Chapter 12
Two Different Minds
'How are you feeling, your highness?'
'Ugh... It could've been better.'
It was a miracle that Triple H hadn't succumbed to his wound yesterday. The medic arrived just in time before he had lost more blood. It was a long and painful process, but the medic managed to stitch up Triple H's wound. There might've been the chance that it would leave a scar, but Triple H didn't care about that; he was already glad with the fact that he hadn't bled to death. But he wasn't out of danger just yet. The poison was still in his body and it had to get out fast. While Lorena kept his fever down a bit with a cold wet cloth, Stephanie send some soldiers to fetch the sunlight herb outside of Wrestar. Their horses had never ran so fast in their entire lives. But luckily they found the herb and returned to the castle before the fever got any worse. As soon as they handed the herb over to the queen, she ordered Lorena to give them Triple H since she knew how to use them. Lorena carefully fed the herb to Triple H; he had never tasted something that bitter before.
From that moment on, Stephanie gave Lorena the task to care of Triple H. With the queen's threat to kill her if her husband succumbed still in her mind, the servant girl did her absolute best to keep him alive and cure him. The fever had dropped a bit, which was a good sign. It meant the herb was working. But he wouldn't get better from eating the herb just one time, no, it had to be repeated a couple of days. He will still weak, there was still some poison inside him. If the treatment would stop now, he would die for sure. That's why the only things Lorena would have to do were giving him a portion of the herbs three times a day, keeping down the fever with a cold wet cloth and giving him plenty of rest. Like that, Triple H should make a good recovery.
'Well, at least you are feeling a bit better than yesterday, right?'
Triple H let out a soft sigh when he allowed Lorena to put a wet cloth on his forehead. He really needed it, he felt like he was burning from the inside.
'I'm craving for wine...' Triple H mumbled. 'Lorena, go to the kitchen and bring me some wine.'
Lorena shook her head when she removed the cloth from his forehead. 'I'm afraid I can't do that, your highness.'
'What? Why not?'
'If you drink wine, the alcohol will break off the herb's effect and it will become worthless. I can bring you some water, if you want...'
'Damn it, Lorena!' Triple H exclaimed angrily. 'I am your king! If I want wine, you bring me wine! Do you...'
Triple H halted his rant when he felt his stomach violently clenching together. He tried to control it, but he miserably failed and started to gag. Lorena knew exactly what was going to happen, she had already prepared for it. She quickly grabbed an empty bucket next to her. She handed it over to Triple H, who had already sat up in bed and hunched over. He opened his mouth and violently threw up in the bucket with a painful cramp in his stomach.
'It's alright, my lord, it's all normal...' Lorena soothed, rubbing him on his back to calm him down a bit. Like the reducing of the fever, throwing up was a good sign in this case. It meant that the body was forcing out the poison, the herb was doing its work.
After he was done, Triple H put the filled bucket next to the bed and lied down again, letting out a soft groan. 'If I only I could've seen it coming...'
'What do you mean, my lord?'
'That the imposter who did this to me was a damn assassin send by the queen of Teann!'
'It's not your fault, I think nobody had seen it coming.'
Lorena grabbed the full bucket, the vomit inside produced an anything but pleasant smell. 'I'm going to empty the bucket. I'll be right back, my lord.' The servant girl turned around, opened the door and left the bedroom.
Triple H let out an annoyed grunt and stared at the ceiling. Damn it... how could he have been so stupid? He should had recognized that man on the spot, it was because of his inattention that he had ended up like this. How did he get inside the castle anyway? Triple H started to think. Perhaps the assassin he had killed in the interrogation room hadn't entered the castle on his own after all... Maybe when all the attention was centered on him, the other assassin had the change to sneak in unnoticed and get his hands on some armor. That son of a bitch... It was a good thing Seth decapitated him.
The door opened, making the King of Kings snap out of his thoughts.
'I'm back, your highness.' Lorena said, walking towards the bed.
'Good.' Triple H replied, still staring at the ceiling.
