Page 74 of A Mysterious Slave for the Lycan Prince

“Goddess, yes.” Elodie exclaims us. “You heard that, Elise?”

Elise raises her head to look at us. “Heard what?”

“Freya knows a thing or two about first aid,” Elodie says. “She has done it plenty of times for her friends in the pack.”

I love how she says friends instead of slaves.

“I’ll take any help.” Elise nods. “Come, Freya.”

I feel happy they didn’t dismiss me and instead allow me to help. They are all of higher rank than me, and are smarter and more educated, yet they treat me with so much respect like I am their equal. I immediately join them, nodding towards Ryllis to join me if she wants. She looks relieved to be allowed to help, and quietly kneels beside me. To my surprise, Henry moves to the other side, next to Elise, to give Ryllis more space. I didn’t think he would be so aware of her fear of men.

Fortunately, Elise has an emergency first-aid kit with her, and we disinfect the tweezers she finds in the flames of the fire. I carefully touch Anthony’s side, my fingers tracing the path the bullet entered and feeling it somewhere between his ribs.

“It’s here, Elise.” I place my finger at his side. “Luckily, it’s not too deep.”

She nods. “Anthony,” she mutters.

“I know.” He breathes out, his face ashen by now, beads of sweat on his face. He is shivering despite lying next to the fire. “Just do it.”

She nods, looking at my mate, who has been watching a bit from afar. Finn probably didn’t want to disturb our work. Now he hurries to us, though. “Hold him in place,” Elise mutters.

Henry makes sure to have his brother bite down on a small piece of wood before he takes his hand. “Just grab it as hard as you need to.”

Ryllis turns her head slightly, unable to watch when Elise moves the tweezer into Anthony’s already inflamed skin. He throws his head back, his teeth biting down on the piece of wood as he screams in pain. Finn and his brother hold him in place, the latter wincing in pain at the pressure of Anthony’s grip.

“Just a bit more and I’ll have the bullet,” Elise says soothingly. “You are doing great, Tony! Just hang in there for a little longer.”

Anthony arches his back in pain, and his breathing becomes more shallow. Elise furrows her brows and, with grim determination, finally pulls the bullet of his body, dropping it on the ground. Anthony slumps down on his back again, panting heavily.

“It’s done,” Henry says. “You did it, man. It’s a bullet!”

“Very funny,” Anthony mutters, his voice hoarse and tired.

Elise drops down on her back next to him, also obviously exhausted. I take over from here and carefully wrap the wound up again. I try to feel his ribs from the side, nodding my approval. “They’re not broken, just sprained. You’ll be as good as new tomorrow with your super lycan healing.”

He flashes me a tired smile. “Thanks, Freya. Finn got really lucky.”

Finn wraps an arm around me and kisses my temples softly. “I really did.”

“I got really lucky too,” Steve intervenes while Ryllis shifts around shyly. “My Amaryllis is wonderful.”

Anthony snorts, half asleep already. “What is this? A competition?”

We all burst into giggles, and for the first time in a long while, I can see Amaryllis smile too.

twenty-four

The Twins

*FREYA*

AnthonyandEliseareresting while the rest of us are trying to make ourselves comfortable for the night. Some of us are washing the clothes we wore today in the stream Finn and I found. We don’t have many clothes, and those we wore today carry the scent of our hardship: fighting, being shot at, and walking through the snow for hours.

It sounds weird to even think about it…but I enjoy this moment. It’s the first time in my life that I’m away from the pack, surrounded by people who respect me and care for not only me but also their friends. For the first time, I get a hint of the feeling of freedom.

Even washing my clothes feels different now.

Meanwhile, Finn, Henry, and Steve decide to look for some food. Arman and Leila packed some emergency canned food, but besides from Elise and Elodie, Finn’s group consists of huge male wolves. They probably need more food to feel even remotely full. The guys hope to be able to hunt for something for us to cook.

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