Page 60 of The Cursed Kingdom

The arm wrapped around my waist is removed, but the one covering my mouth remains. The rushing water and slippery rocks keep me trapped against Kie, though. If I move, I’ll trip and fall, and the current is strong.

I’ll die.

Kie catches the ball Mason throws in his direction. I flinch, water flying into my face as I unsuccessfully shove him away.

My teeth chatter as the water’s cold temperature sets in, my limbs growing stiff as my joints lock up. Kie’s still fully dressed, and his clothing clings to my bare skin as the strong current repeatedly pushes me against him.

It’s a good thing I didn’t try to jump in and swim away. There’s no way I’d be able to stay afloat in this. I’d probably hitmy head on a rock and drown before I managed to pull myself out.

I continue screaming into Kie’s palm, but it’s not as loud as I’d like. Between yesterday’s choking and today’s dehydration, my voice is hoarse and quiet.

Kie grunts. “This will be quicker if you stop fighting.”

Fuck him.

The taste of his leather gloves fills my mouth. It mingles with the copper of blood from where I must’ve accidentally bit my tongue.

“Mace…” Kie says.

Mason’s been lingering on the riverbank, but he doesn’t hesitate to storm in the moment he’s called. He’s still fully dressed, just like Kie, and he makes his way toward us with quick, angry movements.

I try to twist away, but the attempt is useless.

Mason is on us in a heartbeat. He takes the soap from Kie before grabbing my arm and bringing it above the water. I cry into Kie’s hand as Mason forcibly removes a small bandage on my elbow and begins scrubbing the already sore skin raw. The soap feels like a rag, but it suds up like soap. He moves to my legs next, reaching underneath the water to grab my ankle and rip it into the air.

I’m not nearly as flexible as he seems to think, and I almost immediately begin to topple over. Kie smoothly absorbs my fall, keeping us both upright despite my thrashing. I’m too panicked to plan or plot a coordinated escape, which I’m sure I’ll regret later.

Mason rips the bandages off my knees and scrubs the raw skin. It’s too dark to tell if I’m bleeding, but it sure as fuck feels like it.

“We’re almost done,” Kie whispers, his warm breath hitting my ear.

I hate it, and I pull my face away from his as Mason drops my leg and grabs my other one. For a brief moment, neither of my feet are touching the ground and Kie is the only thing holding me upright.

“You’re hurting her,” Kie snaps as Mason begins scrubbing my other knee.

Mason looks up, finally meeting my gaze. It holds nothing—no emotion, no remorse, no regret. This is easy for him, and I don’t want to think about what comes next.

“She’ll survive,” he says.

He scrubs my skin, and once he’s finished, he tosses the remainder of the soap bar into the water, letting the current take it away.

Kie takes that as his cue to pull me to shore.

My pleading begins again, but it’s impossible to hear what I’m saying through Kie’s gloved palm. I don’t want this.

Chapter Twenty-Three

MASON

THE HUMAN’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 be angry and annoyed, but this is far from that. Her fear is at 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, trying desperately to break free, but it’s useless. Even if she weren’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 fully clothed into a freezing river on this trip, so I don’t have anything dry to change into.

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