alcohol withdrawal and was now sweating it out and detoxifying. Well, that is, if immortals had to do that sort of thing …
Tallis started to buck underneath me again, tugging against his ropes as he gritted his teeth and shut his eyes tightly together. I ran the damp cloth back and forth across his forehead again as he continued to struggle against the ties that restrained him. “Tallis, I’m here with you,” I repeated, trying to soothe him. “It’s Lily.”
“Lil … ly,” he repeated and stopped fighting, but didn’t open his eyes.
“Yes, that’s right,” I said as a big smile curled my mouth. “Can you hear me?” But there was no response. “Can you open your eyes, Tallis?”
Still no response. He appeared to be stuck in the border between sleeping and waking. He muttered something unintelligible, which brought my attention to his mouth. His lips appeared so dry and cracked, they reminded me of the fissures in a parched desert. Thinking he was probably thirsty and needed water, I returned to the sink and doused the muslin in more water, cupping my other hand underneath it to keep the water from dripping all over the ground. I returned to Tallis’s side and got down on my knees. Leaning over him, I rotated his head toward me so I wouldn’t have to reach so far to empty the water into his mouth. Then I pursed his lips together so they resembled a fish’s lips and squeezed a few drops of water onto his tongue. At first, the water just seemed to pool there, but seconds later, he swallowed it.
“Good, Tallis, good,” I encouraged him with a heartfelt smile, glad to be making some sort of headway. I squeezed more drops into his mouth and watched him swallow them. Then I stood up and retrieved the jug of water by the basin, returning to Tallis’s side moments later. I submerged the fabric directly into the jug and brought it to Tallis’s lips again. This time, I squeezed more water into his mouth, which he eagerly gulped.
The sun was just starting to creep up into the sky, bathing both of us in an early morning blue. Tallis’s scar that ran the length of one side of his face didn’t seem as pronounced in the dawn’s light and he appeared younger somehow. Or maybe it was just that I was accustomed to the scowl he usually wore, which seemed more pronounced whenever Bill was around. I smiled sadly while thinking how gratefully I would welcome that scowl now because it would mean that Tallis was back to himself again.
Glancing outside the two dusty windows, my whole being seemed to lift with the realization that I would soon see the sun again. With the dawning of a new day, I knew everything would be okay, that everything would work itself out. It was a silly feeling, really, because the sunrise couldn’t guarantee anything, but I was so sorely in need of positive thoughts that I allowed them to run unchecked.
Looking at Tallis, I placed my hand on his forehead and was glad to discover he wasn’t quite as hot as before, which I took as a positive sign.
“Tallis, I need you to resist whatever is going on inside you,” I whispered. I dunked the muslin into the water again and transferred the water into his open mouth. “I know you can fight it, and I know you can fight Donnchadh,” I continued, even though I had no clue whether or not he could hear me, let alone understand what I was saying. But the house was so quiet that I needed to hear someone’s voice, even if it was only my own. “You’re the strongest person I know,” I told him. “I believe in you, Tallis. I know you can do this.”
“Donnchadh,” Tallis muttered. Moments later, his jaw went stiff. I looked down at his hands and noticed they were fisted at his sides. Clenching his eyes shut tightly, he repeated Donnchadh’s name. Then he started battling with his restraints, huffing and puffing with the exertion. I placed both of my hands on his wrists and tried to still him, if only to calm him down.
“Tallis, can you hear
Tallis started to buck underneath me again, tugging against his ropes as he gritted his teeth and shut his eyes tightly together. I ran the damp cloth back and forth across his forehead again as he continued to struggle against the ties that restrained him. “Tallis, I’m here with you,” I repeated, trying to soothe him. “It’s Lily.”
“Lil … ly,” he repeated and stopped fighting, but didn’t open his eyes.
“Yes, that’s right,” I said as a big smile curled my mouth. “Can you hear me?” But there was no response. “Can you open your eyes, Tallis?”
Still no response. He appeared to be stuck in the border between sleeping and waking. He muttered something unintelligible, which brought my attention to his mouth. His lips appeared so dry and cracked, they reminded me of the fissures in a parched desert. Thinking he was probably thirsty and needed water, I returned to the sink and doused the muslin in more water, cupping my other hand underneath it to keep the water from dripping all over the ground. I returned to Tallis’s side and got down on my knees. Leaning over him, I rotated his head toward me so I wouldn’t have to reach so far to empty the water into his mouth. Then I pursed his lips together so they resembled a fish’s lips and squeezed a few drops of water onto his tongue. At first, the water just seemed to pool there, but seconds later, he swallowed it.
“Good, Tallis, good,” I encouraged him with a heartfelt smile, glad to be making some sort of headway. I squeezed more drops into his mouth and watched him swallow them. Then I stood up and retrieved the jug of water by the basin, returning to Tallis’s side moments later. I submerged the fabric directly into the jug and brought it to Tallis’s lips again. This time, I squeezed more water into his mouth, which he eagerly gulped.
The sun was just starting to creep up into the sky, bathing both of us in an early morning blue. Tallis’s scar that ran the length of one side of his face didn’t seem as pronounced in the dawn’s light and he appeared younger somehow. Or maybe it was just that I was accustomed to the scowl he usually wore, which seemed more pronounced whenever Bill was around. I smiled sadly while thinking how gratefully I would welcome that scowl now because it would mean that Tallis was back to himself again.
Glancing outside the two dusty windows, my whole being seemed to lift with the realization that I would soon see the sun again. With the dawning of a new day, I knew everything would be okay, that everything would work itself out. It was a silly feeling, really, because the sunrise couldn’t guarantee anything, but I was so sorely in need of positive thoughts that I allowed them to run unchecked.
Looking at Tallis, I placed my hand on his forehead and was glad to discover he wasn’t quite as hot as before, which I took as a positive sign.
“Tallis, I need you to resist whatever is going on inside you,” I whispered. I dunked the muslin into the water again and transferred the water into his open mouth. “I know you can fight it, and I know you can fight Donnchadh,” I continued, even though I had no clue whether or not he could hear me, let alone understand what I was saying. But the house was so quiet that I needed to hear someone’s voice, even if it was only my own. “You’re the strongest person I know,” I told him. “I believe in you, Tallis. I know you can do this.”
“Donnchadh,” Tallis muttered. Moments later, his jaw went stiff. I looked down at his hands and noticed they were fisted at his sides. Clenching his eyes shut tightly, he repeated Donnchadh’s name. Then he started battling with his restraints, huffing and puffing with the exertion. I placed both of my hands on his wrists and tried to still him, if only to calm him down.
“Tallis, can you hear
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