Chapter 264: Fever of the Mind

Marta’s mouth fell open. She suspected already she to what she just saw but it was still a shock nonetheless.

For a minute, she just stared at Orion, thinking maybe she had heard him wrong, but then the look in his eyes told her he wasn’t joking.

She didn’t know when a sound that was more of an excited squeal slipped past her lips. She immediately controlled herself, clamping a hand over her mouth so as not to disturb Sophia, who was finally resting, even though Marta herself was vibrating with excitement.

But just as quickly as the excitement surfaced, a scowl crawled onto her face.

"Wait a minute," she said as she fixed her gaze on Orion.

"Here we go," Lysander muttered lowly.

"So you mean the mark I saw on her back was a mark binding you to her? And you didn’t say anything when I assumed that she was someone else’s mate? You didn’t correct me? You just... you lied to me?" she asked with a gasp.

Orion tilted his head as he gave her a look.

"I can’t lie, Marta."

"Then explain—"

"You just assumed," Orion told her with a shrug. "You already had it in your head that I wasn’t her mate. You said so yourself."

Marta’s mouth opened. Closed. Then opened again.

"...You could have at least said something."

"I told you to ask Sophia when she wakes up. I didn’t deny being her mate. I just didn’t tell you I was her mate," Orion told Marta.

Marta released a sigh.

"I have no idea if I should hit you or not, just to have some satisfaction."

Lysander chuckled, and it was at that moment Marta turned to him with a glare.

"Did you also know about this?" she asked him.

Lysander blinked once, then raised both his hands in surrender.

"I had no idea until a few days ago," he said quickly. "And even then, it wasn’t my place to say anything. If anything, I’m as innocent as you."

Marta narrowed her eyes at him.

"I really don’t want to believe you, but I know that’s not a lie," she told him.

Orion snorted softly.

It was only then they heard the soft whimper.

Sophia’s brows knit together in her sleep, lips trembling slightly as a weak sound slipped out of her throat. Tears leaked from the corners of her eyes, even though her body barely moved.

Orion’s teasing demeanor disappeared instantly.

He turned back to her, reaching down and taking her hand in his. Her fingers were shaky and warm, a little damp with sweat. His thumb brushed gently over her knuckles.

"Hey..." he murmured.

She didn’t respond — but her hand curled around his finger as if her body recognized him even when her mind didn’t.

His chest tightened.

He lifted his other hand and gently wiped the tears off her cheek with his thumb.

Marta watched the interaction, eyes practically sparkling.

To be honest, she was more excited than maybe even Orion. Ever since she had seen Orion and Sophia at the festival, she knew there was something special between them. She had wished they would end up together, and that was one reason why she had told Orion about Sophia’s condition first, not even minding that Sophia supposedly had a mate.

Well, that was for the best after all, because it turned out Orion was Sophia’s mate.

She squealed again, but this time bit down on her knuckle to stop herself.

Then she leaned closer.

"...Am I among the first to know?"

Orion glanced at her briefly.

"You are among them. And even before the three musketeers," he told her.

The three musketeers referred to Madam Tyler, Daniel, and Caspian.

Marta’s smile widened. The fact that she got the information before Madam Tyler, Caspian, and Daniel was a feat in itself. She was going to rub it in their faces later.

Then she turned back to Sophia, her expression sobering.

She watched the way Sophia’s chest rose and fell unevenly, the fever still clearly burning through her delicate body.

"What do we do now?" she asked more quietly, looking at Lysander.

Lysander stepped closer to the bed, his brows furrowing as he pressed his fingers lightly to Sophia’s forehead.

She flinched even in her sleep.

Her temperature was still too high.

"The best thing we can do," he said slowly, "is keep trying to reduce the fever."

Orion’s jaw tightened.

"It hasn’t gone down in days."

Lysander nodded.

"I know."

Orion’s grip on Sophia’s hand tightened slightly.

"So what are you saying?" He didn’t look at Lysander. His eyes were still on her face. "That no matter how many cold cloths we place, no matter how much medicine we force down her throat, it won’t change anything?"

Lysander exhaled.

"I’m saying, if it was a normal fever, then maybe it would have gone down already."

Orion looked up at him then.

"It’s psychological," Lysander said.

He straightened slightly.

"I told you before, her body is reacting to something her mind hasn’t processed. She’s not just sick, Orion. She’s reliving something."

He continued, "And I think this fever is tied to the memory she’s caught in. Until she resolves it..."

Orion stared at him.

"I’m not as smart as you are, brother. I’ll need you to explain what you just said to me."

"Until she gets well in that memory," Lysander finished softly, "she may not get well in real life."

Orion moved his gaze to Sophia’s sleeping figure. Her hands were wrapped tightly around his own.

"So... I’m just going to have to watch her suffer and not be able to do anything?" Orion asked him.

"I’ve told you this before — stay with her, speak to her. I think it will only be a matter of time until she recovers. She recognizes you, maybe because you are mates, but she does. The fact that she let you carry her to the bed is enough evidence," Lysander told him.

"But it doesn’t stop the tears or the suffering," Orion pointed out.

That was the part that annoyed him most. He hated seeing her cry. He’d prefer her cursing him out, but he hated seeing her like this — in tears and... weak.

"No matter how hard we try, there are some things that we just have to face alone, by ourselves," Lysander told him softly. "But I’ll do some more research to see if there’s anything more we can do."

Orion sighed. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

"You should be spending more time with your family."

"The one thing both of them are doing is sleeping a lot. I’ll use any free time I have to do some research," Lysander told him.

"Thank you, brother," Orion said softly.

"No need to thank me. Sophia is my patient, after all. The only issue here is that her condition is rare, with no records at all," Lysander said. "But I’ll do my best, brother."