Lorena frowned in curiosity. During her stay in the castle, she had never seen Triple H like this. He always looked like a powerful man, even when he was around Stephanie. But seeing him staring at the ceiling like that... it made him look like he was sad.
'Is there something wrong?' she carefully asked.
'What should be wrong with me?' Triple H replied in a nearly emotionless voice.
Lorena opened her mouth to say something, but she quickly shut it. Should she say something back? She decided to give it a shot.
'I think I know what is bothering you, my lord... I know I'm just a lowly servant girl to you, but please listen to me; this wasn't your fault. Everyone, no matter how low or high their status are, makes a mistake once. It's nothing to be upset about. And... I have always believed that making mistakes makes you more human. It's only natural.'
'You don't understand it, do you?' Triple H mumbled. 'I had been foolish enough to let that Teannian son of a bitch near me!'
For a moment, Lorena didn't say anything.
'I understand your frustration, my lord.' she spoke calmly. 'But it's alright now. The man who tried to kill you is gone and you are still alive. That's what matters now.'
It was true what she said. He could have died that same day for all that mattered, but it didn't happen. He was still alive and on his way to recovery, and this servant girl was making sure of that. Triple H stared at Lorena for a moment. He remembered the day when he picked her up from the streets, thinking she was even lower than an insect. He wanted to give her worthless life a little bit of dignity, that's why he had brought her here. She had meant nothing to him at first, he was cold towards her and allowed Stephanie to beat her and torment her.
And then she offered to take care of him...
But why?
'Why are you taking care of me?' Triple H asked. He just had know.
'Excuse me, your highness?'
'You are taking care of me... but why? I have been treating you like you were nothing from the very first day you arrived at the castle, so why did you offer to help me with my recovery?'
'I... I believe that nobody deserves to suffer so much pain, my lord. I have seen many farmers suffer so much agony because of the poison, it's almost inhuman. I know I haven't received much education during my life, but I believe that every human deserve a chance to survive. Watching you in so much pain... it was so saddening. That's why I did it, my lord.'
Triple H didn't know what to say, he was absolutely stunned by what Lorena said. He didn't do a thing to stop Stephanie from tormenting her, she endured almost a beating daily, she almost got torn to pieces by dogs, she nearly died of starvation... and yet she still found the forgiveness in her heart to take care of him.
But before the King of Kings wanted to say something back, Lorena had already opened her mouth to speak.
'I saw what you did to the assassin back in the interrogation room...' she said. 'And please pardon me about this opinion, I honestly think what you did was wrong, your highness.'
'You listen to me now, Lorena...' Triple H said as he frowned. 'That man shouldn't had made the foolish mistake to enter my castle and putting all the lives here in jeopardy. I am the king and I rule this country. I want what's best for my kingdom!'
The assassin had also made the horrible mistake to mention his daughters... and that mistake had cost him his disgusting life.
'Nobody deserves to die such a horrible death!' Lorena exclaimed indignantly.
'You know nothing about ruling a kingdom...'
'Why do you always have to solve everything with violence? I have heard many stories about you, my lord. All the battles you have been in were drenched in blood. There has been no story where you didn't kill somebody on the battlefield. Things don't always have to be solved with blood spilling, my lord.'
'If using violence will protect my kingdom, then I will use it!'
Suddenly, Triple H could feel himself burning from the inside, giving him the goose bumps all over his body. The fever was kicking in again and Lorena saw it. She put the wet cloth back on his forehead.
'I understand you want to protect Rexxan, your highness...' the servant girl said. 'But you can solve problems without violence. It's better, you will see.'
But it was not only about the soldiers that died on the battlefield; it was also about their families, who were awaiting their return in sheer anxiety, not sure whether their son, brother or husband had survived on the battlefield. Lorena remembered the hysterical woman in the crowd when Triple H and Stephanie returned to Wrestar. Her life must have been completely destroyed by now.
'Lorena?'
'Yes, my lord?'
'When will I get my next portion of those herbs?'
'You will receive them at the end of the day. I think you should be completely healed in few days, your highness.'
