“I thought you were asleep.”
“I was. I half thought I’d dreamed that conversation. Well.” He downed the brandy. He sat up, swept the blanket off his leg. As I watched he deliberately bent his knee until the pulling flesh began to gap the wound open. I winced at the sight of it, but Burrich only looked thoughtful. He poured more brandy, drank it off. The bottle was half-gone. “So. I’m going to have to splint the leg straight, if I’m going to keep that closed.” He glanced up at me. “You know what I’ll need. Will you fetch it for me?”
“I think you should stay off it for a day or. so. Give it a chance to rest. You don’t need a splint if you’re in bed.”
He gave me a long look. “Who guards Kettricken’s door?”
“I don’t think … I assume she has women who sleep in the outer chamber of her apartments.”
“You know he’ll try to kill her and the unborn child, as soon as he finds out.”
“It’s a secret still. If you start guarding her door, all will know.”
“By my count, five of us know. That’s no secret, Fitz.”
“Six,” I admitted ruefully. “The Fool surmised it some days ago.”
“Oh!” I had the satisfaction of seeing Burrich look shocked. “Well, at least that’s one tongue that won’t go wagging. Still, as you see, it won’t be secret long. Rumors will fly before the day’s out, mark my words. I guard her door this night.”
“Must it be you? Can’t you rest, and I will-”
“A man can die of failure, Fitz. Do you know that? Once, I told you, the fight isn’t over until you’ve won. This”-and he gestured at his leg in disgust “this will not be my excuse for giving up. Shame enough for me that my prince went on without me. I shall not fail him here. Besides”-he gave a bark of sour laughter-”there’s not enough in the stables now to keep both Hands and me busy. And the heart for it has gone out of me. Now. Will you go get the splint works?”