Cora shook her head to clear it and tore her gaze from the two princes. She knew Valorre was right. It was madness to linger. The Beast could be back at any moment. There was but one thing left to do.
She jogged over to the unicorn’s cage. The creature within trembled as she brought her knife to the ropes and severed the bindings. The front of the cage fell open, but the unicorn did not move. “Go,” Cora said, voice soft. “You’re free.”
A sharp sound pierced the quiet of the camp. Cora startled at the noise, as did the unicorn. In a flash, it darted out of the camp in a blur of gray. She whirled around, finding Teryn behind her, hands pressed together. That was when she understood the sound had been a clap.
Cora glared at him, keeping her eyes anywhere but below his chin. He’d donned his hunting vest again, but he’d only secured the bottommost closures. Which meant he might as well still be topless. “You didn’t have to scare it like that.”
He lifted a shoulder in a fatigued shrug. “Perhaps fear will keep it well out of the monster’s range.” With that, he turned away from her and strode back to his friend.
She watched him walk away, her argument dying on her tongue. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, he was right. The unicorn needed to get far away from here, no matter what. And so did she. Casting a final glare at his back, she made her way to Valorre. He remained in shadow at the edge of the clearing.
The stout one is badly wounded, Valorre said.
Cora followed Valorre’s line of vision and saw Teryn and Lex walking toward three tethered horses. She noted the way Lex continued to cradle his arm to his chest. “Why should I care? Let’s go.” She skirted around him but Valorre remained rooted in place.
The tall one tried to save my brethren from the dead man. He radiated with something like awe. Gratitude.
“Weren’t you the one telling me I should have killed him at the stream?”
Maybe I was wrong, he said with a touch of indignation.Maybe he and I both were.
Cora bit the inside of her cheek, urgency propelling her to leave the men behind. She owed them nothing. If anything, they owed her for warding off the Beast.
Valorre scraped the earth with a hoof.
“Fine,” Cora said between her teeth. She crossed the camp, trying to ignore the dead bodies she stepped over, and approached Teryn and Lex. Teryn was trying to aid his friend into his horse’s saddle, but Lex kept losing his balance. “Let me see the wound.”
Teryn whirled around, brows knitted. “Excuse me?”
She ignored Teryn, addressing Lex directly. “Your arm. Show me.”
He eyed her from head to toe. “Like I’d trust you. Did you not just poison an entire camp?”
“They were bad men,” she said, swallowing down the guilt that crept up from her heart. “Did you not see the brands on their necks? Besides, I had to stop them from hurting more unicorns. This was the only way I could do so on my own.”
Lex scoffed but said nothing more.
“Show me your arm.” When he still refused to move, she added, “You’ll have a much easier time riding if you don’t bleed to death.”
“I wrapped it well,” Teryn said.
She turned her scowl to him. “You bandaged his wound with your filthy shirt. Did it never cross your mind to use a clean one?”
“Did it ever cross yours that perhaps we don’t have any? We’ve been traveling for?—”
“Then I assume you were planning to eventually stop, boil fresh strips of cloth, disinfect the wound, and pack it with a poultice. And that’s only if he doesn’t also need sutures.”
Teryn said nothing, only held her gaze, jaw set. Finally, he relented. “Just let her see it.”
Lex eyed her through slitted lids several moments before he too seemed to relent. With a roll of his eyes, Lex extended his arm. Cora stepped close and knew at once it was bad. The bandages were already soaked through over what appeared to be three gouges. She opened her senses to him and discovered just how much pain he was hiding. His arm radiated with the severity of his wound. She couldfeelit darkening her senses, could almost see it in her mind’s eye as she took his arm with gentle fingers. Peeling back a corner of the bandage, she caught a glimpse at part of the wound. It only confirmed what she’d already felt. “Is that from…”
“The monster kicked me out of the way with its hind leg,” Lex said stiffly.
Again, Cora debated turning her back and leaving them to their own fates, but she could feel Valorre’s reproach from here. When did he get so softhearted? She let go of Lex’s hand and released a sigh. “The wound needs sutures and a poultice. Come.” She turned and waved for the men to follow. “Gather your horses. I’ll help you.”
“I don’t want your help.” Lex’s tone was laced with venom.
Cora threw a look over her shoulder. “Do either of you know how to stitch a wound? Disinfect it? Do you know which herbs will relieve pain and calm inflammation? Which ones will stave off infection?”
