Kaelen woke feeling lighter.
The heaviness in his chest had eased, his limbs did not feel like stone. His head was clearer.
He sat up. The motion was smooth, no dizziness, no nausea. His body still ached but it was not the ache of sickness it was the deep ache of overused muscles. The dull throb of bones that had been pushed too far. But it was manageable.
He swung his legs over the side of the bed. The floorboards were cold despite the carpet. His feet pressed flat. The chill climbed up his ankles. He welcomed it.
He dressed and wanted to walk out.
The door opened before he reached it.
Rin stood in the hallway. Her hair was pulled back. Her face was lined. Her eyes were sharp. She held a cup. The same cup. The same dark liquid. The same smell of rot and old meat and the wet sound of chewing.
"Young master are awake," she said with a sigh. "We were worried."
"How long was I a sleep for."
"Ten days." No wonder his muscles felt under used.
