"Are you crazy? That would mean r*ping her! She's a maiden, for God's sake!" Kyren shouted in anger.
Clenching his jaw, he shook his head in disbelief. The answer was absurd and unacceptable.
"This cannot happen! Not in my camp! Never!" he yelled again to the healer.
"Then, she'll die," Rafe straightforwardly replied with a sombre face.
It was a situation that he too feared the worst as a healer. An innocent girl would die just because of the greedy lust of an evil man.
The healer blinked a few times, looking at the commander with a grim expression. His forehead frowned as he kept thinking about saving his patient.
If she died here, that too would become a massive scandal. It would be hard to keep it a secret as the sharp eyes of the knights had caught her. Though a few, it was enough to spark the gossip.
The matter had become a hot topic among the men. Everyone was curious about the girl brought by the commander.
Rafe was irritated by the knights' pestering him to find out who she was and why she had been taken to the camp. It was just a matter of time before the incident was reported to the King of Cassian.
Kyren was still patiently holding the princess despite his intense looks. They appeared more like a couple in an intimate position.
Rafe's eyes shone brightly all of a sudden. He looked at them as the idea crossed his mind. He was sure that this would clear up their problems. It was a solution that benefited them all.
"I'm not suggesting her to be r*ped. There is another way to save her without doing the immoral act." After a moment of silence, the healer opened his mouth, carefully unfolding his proposal.
"What way?" The blue eyes of the manly, dark-haired commander looked at him, anxious for a reply.
"You said that she's a maiden. Then, we can get her married," Rafe suggested.
"You mean, let her husband sleep with her?" the commander asked to reconfirm.
The healer nodded earnestly.
"It's not wrong against our law and culture. She'll be saved, and there will be no legal complications," he confidently replied.
Kyren pondered with a brooding look. Based on the current situation, the healer's suggestion was the most realistic way to solve the problem.
Bringing a woman to the camp for pleasure was an offence. However, an army was allowed to get married. He couldn't be more than agree, but there was one constraint to the solution.
"We need to get her consent for the marriage. How would you get it? She's not in her right mind," Kyren turned to Anna.
He could feel the girl's resistance fading. Looking at her, he saw her eyelids almost closed and her body drooping.
"Oh, no! She's fainting!" Rafe exclaimed.
"Wake up! Wake up!" Kyren shook her body vigorously in fear.
The commander would have to bear the consequences of her death. He would be severely punished, and his reputation as the Knight Commander and a royal family member would be ruined.
The whole order of the Knights of Gerhard would also be held accountable for her death as the kingdom's laws didn't take lightly crimes involving women.
In a rush, Rafe took out a small bottle and poured the liquid into Anna's throat. He held her jaw up, forcing her to swallow it quickly.
Turning to Kyren with desperate eyes, he said, "I'll get her consent!"
***
The atmosphere went from black to fuzzy, with some lights beginning to shine her eyesight. Her eyelids fluttered a few times as the surroundings became more apparent.
She could feel the softness of the sheets where she lay down and the warm air of the place. The two men she barely knew came into her view as she rolled her eyes and turned her face.
Her head started pounding, giving her a headache.
"It hurts," she said with a shaky voice.
"Can you hear me? Do you understand what I'm saying?" asked the healer.
She nodded to his questions. Despite the pain, she could comprehend him well.
"What happened?"
Anna could not recall the things she did. The last thing she remembered was the burning pain that emerged in her body.
"You lost consciousness again just now," Kyren simply told her, unrevealing her outrageous behaviour.
Hastily, Rafe looked her in the eyes with a serious face and said, "Lady, you're in grave danger. You've been drugged."
"Drugged?"
"Listen carefully. Just now, you were under the influence of an aphrodisiac," Rafe explained.
"I don't remember..." Anna shook her head.
"That's because the effect is too strong. You won't be able to withstand it. We need to marry you off to save you. May I have your consent for this?" he asked with a straight face.
"Marry? Why?" Clueless, Anna looked at the healer for an answer.
"The dangerous aphrodisiac is starting to poison your body. At this rate, if we don't do anything, you'll die. To overcome it, you need to sleep with a man," he explained.
"What?" She pulled the ends of the blanket and clutched it to her chest with a tight grip. Her heart beat fast as she heard his statement.
"Calm down. I know you're shocked, but this is the only way I can save you. Please understand," urged the healer.
His eyes were hopeful for a positive reply.
"No... I... I...," her voice shook with fear as she stuttered.
She had just been saved from a wicked man, and now the healer was telling her this bizarre news that didn't make any sense to her.
Then, the hot flashes surged again, rushing through her veins as if burning her body. She jolted in pain and screamed. Her face flushed red from the spasm.
"Save me! Please!" Anna cried from the shooting pains. Her hands were trembling, and her tears were flowing.
A large hand reached to her and grasped her hand.
"You're going to be all right. We'll save you. I promise!"
The blue-eyed man's calloused palm felt rough, but its warmth reassured her that he meant no harm. She nodded to him weakly.
***
"Let's talk."
Rafe pulled Kyren aside, away from Anna, who was lying down.
Facing the towering grand duke, the healer looked up and said, "Please marry her, commander!"
"What the h*ll are you talking about?" Kyren almost yelled at the healer's request.
He held down his voice so as not to be heard by the girl. His eyes glared at him like a hawk eyeing for prey.
"You heard me! Marry her tonight and consummate. That's the only way!" Rafe urged.
"No! I can't marry her! Get another man!"
The commander's refusal outburst. As if it was not enough, he looked away from the healer, expressing his rejection.
Rafe grunted at his antics.
"Do you know what bringing a maiden to a man's bed means? Have you no idea what the consequences of it will be to her?" he spat out.
The commander turned to him with an angry face.
"I was saving her!"
"No man in this camp will touch her. She's practically yours!" Rafe rebuked.
He firmly believed that Kyren should be responsible for her. After all, he was the one who brought her to the camp.
"I'm celibate, and you know why I won't marry any woman!"
"Stop giving excuses. This is a matter of life and death! You promised her, didn't you? If you are truly a Cassian man, you will honour her dignity by marrying her!"
Kyren inhaled deeply. Rafe's words hit him like a tonne of bricks.
Honour and dignity.
These were the two things he always preached to his men, yet now he was turning away from his belief.
Deep down inside, Kyren knew marrying Anna was the right thing to do. It was the time for the Knight Commander of Gerhard to uphold his faith.