.
“No. Only the top part will be hot. The bottom remains cool.”
“How hot do they get?”
“As hot as you want. Just knock them together again to increase the temperature. Make sure to hold them from the bottom, though.”
“This would be great for a hot stone massage.”
“A what?”
“Never mind.” I went back to work, heating the water over the stones. It boiled in no time as I held the flask with the tongs over their heated surface.
Neat!
I measured the resulting flower powder carefully, using only my senses. As part of my healing skill, I’d always been able to measure with precision down to a milligram. If only my skill also included knowing the right dosage for each patient, but for that, I needed to use book-acquired knowledge alongside the person’s weight, height, and age. Though with the Fae, it was different. They were strong and sometimes their special abilities interfered with things. Add to that Kalyll’s ailment, or whatever it was, and things got even more complicated.
Once the mixture was done, I infused it with a hint of my power. Cylea watched as glowing light flowed from my fingers into the flask, changing its yellow contents to a shimmering red.
“What does that do?” she asked as the last of my magic infused the compound.
“It will allow the marsh flower to bind to cell receptors and do its job more easily.”
Kryn narrowed his eyes and grunted, but said nothing. He’d been standing next to the table, arms crossed, as he watched. He’d been nice enough as he fetched everything, but clearly, he still hadn’t warmed up to me.
“This is finished.” I set aside the flask with the red liquid and picked up the bottle of stillstem. This one was already in liquid form. Unlike the marsh flower, it didn’t need to be fresh. I set it aside since we wouldn’t need it until later.
“That’s it?” Cylea asked. “What about this?” She peered inside the box. “Did you forget an ingredient?”
I shook my head. “No. Lady Thaciana added something extra.”
Cylea frowned. “What is it?”
“A poison.”
“Why would she do that?”
“I think she inferred what I would be concocting and added something she thought might be helpful. But I don’t feel comfortable giving it to the prince. It could turn… deadly.”
Cylea considered for a moment and seemed about to say something, but closed her mouth instead.
“Where in the devil are they?” Kryn turned away from the table and stomped out of the room.
“We don’t have long,” Cylea said. “He should be in chains before his mood changes.” She started pacing, making me nervous. He would also need to drink the marsh flower elixir before that happened. I doubted he would take it voluntarily once he got pissy.
Thankfully, a moment later, steps echoed outside the door and the prince strode in, followed by Jeondar and Kryn.
Kalyll’s eyes immediately found mine. I felt a thrill as he looked at me, and once more, I was angry at my double-crossing body, which seemed to respond to him the way moths respond to the fire.
Oh Dani, this isn’t good. Stockholm syndrome anyone?
“Where is Silver?” Kalyll asked, glancing around and looking angry.
“Don’t worry about him.” Cylea rolled her eyes. “The whore went to Gleelock Alley.”
“We don’t need him,” Kryn said.
“I’m here. I’m here.” Silver rushed into the room. “Don’t get your panties in a wad.” He winked at me, as if thanking me for increasing his repertoire of crass things to say.