Royal Blood

Chapter Fourty-Two: Broken Repair

Warm water sloshed around the gray tub as Regina reached down, rinsing out the bloodied cloth. Robins hand hung limp over the side of the bed, his fingers hot to the touch. Regina wrung the wet cloth before dabbing his chest for the seventh time while Katherine sat quietly, sorting out medicines. The room was silent except for the occasional drip of water. Regina had worked like this, now, for almost an hour as she worked her way down his body. When Graham arrived back after supper that night, Regina would take to researching her book for any way to break the spell that separated her from Robin.

"Where is he?" The door to Regina's chambers whirred open, presenting an angry Little John. Regina stood in defense, knocking over the canister of bloodied water. Cursing, Regina lifted her skirts as Katherine jolted in shock.

"Sir, you aren't to be him here. Her majesty's chambers-" Regina lifted an exasperated hand, walking to the door.

"John, he's not well. Please. Once my huntsman comes back you can join. I still don't know where the rest of the merry men are as well as my sister." Little John pushed past the young woman, stalking over to the bed. "John." Regina warned.

"Look at what you did..." He growled, shaking his head as his eyes skimmed over the man below him. "How could you do this? How can a person be capable of so much harm?"

"I've told you before that it wasn't me." Regina whispered, glancing out at the sunset that brushed the tree tops.

Footsteps caught the attention of all three in the room, their heads turning to watch Graham arrive at the door. "Your majesty." Graham bowed his head before stepping through the doorway. "Who is..."

"Little John, this is my huntsman Graham. Graham, this is one of Robin's men. I thought he might be of some use in your search party for Zelena and Roland." Regina explained before brushing past both Katherine and Little John, signaling the end of the conversation. Behind her, Katherine uttered the words of dismissal to both men before closing the doors to the bedchamber.

***

The first night didn't bring many hours of sleep. Regina sat by her own bedside, her head on the mattress. But sleep didn't come.

Her neck hurt as well as her back from the terrible position, her mind raced about possibilities to heal Robin and to find her family. Her mind spun until all that was left was for Regina to break down.

She sat on her vanity chair, sobs wracking her body. Tears dampened the sheets as Regina clasped robins right hand, pressing wet kisses onto his knuckles. Regina's life had become a terrible mess. In less than a year she had fallen in love, traveled her kingdom, learned the craft of her mother, watched her father die, killed more than a fare share of people and allowed herself to turn into a completely different person. The comfort and safety she once depended on was gone and the only thing she had left was the broken body that laid on her bed and the myth of a family somewhere on the palace grounds.

By the second day, Regina couldn't be reached. She tucked herself away in the corner closest to Robin as she read through every book in her possession. She tested spells, created potions. Katherine ducked in every so often to check up on Robin's wounds and to bring meals that were never touched.

Regina didn't sleep the second night, either. She paced the floor of her chambers, reading by candlelight. She did this for 48 hours until it was work just to keep her eyes open.

"Regina, please." Katherine pleaded, looking up from the basin of water. "You're not doing anyone a favor by wearing yourself this thin. Rest. Robin will still be here when you wake. Graham will be closer to finding Zelena." Regina stopped, holding the leather bound book close to her chest. "I can fix you up the adjoining room if you'd like. You can sleep in my bed for now..." Regina looked warily over at Robin's red body, tears brimming her eyes.

"He's in so much pain." She whispered, setting the volume down on the nightstand.

"Not as much as you'd think. He's on some pretty high medications. Nothing much he can sense at the moment." Katherine corrected, standing to direct the young woman towards the door. "C'mon, a few hours of rest and a good meal will get you right back where you need to be."

Regina resisted, shaking her head. "Just... Just finish what you're here to do and leave us." The Queen ordered, crossing her arms. Exhaustion strung it's way into her physique, creating heavy bags in contrast to her light skin.

"Regina." Katherine dropped the rag back in the basin, raising an eyebrow.

"Please." Regina managed, taking her fingers through her tousled hair. "Go. Get out." She waited until the sound of Katherine's footsteps had dissipated, her eyes closed. Her body felt empty as Regina sat on the side of her bed, pawing back the sheets. The warmth of robins body was inviting, summoning her closer. Her eyes were heavy as her head hit the pillow. She made sure there was space between her and the man beside her, not wanting to hurt him or cause trouble if he woke.

***

"Regina!" The Queen gasped for air, her eyes flying open. The room was dark and as soon as she looked up, fatigue hit her like a rock. All she wanted was to crawl back to bed and sleep away her days until all the trouble had passed. "Regina." Grahams voice was harsh, his face only inches from her own.

"I'm up." She hissed, swatting at his silhouette in the dark. "What do you want?" The world around her spun as she struggled to sit up in bed. Beside her, Robin breathed heavily in a deep sleep.

"I've found a way. To find them. I just need something that belonged to your sister. To... To the child."

"Roland?" Regina groaned, pushing up from the bed. "Why would you need something of his? You wouldn't be able to identify him that way. Nor Zelena." Objects fell to the floor as the young woman tried to find the lamp that she had set beside the bed before she had fallen asleep. "Damnit." She groaned.

Hands grasped her arms frantically and pulled her upright. "Regina, listen to me!" Graham barked. "You can enchant them. You can cast a spell and the object will bring us to its owner."

"What?" Regina's movements slowly caught up to speed as she pushed past the huntsman and out her own door. She walked quickly down to the fitting room close to the servants quarters. The same one she had been fitted in for the wedding. There, on the chair, sat two cream colored gloves that belonged to the Queen of the next realm from here. Zelena.

Graham, close behind, pulled out a small scroll and tossed it to his partner. "Read this. Enchant those and we'll be able to find her."

Hey guys! Sorry for the short chapter this week! I know I've been giving all these excuses for not being able to update good chapters but it's been a really tough month! I hope you've enjoyed his chapter and I'm SOOO excited to release the next one! It's gonna be awesomeeee!!! Please leave your feedback, suggestions, ideas, thoughts and ideas for later books! I love to hear what you have to say! Thanks so much and I'll see ya back next week!