After about an hour of conducting various checks; Dr Sheffield realised that Eric wouldn't be able to stay awake much longer. He had taken two blood tests, much to Eric's displeasure, and a urine sample, to take back to the surgery and test. On top of this he had checked Eric's heartbeat, lungs, eyes, ears, reflexes… almost every test he could think of.
"I'll be back tomorrow if I find anything serious, otherwise expect a telephone call from me within the next couple of days" he informed Carlotta. The maid nodded, adjusting her grip on Eric slightly.
"Thank you ever so much," she said, "I was so worried about him."
"I'm sorry I can't give you a definite answer. But his collapse will be at least partly down to dehydration and malnutrition; so I suggest he has something to eat and drink soon. As for his fever, just make sure he's kept as cool as possible, a damp cloth every hour or so should help" explained the doctor.
"And the vomiting" queried Carlotta?
"There's not much that can be done about that," said the doctor, "just make sure there's always a bucket or something close by. The medicine I've given you should reduce the pain in his head." Carlotta nodded, glancing down at Eric who she would have thought to be asleep were his eyes not open. He seemed to have lost all strength, and was currently relying on Carlotta to keep him from falling to the floor.
"Gemma, would you see Dr Sheffield out please" asked Carlotta, as the maid appeared in the doorway.
"Of course," replied Gemma, "but the King would like to see Eric."
There was silence. Carlotta could feel her heart in her throat and she subconsciously tightened her grip around Eric.
"I… I'm afraid, that's just not possible" she stuttered.
"Is the King aware of his son's condition" asked Dr Sheffield?
"He knows he collapsed, yes" replied Carlotta.
"Then I wish to speak to him, maybe he'll be more understanding if he knows exactly what's going on" continued the doctor. Carlotta nodded, but in all honesty, she wasn't sure the King would care about the condition of his son.
Once Gemma and Dr Sheffield were out of the room, Carlotta turned her attention back to Eric.
"How are you feeling darling" she asked softly?
"Tired" murmured Eric. Carlotta smiled slightly and carried Eric over to his bed, before laying him down, and resting his head against the pillows. She left the duvet off when she noticed the few beads of sweat that had begun forming of the three year olds forehead.
"Eric, are y-" she began. But she stopped mid-sentence when she noticed that Eric's eyes were closed, his chest moving slowly with each breath. She opted for leaving the cool-cloth until later, not wanting to disturb him. The next problem was this. Should she go and get some food and water now, for him to eat when he woke up? Or should she stay with him, and fetch the food and water when he was awake? Quickly balancing out the pros and cons, she decided to go now. If she went quickly then he'd never know she was gone.
When she reached the bottom of the stairs, he could hear the angry shouts of the King in his study. By the worried look on Gemma's face, she knew that Dr Sheffield was currently in there with him. Hurrying to the kitchen, she made a couple of ham and cheese sandwiches, and poured a glass of milk before placing them on a tray and returning to Eric's room.
"Carlotta!" The maid turned to see Eric's tutor Grimsby walking briskly towards her. Grimsby was a thin man in his mid-forties his greying brown hair was tied up in a tight ponytail and secured with a dark purple ribbon.
"I heard what happened," he said, "how is he?" Carlotta hesitated, trying to find the right words.
"He's very ill, but the doctor said he should make a recovery within a few weeks" explained Carlotta.
"Let's hope so," replied Grimsby, "although, it was partly his own fault." Carlotta's head snapped up.
"How can you say that," she exclaimed?! "The poor boy was denied breakfast and dragged around the docks for hours with no breaks. No wonder he's exhausted."
"But he wasn't dragged around" said Grimsby.
"What do you mean" asked Carlotta, perplexed?
"You haven't heard? Eric went into town by himself." Carlotta stared for a moment.
"He… he wouldn't go off by himself, surly" she said eventually.
"Well I'm not sure anyone can blame him" said Grimsby. Carlotta was left speechless. She knew that Eric had very little interest in the kingdom's income, and maybe one day he might ask David to take him into town, but she never thought that Eric would have the courage and nerve to deliberately disobey his father. But what Grimsby had said was true, nobody could blame him. Eric had always been very curious, often asking what things were and what they did. But this time, his curiosity had led him into trouble, and Carlotta wasn't sure she'd be able to get him out of it.
When she reached Eric's room, she was relieved to find that he was still sleeping soundly. She placed the tray on his bedside table and gently put the back of her hand to his forehead. The heat radiating from him made up her mind, and she went to fill a wash bowl with cold water. Sitting in the chair next to the young Prince's bed, she dipped the cloth in the water and pressed it lightly against Eric's head. He groaned softly, but luckily didn't wake. She continued to wipe the cloth across his head, neck and chest for half an hour; after that she just sat beside him, hoping and praying that David wouldn't be too harsh on him.
Three hours later, Eric began to stir. He rubbed his eyes sleepily and stared blearily up at Carlotta. The medicine had reduced the pain in his head to a dull ache, but this meant that he was now feeling incredibly lightheaded. There was a slight urge to itch the insides of his thighs, but after remembering what Carlotta had told him, he decided not to. His stomach felt empty and his skin hot, but all in all he felt a little better than he had previously. He tried to sit up, but his arms shook under his weight and he fell back against the pillows.
"Oh, careful darling" said Carlotta, helping to sit Eric up, making sure that he had plenty of pillows to lean against. She brushed his hair back, staring into his tired blue eyes.
"Do you want to try and eat something" she asked? To her surprise, Eric shook his head. Although he hadn't eaten for almost twenty four hours, Eric wasn't sure that he'd be able to eat anything without bringing it back up later.
"Darling you need to try and eat something," said Carlotta, lifting the tray of sandwiches and milk onto the duvet. "Just a little bit?" Eric looked up wearily, silently pleading with the maid. But the look on her face told Eric that he wasn't going to win this one.
"Okay" he mumbled. Carlotta smiled and turned her attention to the tray of food.
However, in the three hours since Carlotta had bought it up, the bread of the sandwiches had gone stale, and the milk had formed a skin. She sighed, and looked down at Eric. His skin was pale and his forehead was covered in beads of sweat.
"Wait a second darling" said Carlotta, getting to her feet and leaving the room. She returned a minute later, with a cloth and a washbowl of cold water, to see that Eric hadn't moved an inch. Sighing, Carlotta perched on the edge of the bed, and placed the washbowl on Eric's bedside table.
"Eric darling tell me what's wrong" she said softly, running her hand through Eric's thick black hair.
"I don't feel very well" said Eric tearfully as he started to sob. It broke Carlotta's heart to see Eric so upset; slipping her arms around the young Prince she pulled him onto her lap, delicately brushing away the new fallen tear with her thumb.
"You'll be okay darling, you'll get better."