Page 59 of Cursed
She places her glowing hands on Zayne—both hands covering the bite mark, surrounding every puncture wound with light.
Zayne immediately tells Sadie it doesn’t hurt. Nori cocks an eyebrow. “I haven’t started yet.”
She looks for the poison and asks Aylin if she senses anything. After a moment, Nori exclaims out loud, “Oh! Do you feel that?”
Aylin replies, “Yes. Feels wrong, like she said.”
“OK. Guide the poison toward us and out of the wound,” Nori mutters, concentrating on those instructions.
Zayne breathes out a small moan of discomfort through his clenched jaw.
Adele watches a single drop of thick, black liquid fall to the floor. In a hushed tone, she says, “It’s working. Keep doing what you are doing.”
Lyra steps closer to see what’s happening. Aylin instantly takes control of Nori’s body. Using her Influence, she yells, “Don’t touch her!”
Lyra’s eyes widen, and she jumps back from the powerful she-wolf.
“We are working here, Aylin. Concentrate, please.” Nori says, talking to her wolf out loud again.
When a steady drip of the black poison begins to fall out of the wound, Zayne lets out a quick yell. His body jerks up, and his hands clench into fists, holding the side of the bed.
Sadie shouts at Nori, “Stop! Stop!”
Adele leans in, watching the poison trickle out. “No, keep going, Nori.”
As Nori continues drawing the poison out of Zayne, he lets out a long howl. He grinds his teeth as his body bows up from the pain, but Nori maintains her grip on him.
She hears Sadie growling, and without looking up, says, “Ryland?”
Ryland already has his hands around Sadie’s biceps from behind her. “I’ve got her, Nori. She won’t touch you.”
“Hold him down!” Nori yells, when Zayne starts thrashing from the pain. Garek grabs his legs, and Adele leans over, putting her weight on Zayne’s shoulders.
Sweat is beading on Nori’s brow and sliding down the side of her face and the back of her neck. Lyra leans forward and advises, “Before you stop, do a final sweep to make sure there’s no more poison left inside his body.”
Nori’s arms tremble from the amount of power she’s using. Zayne’s howls turn to screams, and Ryland shifts his grip on Sadie, pulling her against him, wrapping both arms around her front. Sadie thrashes and growls, trying to get to Nori.
Adele looks up to see Nori dripping in sweat. “Maybe we should take a break and try again in a bit.”
“No. I’ve just about got it. There’s one last drop, but it’s not moving.” Straining, trying to remove that last tiny amount of poison, Nori continues talking to her wolf out loud. “Aylin, I need just the tiniest boost. Gently, now. Not too much. Yes! There. Stop and hold that.” Nori, immersed in her concentration, sucks in a quick breath. “It’s moving!”
When the last drop of poison finally falls out of Zayne’s wound, she releases her power and weakly says, “Done.” Her head falls back, and her knees buckle.
In that exact moment, Ryland releases Sadie, and usingall of his Alpha Speed, he sails over the bed. He catches Nori right before her head hits the floor.
Everyone else is sucking in deep shuddering breaths. Sweating and panting, Zayne lies back, grateful that the pain has stopped.
Adele tries to control her trembling hands as she wipes the blood and poison off Zayne’s side. Her face splits into a wide grin. “She did it! The poison is out, and he’s healing on his own.”
Crying with relief, Sadie throws herself onto the bed, embracing her Mate. “Oh my gods! Zayne!”
“It’s OK, dear,” Zayne mutters. “I feel much better, now.”
Garek stumbles back against the wall, shocked at what he’s just witnessed. He rubs a hand over his face, looking back and forth from Zayne to the strange she-wolf in Ryland’s arms. A million questions roll through his brain, but he’s too stunned to speak.
Ryland cradles Nori on the floor, calling her name over and over. The memory of the night she collapsed to the floor and stopped breathing crashes into his mind.
Lyra places a hand on Ryland’s shoulder. “Nori used a great deal of power to heal your brother. She will very likely be just fine.”
