Page 45 of Mastering their Maiden

Medora’s soft sobs were my only company. Otherwise, I was alone.

The noise outside, shouts and yells punctuated every so often by a shriek, was muffled by the stone walls surrounding us. My left arm throbbed, the pain radiating into my fingers and down along my spine. It unnerved me a little that my body was hanging unevenly now, my left foot able to find a bit more purchase than my right. My arm looked funny. Whatever happened, it wasn’t good.

But I couldn’t find it in me to care.

Numbness consumed me. The same numbness I felt after Esme left, when fear and despair had subsided, and I’d been hollow. It was hollowness that pulled me into those woods the first time, my body instinctively seeking something, anything, to spark an emotion inside me. Excitement, anger, terror. At that time, I would have taken any of them.

Right now, I wanted nothing. I wanted this numbness to consume me. Wanted it to eat away until I was nothing but a shell. Nothing but a collection of parts for someone to use. That’s all I was, anyway.

The light in the window shifted, fading from midday sun to an afternoon glow. Medora was moving around now, tugging on her chains and whispering. Asking if I was okay, then whimpering when I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. Even when Rober came into the room snarling angrily, I barely flinched. It wasn’t until I heard Summer shriek and the thud of a body falling to the floor that I lifted my head.

“I’ve had enough of you,” Rober roared as he stalked toward Summer. “You want a child? You’ll get one. You’ll learn to spread your legs for our king and—”

Summer shoved him back, and a second later a slap echoed throughout the room. Medora gasped and I turned, suffering the agony so I could see for myself what was happening. Summer’s hand was extended, her face flushed with rage, and before Rober could recover from the slap she launched herself at him.

“Insolent bitch,” he spit, grabbing her arm roughly then screeching when she dragged her nails over his cheek. Rober pulled out his blade and shoved Summer back, holding the knife to her throat. “I’ll teach you to put your hands—”

To my shock, Summer grabbed at his arm, clawing so hard Rober hissed again. She was going to get herself killed.

Just then, the door flew open, slamming into the stone wall and flooding the room with light.

Before I could process what happened, there was a flash of movement and Summer simply… vanished.

Then Rober was on the floor, held down by Kaze, who must have broken free. He raised his arm and slammed his fist down. There was a sharp yell, then a grunt of pain. Summer whimpered, and I turned to see her wrapped in Ellis’ arms. Someone went to Medora, unshackling her from the wall, and yet another person went toward Kaze. I could barely see him because my eyes were filled with tears, the pain in my arm far too much to bear. Dark hair covered part of his head, and a long scar cut through the side of his cheek.

Zander…

His shoulders were heaving, and he did nothing to intervene while Kaze rained blow after blow down on Rober’s face. He tried to defend himself, raising his hands, crying out, bucking to try to throw the other man off. Zander’s eyes scanned the room, and when they fell on me, they widened dramatically.

I didn’t know what I expected. Maybe for him to take me down, or give some sign of concern that I was chained to a wall with my ass exposed and reddened from discipline by another man’s belt. But he didn’t take any step toward me. Instead, his face went pale, then flushed, and seconds later Kaze was thrown back and Zander took his place.

“You’ll die for this!”

The onslaught of punches was nothing but a rage-fueled frenzy, but I didn’t know if it was for the pain I’d endured, the threats, or the fact that maybe—maybe—he thought Rober had gotten to the goods before he had. Maybe he looked at me and saw a ruined maiden rather than the pure one he and the others wanted to claim. A hole they wanted to use.

What was the point in saving me if it had already been violated by another man?

More bodies filled the chamber, and I heard commands being issued, orders being given, and more horrified gasps and shouts before, finally, someone came to me. The cuffs were taken off my bruised wrists, but I wasn’t given time to find my feet. They were swept out from under me, and I was pressed to a broad body and carried outside. There were voices everywhere, and I couldn’t pick out which words belonged to which person speaking.

“Fuck. Fuck…”

“Put them all in chains!”

“Dex, is she okay? Is she…”

“Fix her. Now!”

The light from the setting sun blinded me, my eyes having gotten used to the darkness of the sept. My body was jostled as it was carried across the village to the hut. I was laid on the bed, and my vision swirled while I tried to clear the tears from my eyes with my good hand.

Umber’s stricken face came into sight, and he cupped my jaw, expression horrified as he stared down at me. Behind him, Zander stood, his hands fisted in his hair, the rage twisting his face bringing out the depth and length of that scar. Dex was beside me, his hands moving over my body, and when he pressed on my shoulder I let out a scream.

“Shhh, Aria. I have you. We have you now.”

His voice grew thick, some mixture of anger and disgust or some other emotion. I didn’t have the energy to discern what it was. I didn’t care. He held my shoulder with one hand, his other draped over my waist. The heat from his palms was soothing and painful all at once.

And I didn’t want it. I didn’t want any of this.

“I’m going to heal it,” Dex promised, but I shook my head, so many emotions flooding me I felt sick to my stomach. “I’m going to—”

---