Chapter 5 · The Warlord's Accidental Healer - Chapter 5: The Plague Order

"Commander." She inclined her head, but her eyes stayed on me. "I bring word from the Imperial Medical Bureau. This woman is to be detained immediately."

"On what grounds?" I said.

She pulled a scroll from her sleeve and unrolled it like she was unveiling a masterpiece. "The Bureau has traced the plague's origin. It began the night you arrived at Qingfeng Pass. Witnesses report you appeared out of nowhere, dressed in strange garments, speaking a foreign tongue. You carry no travel papers, no sect credentials, and no imperial seal."

"That's not evidence," I said. "That's a coincidence."

"Is it?" Su Liyue stepped closer. Her perfume was jasmine and something sharper. "The plague spreads through qi contamination. You claim to heal without qi. Perhaps because you possess none. Perhaps because you are the source."

The guards behind her moved forward.

"Stop." Huo Yanzhan didn't raise his voice, but they froze.

Su Liyue's smile tightened. "Commander, this is an imperial order. Signed by the Bureau Chief himself."

"Show me."

She handed him the scroll. He scanned it, face unreadable, then looked at me.

"Grace."

"Yeah?"

"Did you bring the plague?"

"No."

"Do you know where it came from?"

"Not yet. But I will."

He handed the scroll back to Su Liyue. "She stays."

"Commander—"

"She saved my brother's life. Twice. If she wanted him dead, she had every opportunity."

Su Liyue's jaw tightened. "Your brother is one man. The plague has killed hundreds. The Bureau demands—"

"The Bureau can demand all it wants." Huo Yanzhan moved between us. "This is my command. My jurisdiction. You can take your order back to the capital and tell them I said no."

For a second, I thought Su Liyue might actually stab him. Her hand twitched toward the jade pendant at her waist.

Then she smiled again.

"Very well. I'll inform the Bureau that you've chosen to harbor a suspected plague vector. I'm sure they'll understand."

She turned and swept out, her guards trailing behind her.

I let out a breath I didn't know I'd been holding.

"That was stupid," I said.

"Probably," Huo Yanzhan said.

"She's going to come back with an army."

"Let her try."

He walked over to the window and looked out at the camp below. The coughing had gotten worse. I could hear it even from here.

"You can't fight the entire empire," I said.

"I've done it before."

"And?"

"I'm still here."

I wanted to argue, but my brain was too fried. I'd been awake for god knows how long, and my hands still smelled like Jingchuan's blood.

"I need to check on him," I said.

Huo Yanzhan nodded. "I'll post guards outside. No one gets in without my permission."

"You think Su Liyue will try something?"

"I think she's been trying something since the day I refused to marry her."

I blinked. "Wait, what?"

"Long story."

"I've got time."

"You don't." He gestured toward the bed. "He's getting worse."

I turned. Jingchuan's breathing had gone shallow again. His lips were tinged blue.

"Shit."

I moved to the bed and checked his pulse. Too fast. His skin was clammy, and when I peeled back his eyelid, his pupil was sluggish.

"What's wrong?" Huo Yanzhan was beside me now.

"I don't know. He was stable an hour ago."

I pulled back the blanket. The wound on his chest was seeping again, but that wasn't the problem. The problem was the black lines spreading up from it, threading under his skin like roots.

"What is that?" Huo Yanzhan said.

"I don't know."

"You said—"

"I said I don't know!" I snapped. "I'm a nurse, not a goddamn oracle. This isn't a disease I've ever seen."

Huo Yanzhan went very still. "You're saying you can't save him."

"I'm saying I need more information. What was he doing before he collapsed? Where was he? Who was he with?"

"He was with me. We were inspecting the eastern wall."

"Was he sick before that?"

"No. He was fine."

"Fine doesn't turn into this overnight. Was he eating? Drinking? Did he touch anything unusual?"

Huo Yanzhan's eyes narrowed. "There was a courier. Brought a message from the capital. Jingchuan took it."

"Where's the message now?"

"Burned. Protocol."

"Who was the courier?"

"Dead. Plague took him three days ago."

I felt cold. "You're saying the message was contaminated."

"I'm saying it's possible."

"Then why aren't you sick? You were with him."

"I didn't touch the letter."

I looked down at Jingchuan. The black veins were spreading faster now, crawling up his neck toward his jaw.

"This isn't a plague," I said slowly. "This is poison."

"Poison," Huo Yanzhan repeated.

"Yeah. A really nasty one. Something that mimics disease symptoms so no one looks for foul play."

"Who would poison him?"

"I don't know. But I know someone who might."

Huo Yanzhan caught my arm. "If you're thinking of going after Su Liyue—"

"I'm thinking of saving your brother. If she's involved, I'll deal with her later."

"Grace."

I pulled free. "I need to see that courier's body. And I need every record you have of who's gotten sick and when. Can you get me that?"

He stared at me for a long moment. Then he nodded.

"I'll send for the records. The courier's buried outside the east gate."

"Good. I'll need a shovel."

"You're going to dig him up."

"You got a better idea?"

He almost smiled. "No."

"Then get me a shovel."

He turned to leave, then paused at the door. "Grace."

"Yeah?"

"If you're wrong about this—"

"I'm not."

"If you are, and he dies, Su Liyue will have all the proof she needs. They'll execute you."

"Then I'd better be right."

He left.

I turned back to Jingchuan. The black veins had reached his jaw now, threading up toward his ear.

"Okay," I said quietly. "Let's figure out what they put in you."

I grabbed the basin of water and started cleaning the wound again. The skin around it was hot, inflamed, and when I pressed gently, Jingchuan's whole body went rigid.

His eyes snapped open.

"Grace," he whispered.

"Hey. You're okay. You're—"

He grabbed my wrist. His grip was weak, but his eyes were wild.

"Don't," he said.

"Don't what?"

"Don't trust—"

He convulsed. His back arched off the bed, and his mouth opened in a silent scream. The black veins surged forward, spreading across his face like cracks in glass.

"Jingchuan!" I grabbed his shoulders, trying to hold him down. "Stay with me!"

His eyes rolled back.

And the door burst open.

"Step away from him." Su Liyue stood in the doorway, flanked by six armed guards. "By order of the Imperial Medical Bureau, you are under arrest for attempted murder."