“Gyla!”

Gyla sighed and stopped her walk. She’d been enjoying the afternoon with Ajax and Naomi but her energy waned halfway down to the gardens. Her doors were a few feet away and she yearned to shut herself inside. 

“Gyla,” the duke panted as he caught up with her. 

She curtsied in greeting and jerked her chin towards Naomi. Her maid and guard retreated to wait by her rooms. 

“Your Grace-”

“Basil,” he corrected. 

Gyla only had the energy to nod. 

“I wanted to see if you were doing okay…” His eyes scanned her for any signs of distress. 

Gyla walked with a bit of a limp and only left her room for meals. Sylvia and Cur did the same, though Farida did manage to make more of an appearance. Gyla envied the queen for that strength. Her head still hurt if she turned too quickly. 

“I am resting,” she tried to smile but her cheek ached, “are you well?”

“Your paste is wonderful.” The statement knocked the breath from her lungs. 

“You’ve used it?” She blinked at him as the words tumbled in her head. 

Basil used the paste. He used it! His scar looked like it always did with pale ridges and red valleys. Maybe if she leaned in, she could smell the honey on his skin. 

“Of course.” He frowned at her. “I do appreciate the thoughtfulness of such a gift and it worked much better than the coconut.”

“One of my cousins breaks out into terrible rashes from coconut, so I am sure that would do nothing for your scar.” Gyla blinked the sleep from her eyes. Her head began to pound. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to lie down.” 

In one stride, Basil wrapped an arm around her waist and slowly turned her back to her room. Ajax hovered as Basil helped her inside. The duke let Naomi take over and refused to fully enter the bed chamber. 

“Call should she need a physician.” He bowed and closed the door. 

“My head pounds, Naomi,” Gyla whispered. 

“Let’s lay you down and I’ll get you some tea.” Naomi vanished as soon as the blanket settled over her lady’s shoulders. 

Queen Farida slipped inside before the door could fully close and tiptoed over to the bed.

“Your Majesty,” Gyla smiled in greeting. 

“Oh, dear, you must have been concussed from the ferry.” The queen tsked and brushed Gyla’s hair back in a loving gesture. “You might need to rest during the festival. It would pai me for you to push yourself.”

“I can enjoy the beginning,” Gyla argued. “I won’t last very long, though.”

“Lady Sylvia would say the same. Her shoulder aches from the fall still and she finds it difficult to move.” Farida brushed the back of her hand across Gyla’s bruised cheek. It was already fading under Naomi’s insistent attention.  

“Maybe there will be a good spot for us to sit and watch the festival,” Gyla suggested. 

“I will ask Duke Dominis,” Farida nodded, a smile stretching her cheeks. “I saw you spoke with the duke before he helped you back to your rooms.”

“I gifted him a honey paste from Lindsor for his scar.” 

“Oh, my dove, you are so sweet. I thought you ended your hunt,” the queen giggled in delight. 

“He apologized sincerely and melted my ire…” Gyla settled into her pillows. “I have ended my hunt. He said coconut oil did not help with dryness and I have a cousin that breaks out terribly…”

“I have met several ladies who suffer the same. That was thoughtful of you. Did Posar try to give it to you for free?”

“He did! I managed to stuff a few coins into his hand and run before he could protest!” Gyla laughed even if her head hurt from it. “Did you buy any pearls?”

“They wouldn’t let me buy anything. They insisted on a free gift and I finally gave up and left with none,” Farida shook her head in amusement.  “Viscountess Ko has good people in Lindsor. I hope she and her son were well during their travels.” 

“I am sure they managed to settle before the storm.”

Naomi walked in with a tray of tea and squeaked in surprise at the sight of Farida sitting beside Gyla. 

“Your Majesty,” she curtsied low, the cup clinking on the tray. 

“I shall leave you to rest. Take good care of your lady, Naomi.” And with that, Farida slipped back out to the corridor.