Sophie POV
I left the Alpha chamber. I walked down the hallway. I headed for my quarters. I held the linen sack tight.
I met Martha on my way. She stopped. She sniffed the air. Her nose wrinkled in disgust.
"What is that foul smell around you?" Martha asked.
I looked at her. I opened my hand.
"I am carrying the medication Young Prince Daemon took." I said.
"I am investigating it."
Martha followed me to my room. She wanted to help.
We entered the small space. I placed the sack on the wooden table. Martha took the medication. She smelled every piece of ingredient used.
Martha has the nose of a dog. She identifies spices from across the kitchen. She found a tiny black object. It looked like rat poop. She made a sound.
"Why does this smell like rat poop?" Martha asked.
"Alaric said the same thing." I said.
"I think it is an ingredient we do not know."
"I do not think so." Martha said.
"Nature does not make medicine that smells of rot."
Martha left for her room.
I sat all night. I looked at the black ingredient. I tried to remember every herb I ever studied. I did not get a good answer. My eyes grew heavy.
I slept for a few minutes. A loud voice woke me.
"Sophie!" Cassian called.
I sat up. My neck felt stiff.
I opened the door. Cassian looked frantic.
"The Alpha is sick." Cassian said.
I rose to my feet in a hurry. My heart hammered against my ribs.
"What! He was okay when I left him last night." I said.
"He cannot get on his feet this morning." Cassian replied.
"He is burning with heat."
I adjusted my dress. I ran to the Alpha chamber. I pushed past the guards. The royal doctor stood by the bed. He held a cold cloth.
"What is wrong?" I asked.
"The Alpha has a high fever." The doctor said.
"How?" I asked.
"Probably from lack of rest and stress." The doctor said.
"That is not enough to cause this." I said.
I stepped to the bedside. I touched Alaric on the arm. His skin felt like fire.
I remembered Martha's words. I looked at Alaric. His face was pale. His eyes were glazed. He looked at me but he did not speak.
"Did you eat anything apart from my meal?" I asked.
"I only eat food from you." Alaric said. His voice was a rasp.
"But you tasted the prince's medication." I said.
Alaric looked at me. He understood my point. I turned to the royal doctor.
"The prince ate my food." I said.
"He took his medication. Now he has a high fever. Alaric only tasted the medication. Now he has a fever too. The Young Prince took a whole portion. That is why he is dying."
"How would you know the problem is the medication?" The doctor asked.
"There is an ingredient like rat poop in it." I said.
"It has a foul smell. It sits in the linen sack on my table."
The royal doctor laughed. He shook his head.
"That is not rat poop. It is squirrel droppings. It is a rare ingredient. It is good for medication. It only causes trouble if it meets the wrong ingredient like ginger."
I shouted. "There it is! I put ginger in all my food. The prince ate my food containing ginger and took the medication. Alaric ate my food containing ginger and tasted it."
"That is right." the doctor said.
"The two chemicals fight in the blood. They create a heat that burns the brain. How did you find the problem so quickly?"
"Is there a cure?" Alaric asked.
He tried to sit up. He winced.
"I will make an antidote for you immediately." The doctor said.
"I am not talking about me." Alaric growled.
"I am talking about Prince Daemon."
"The Prince is critical." The doctor replied.
"He took the mixture for a long time. We need a stronger antidote to flush his system. It must be potent."
"Go." Alaric said.
"Bring both antidotes here. Do not stop for anyone."
The doctor hurried out. Alaric looked at me. The fever made his golden eyes look dark.
"Thank you for finding a solution." He said. "At least I will not lose you again."
I smiled. I felt a wave of relief.
"Rest your head before the antidote comes." I said.
I pushed him to lie down. He did not fight me. He grabbed my hands. He dragged me toward him. I fell on his chest. My face was an inch away from his. I tried to get up. He pulled me closer.
"Please stay for a moment." He said.
"Someone might come in." I whispered. My heart beat fast.
"Shhhh." He took his hands to his mouth gesturing I should be quiet.
I laid there. I watched him breathe. I felt the heat of his body.
The guards announced the doctor after a while.
I stood up quickly. I adjusted my dress. I smoothed my hair.
The doctor came in with two bowls. Alaric drank his. I thought about the situation. This was not a mistake. Someone added that ingredient. That person knows I use ginger in my kitchen.
"Where is the antidote for the prince?" Alaric asked.
"It is here." The doctor said.
"I wanted to give you yours first."
"I want to be there when you give it to him." Alaric said.
"You are not strong." the doctor said.
"I am fine." Alaric replied.
He stood up. He walked to the door. We followed him to the quarters of Queen Mother Isolde.
The Grand Queen Mother was there. She stood by the window. She stared at me. Her look said my time ended today.
"I brought the antidote." The doctor said.
"How?" Isolde shouted. She stood by her son.
"You do not know what is wrong."
"The Chef solved the mystery." The doctor said.
"An ingredient in the medication reacts with ginger. It causes high fever. The food had ginger. The medicine had squirrel droppings."
Isolde looked at me with hate. She did not want to thank me. She wanted her son back.
"Help him sit up." The doctor said.
"He cannot swallow." Isolde said.
"Do it." The Grand Queen Mother commanded.
"Unless you want him dead."
Isolde sat him up. She forced his mouth open. His teeth were locked tight.
The doctor poured the liquid in. They forced him to drink.
The prince started to jerk. His body shook hard. He looked like he would snap in half.
"They have come to finish him!" Isolde screamed.
"They have come to kill my son! If my son dies, Alaric and this girl will go to the grave with him!"
