"Tell me exactly what we need," Edris said.
His voice was low, controlled, but the urgency beneath it was clear. His eyes stayed fixed on the healer as if forcing the answer out of her.
The healer hesitated. Her gaze drifted to Selena lying weak in the sling between them. Her breathing was shallow.
"It will not be easy," she said at last. "The poison in her blood is powerful. It is old and tied to nature itself. That makes it difficult to fight."
Kael stepped forward, his jaw tight.
"We are not asking if it is easy," he said. "We are asking if it exists."
The healer met his gaze calmly.
"There is a way," she said. "But it will not be simple."
Edris leaned forward slightly.
"Then tell us."
"There is a plant," the healer said. "A very rare one. Its flowers produce the poison that now runs through her blood. But the root beneath the ground carries the antidote. If the root is prepared properly, it can draw the poison from her body."
Silence fell.
Edris spoke first.
