Page 65 of Gilded Curses

Unable to wait longer, Sahira tugged her finger away from Pip and started toward the stables with Elsa at her side. Three of the guards stepped into her path.

“Stay where you are,” the shorter one commanded gruffly.

“Why?” Sahira demanded.

The guard didn’t respond as he stared over her head. