Page 73 of Dark Princess: Shadows

"Do you want to say hello to your brother before we go?" he asked.

She looked down at herself and then lifted her head and smiled. "I've seen Ell-rom this morning, but I should tell him that I'm going out and will be gone for a little while. I don't want him to worry about me."

Better to be honest now. "You're not coming back here. After the tour, I'll take you to Annani's house. Naturally, we will come here often for your rehabilitation and to see Ell-rom if Jasmine remains here for a while longer."

Her eyes widened. "I haven't seen my brother's mate yet. I should do so before I leave."

Morelle was already leaning on him heavily, and he wanted to get her to the golf cart as soon as possible so she could sit down, but he wasn't going to deny her wishes. If need be, he would carry her or ask Gertrude to get the wheelchair.

"Of course." He tightened his hold on her waist, supporting her as they waited.

"Congratulations," the nurse said from behind them. "It'll be good for you to move out of here."

Morelle turned to look at Gertrude over her shoulder. "Thank you for taking care of me. I would also like to thank the other medics. Bridget and Julian."

Brandon had noticed that Morelle called every medical practitioner a medic without differentiating between doctors and nurses. He wondered whether the Kra-ell had only one class of such providers or whether it was a translation problem.

"You're most welcome," Gertrude said. "And don't worry about the docs. You'll have plenty of opportunities to see them in person when you come for checkups and rehabilitation."

"I'm not sure Morelle needs it."

At the rate she was progressing, she would be jogging through the village in no time.

"We shall see." Gertrude smiled at Morelle. "The village is a small place, and you are bound to bump into everyone sooner or later." She walked to Jasmine's room and knocked. "Ell-rom, Morelle wants you to come out for a moment."

When Ell-rom emerged and saw his sister, there was wonderment in his eyes, and he pressed a hand to his chest. "You look like a completely different person. You have no idea how it makes me feel to see you like this. I don't remember much from before, but sometimes I have dreams, and I see you in long robes and veils. They were like a prison. Here, you are finally free."

Morelle nodded. "I feel free. Can I come in and see your mate?"

Ell-rom's smile grew broader. "I would love for you to see my Jasmine."

As Brandon helped Morelle into the room, Gertrude called from behind them. "I'll load the rest of Morelle's things into the golf cart while you're in there."

The room was quiet except for the beep of monitors and Jasmine's steady breathing.

Brandon watched as Morelle studied her brother's mate intently. "She's as beautiful as a goddess," she whispered. "No wonder you fell in love with her the moment you saw her."

Ell-rom sat on the edge of the bed and took Jasmine's hand. "It's more than her beauty. She has the kindest heart, and she sees the good in everyone." He looked up at his sister. "She sat with you too, you know. Talked to you, sang to you."

Morelle nodded. "I wish I remembered that, but I only heard Brandon for some reason. Perhaps I wasn't ready before."

When she wobbled on her feet, Brandon led her to the chair and helped her sit down.

"Thank you." She let out a breath. "I'm still so annoyingly weak."

Ell-rom chuckled. "You are doing so much better than I did when I first woke up that I feel embarrassed."

"Bridget said that you were still emaciated when you woke up. You didn't have the muscles to carry your weight."

"True," he conceded. "I owe everything to Jasmine, the doctors, and Gertrude." He waved at the nurse, who had returned and stood in the doorway. "Perhaps this is what I should do with my future. Become a doctor."

Something passed through Morelle's eyes that Brandon couldn't quite decipher.

Worry mixed with annoyance?

"You need to start with learning English first," Gertrude said. "Baby steps, Ell-rom. You can't run before you walk."

He laughed, which seemed to lift Morelle's spirits. "Yeah, you are right. I've been neglecting my studies." He turned to Brandon. "You should get Morelle a laptop with the program William's team designed for Kra-ell speakers for self-taught English. It's incredible."