Page 208 of Empire of Shadows

“I don’t think so.” Adam tried to take his hand back.

Ellie hung onto it. “You prefer to keep bleeding all over the cave?” she retorted.

“It’ll stop,” he insisted stubbornly.

“When?” Ellie pushed back.

“Uh—soon.”

More blood splatted down onto the stones by her feet.

Ellie pulled her supplies from her pocket and set them out neatly on the ground. She took out a bit of thread and worked to stick it through the eye of the needle.

It took a few tries.

She unscrewed the flask. Tilting it, she brought the fiery-scented liquid inside up to the top. She dipped the needle and thread into it.

“Ready?” she asked impatiently with the flask in one hand and the needle in the other.

“This is a terrible idea,” Adam asserted.

“Would you rather do it yourself?” she challenged.

“Maybe?” Adam returned, and then took in the scowl on Ellie’s face. “Okay. Fine. You sew me up. Have at it.”

He held out his hand. Ellie eyed the cut uncomfortably. Now that he had given her permission to play doctor, she wasn’t entirely sure how she felt about it.

She took a deep breath. She could do this. Who knew what could get into that wound while they were scrambling around in the cave? An infection could kill him out here. Stitching it closed was the prudent, rational thing to do.

Ellie steeled herself and sloshed a glug of liquor across his palm.

“Ow—ouch!” Adam complained with a hiss of pain.

“Really?” Ellie raised a skeptical eyebrow.

“It burns,” Adam insisted mulishly. “You try pouring cask strength hooch on an open wound and tell me how you like it.”

“Well, I doubt you’re going to like this much better,” Ellie returned as she took hold of his hand and turned it to find the right angle.

There really wasn’t a right angle.

This would be just like fixing her socks. The principles were exactly the same… except with human flesh instead of wool.

Ellie stuck her needle into Adam’s skin and immediately felt queasy.

He grunted but made no further protest.

“In and out,” she breathed deliberately as she looked down at the silver needle protruding from Adam’s palm. “Nothing to it.”

Ellie wriggled it through to the opposite side of the wound.

Adam’s brow creased as he grimaced.

“That’s… Mmm.” He bit back something else that clearly wanted to come out of his mouth.

“Sorry…” Ellie winced as she tugged the needle out, pulling the thread through with it.

The sight of the string emerging from Adam’s bloody hand made her feel a bit dizzy. She forced in another deep breath as she readied for her next stitch—and then froze.

---