No. 7: "Can you hear me?"
The explosion that ruptured the quaint afternoon rattled Zoya's rib cage, and she spun in alarm toward the plume of black smoke spewing straight up into the sky. Where was Nikolai? He'd been touring the grounds with the Duke of the estate they were currently visiting. Expecting an ambush on the king of Ravka, Zoya bolted across the field toward the source of the explosion, simultaneously cursing herself for sitting this boring walk out.
Numerous people were also running toward the scene from all over—servants and members of the king's guard. Zoya saw Tolya and Tamar sprinting the opposite direction, however—after a pair of men who looked to be fleeing. Zoya would let them catch the suspected perpetrators while she frantically looked for the king.
The duke was sitting on the ground, a tad singed with ash and looking dazed. Zoya ran right past him and dropped down next to Nikolai, who was sluggishly trying to prop himself up on his elbows.
"Nikolai!" Zoya exclaimed, grabbing his shoulder. "Are you hurt?"
He didn't immediately answer, so she looked him over hurriedly. Like the duke, he was tinged in ash and dust but she didn't see any blood. Except for a small amount coming from his right ear.
"Nikolai," she repeated firmly.
He blinked dazedly at her. "What?"
"Can you stand?" Zoya asked, anxious to get him away from here and into a secure room.
He furrowed his brow. "What?"
She frowned back at him. "Nikolai, can you hear me?"
He continued to look stunned and reached one hand up to rub at his ear. "What?"
Zoya took that as a 'no.'
"Come on," she said, hauling him to his feet and ducking under one shoulder to support him as he swayed.
He twisted to try looking around, but she propelled him toward the manor.
"What happened?" he asked.
"We don't know yet," she answered.
"What?"
Zoya shook her head and gestured at her ears, then him with a second head shake.
His expression grimaced but he understood and didn't ask any more questions.
She got him safely inside and to his guest room where she deposited him on the bed and then quickly closed all the curtains in case there were more enemy agents out there. She hoped the twins would track down the people responsible quickly and get back here, as Nikolai needed a Healer. They really should start traveling with one just to be safe.
An urgent knock sounded on the door and Zoya went to open it a crack.
"General," an anxious servant said. "The king?"
"Is secure," she replied shortly. "The duke?"
"He's unharmed. There was some sort of projectile device that exploded."
"You saw?" Zoya demanded.
The servant hastily shook his head. "I'm relaying what the duke said. Thank the Saints, whoever launched it fell short by several yards."
Thank the Saints, indeed.
"When Tolya and Tamar return, send them here immediately," Zoya instructed, then shut the door and locked it.
"What was that?" Nikolai asked.
Zoya crossed her arms and gave him a look.
He rolled his eyes. "Honestly, Zoya, if you can communicate so much with a look, surely you can find a way to tell me what's happening."
She closed the distance to him and cupped his chin, turning his head so she could look at his ear. Unfortunately, the blood was the only sign of injury, and she didn't have the Grisha powers to determine exactly what was the cause.
Nikolai batted her hands away. "Was anyone else hurt?"
She shook her head in the negative, and he relaxed marginally.
"I didn't see anything," he went on, expression furrowed in frustration.
Unable to carry on a conversation with him, Zoya opted to simply get a wet towel and began to clean away the blood around his ear and the ash from his face. He reached up to cup her wrist with gentleness.
"I'm fine," he said.
She didn't say anything as she merely switched the cloth to her other hand and continued her ministrations, albeit more tenderly as he continued to hold her wrist.
Eventually there was another knock on the door followed by Tolya's voice,
"It's us."
Zoya went to unlock it for them. "Nikolai was bleeding from his ear," she said without preamble. "And he can't hear."
The twins exchanged an alarmed look before hurrying to the king's side. They were more skilled at heartrending than healing, but the power to connect with the human body was the same.
"Burst eardrum," Tamar said a few moments later. "It's not serious, and it could heal on its own. We saw it on the sea sometimes with cannon fire."
"Can you restore his hearing?" Zoya asked.
"Eardrums are…delicate," Tolya replied regretfully. "Better a trained Healer do it."
Zoya huffed but acknowledged the necessity of having a skilled Grisha tend to the king.
"Are you talking about me?" Nikolai asked in a tone that was both cheeky and miffed.
Tolya went to the desk and dug out some paper and a writing utensil, then scribbled out a note for Nikolai.
"Thank you," he said after reading it.
He apparently wasn't that concerned with the hearing loss like Zoya was.
"Did you catch the culprits?" she asked the twins.
"One is dead," Tamar said. "The other is in custody."
"Good. I want answers. And I want a Healer here."
The twins nodded and hurried out.
Zoya turned back to Nikolai, unsure what to do with him. He was already up and changing his shirt.
"Where do you think you're going?" Zoya asked.
Nikolai gave her a debonair smile and headed for the door. "I am not staying locked in here."
Zoya faltered, wondering if his hearing was returning, but she realized he didn't need it to know what she was saying.
"You were nearly blown up; would you please just sit down and stay here until we get all the answers?"
Nikolai had the audacity to grin at her. "I can't hear you."