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‘Are you about to be sick?’

‘No Head’

Head A flash ofinto the darkness of her room The doctor, a venerable man frorief in the name of the soul He’d prescribed a list of tonics, but admitted that silence, darkness and rest were the only cures he’d found to be universally effective Sometimes her onised pain of darkness, but the worst usually passed in a day or so As in s Sam and her brothers learned to provide whatever alleviated the sy they could never chase it away completely

Said statue seated on her cot as if in the docks awaiting judgehed

He winced

She was about to debate taking off his boots when she realised he wasn’t wearing any

‘When did this start?’ she whispered

‘S’’

‘It’s noon Why didn’t you come sooner?’

He didn’t bother answering She put her aruided him down on to the pillow He was about as helpful as one of the statues he resembled, but she persevered When his head settled on the pillow he groaned as if she was diserab the basin, but he rimaced

‘Too much noise People’

Meaning he would not have come even now unless he’d been desperate She stifled another frustrated sigh; keeping quiet wasn’t her forte but she’d try

She took the linen strip she used to clean her brushes, dipped it in water and very gently placed it on his forehead A rivulet ran over his temple and into his hair His whole body stiffened, but after a ave hi every move of theof the tendons of his neck

She had no idea howShe saw it in the lines about his eyes first, and then his jaw, softening the deep grooves by his mouth His lips parted a little as if about to speak, but closed again, not quite as tense

He had a beautiful elo would have paid good money to draw She reached for her pad, but realised even the sound of pencil on paper ht feel like a cannonade to him

He finally slept, his hands uncurling frorips One arm slipped off the narrow bed and he ently draped it back over hi him and still later she turned her chair back to the table and began sketching as quietly as she could in the shifting gold glow of the lamp

‘Sam’

She put down her pencil very gently and turned He atching her and the fact that his eyes were open without squinting was a very good sign She smiled

‘A little better?’