Finding Elora

Chapter 23

MASON

Abby's screams are loud despite being muffled by Kie's palm.

I can't say I'm a fan of them, nor do I enjoy the thick scent of terror that pours from her, but this needs to be done. I'm ready for it to be over, too.

I thought bathing the human would be fun, that she'd get angry and annoyed, but this is far from it. It's to levels even I can barely tolerate, and I avoid looking into her eyes as Kie pulls her out of the water and up the riverbank.

She's still thrashing and flailing, trying desperately to break free, but it's useless. Even if she wasn't injured, Kie's too strong for her. All she's doing is tiring herself out.

Blood flows from her knees as she's dragged from the water, and I push up my wet sleeves so water doesn't drip into my bag as I grab our medical supplies. I wasn't planning on walking into a river fully dressed on this trip, so I don't have anything dry to change into.

Kie meets my gaze over Abby's head, and I shrug before setting my supplies on the ground and digging through hers to grab the antibiotic ointment I found yesterday.

Our kind don't get infections, so we don't have medicine for it, but the ointment she had stashed away claims to help prevent them. It's the only one of her items that looks even mildly useful.

"If you stop screaming, I'll remove my hand from your mouth and let you go," Kie promises.

Almost immediately, the screaming stops.

I don't trust Abby to remain silent, but to my surprise, when Kie releases her and steps back, she doesn't continue her screaming. She still reeks of terror, but she doesn't try to run away either as she stands between us with her arms crossed tightly over her chest.

She must be freezing.

Even I can feel the chill of the water on my skin, which is only amplified by the fact that my clothing is soaking wet. It'll take hours to dry, but I assume removing my clothing would've only made bathing Abby harder.

Plus, it would leave my skin open to being touched, and given the sheer amount of flailing she was doing, it was a high risk.

"I want my clothes," Abby says.

Her voice cracks, and her entire body is wracked with violent shivers as she glances between Kie and me. I didn't understand why she was fighting us so hard at first, but when I accidentally pulled down her underwear and heard the primal scream she let out, I realized it's because she thinks we're going to rape her.

I'm annoyed she believes I'd have any interest in that.

I'm tied to Prince Kie and the firstborn son of the shifter alpha—I have no fucking desire for women who don't want me. There are more than enough who do.

"Sit," Kie orders, pointing to the large rock I was leaning against earlier. "We need to treat your wounds first."

Abby continues to look between Kie and me, and I frown as I notice her lips have turned blue. Why? Is this a side effect of her infection? I scrubbed all her cuts well, ensuring any debris or germs growing in there were removed.

My actions tore open the thin scabs she was building, but I figure it's best to start her healing from scratch. I know how to deal with open wounds, but infections are foreign.

"I can do it myself," Abby says, eyeing the supplies in my hands.

Kie shakes his head. "Let Mason do it," he says. "You don't know how to use our supplies, and we need to get moving before the shifters catch our scent."