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“She does owe you respect,” Taylor said, because he wasn’t fine with however she treated his brother.

So Taylor was slightly overprotective. He was younger than Palmer, but he’d always been the more athletic and popular one between the two of them. Palmer had been a typical nerd when they were in school, and Taylor had taken it upon himself to protect his brother even back then. Luckily, Palmer had had a solid group of friends. Taylor hadn’t had too many, but the habit had stuck with him. He knew that Palmer wasn’t in danger here, but he still wanted to protect his big brother.

“She does,” Twig agreed. “I’m really sorry she’s been treating you the way she has been. I told her to stop, but she still does it.”

She did seem to be, and Twig wasn’t at his best right now. He was young and clearly scared, and he looked very small in his hospital bed. The way his mother was behaving wasn’t helping anyone, but Taylor suspected she couldn’t see that. She was scared for her son, and he understood that, but he kind of wanted to point out that she wasn’t helping anyone.

He wouldn’t, though. It was clear she didn’t think much of humans, and she had to know that he was Palmer’s brother. That was all she would care about. It wasn’t like Taylor was eager to talk to her, anyway. It was perfectly fine keeping his distance, as long as she didn’t mistreat his brother.

Or her son. But Taylor didn’t think that she ever would. The reason she was so anxious was that she was afraid for her child.

But Twig wasn’t a child. He might be ill and weak, but he was an adult, and it was clear he wanted his mother’s behavior to change. She should respect that.

* * * *

TWIG WAS STILL STARING at the door. He’d been staring since Palmer had left—or rather, since Palmer’s brother had.

He knew him from afar. Everyone at the palace did. People had been excited when humans had started moving in, and they’d fallen over the doctor and the guards and everyone else. From what he had seen, Taylor and Palmer were incredibly close, and it made him wonder how things would’ve been for him if he had a sibling from his mother. She’d refused to have any more children after the way he’d been conceived, and he definitely couldn’t blame her for that, but sometimes his childhood had been a bit lonely. His mother was overprotective on the best of days, and while he loved her, sometimes it also made it difficult for him to live his life. He hadn’t had many friends as a child, and he still didn’t. He definitely hadn’t had his siblings, but thankfully, that was changing now that Killian was king and Twig was an adult. His mother couldn’t forbid him from doing anything anymore. She might not like that he associated with Killian, but she couldn’t say anything about it, not when Killian was the king and had taken an interest in Twig.

Twig still wasn’t quite sure what to think about that. He’d been invisible all his life, both to his father and to his half-siblings. It was probably partly because they weren’t interested in him, but it was also because their father had taken great pleasure in using them against each other. Twig hadn’t wanted that to happen, so he’d kept his distance, and he was glad that he had.

But he was also glad that Killian was bridging the distance now. He and Twig didn’t have the kind of relationship siblings usually had, but maybe they would one day. Twig certainly hoped so. His mother might not be happy about it, but he was, and that was all he cared about.

“You should be resting,” Twig’s mother said.

Twig blinked at her. He hadn’t heard her come back in, yet there she was, standing in the middle of his room, holding a covered tray. From what he’d heard earlier, he knew it had to contain soup. He couldn’t say he was eager to eat anything, but his mother wouldn’t leave him alone until he did, so he might as well give in right away. That way, she would probably leave him alone for the rest of the afternoon, or at least limit herself to staring at him. It was like she expected him to keel over at any second, and since he’d been poisoned, she might not be wrong. But he trusted Palmer. Eventually, he would find out what had poisoned Twig, and he would help him.

Twig couldn’t allow himself to consider any other option.

“I am resting,” he told her.

“Are you? Because to me, it looks like you’re daydreaming.”

“I’m not moving my body.”

“You need sleep.”

“I thought you said I needed food.”

His mother gave him an unimpressed glance. He knew he needed to shut his mouth, but as much as he loved her and understood why she behaved the way she did, sometimes she annoyed him to no end.

But Twig didn’t have the strength to start bickering with her. Besides, he was pretty sure she wouldn’t give in. She’d probably ignore him if he said he didn’t need rest.

He sighed and held out his hands. “Give me that. I’m going to eat, then I’ll try to sleep.”

“Good,” his mother said as she moved closer. “And maybe later I can find a healer.”

He shook his head. “Palmer’s a good healer, and like I said earlier, Killian trusts him. That’s enough for me. I need to trust him too, and I don’t want another healer.” Twig didn’t think he could deal with someone else. He’d had enough of Palmer and nurses poking at him. A new healer would either have to talk to Palmer or start the tests all over again, and Twig wasn’t okay with that.

“I’m just saying, another healer might find the solution to this.”

“They might not. As far as we know, Palmer’s very close to figuring things out, and if you take him off my case, he might never find a solution. I don’t want to risk it, Mom. There’s no need for me to.”

She sat in what was now her chair. It was clear she was unhappy, but thankfully, she didn’t insist.

Twig knew her well enough not to fool himself into thinking this was over. She would no doubt offer him another healer several more times before Palmer figured out how to help him.

And every single one of those times, Twig would defend Palmer.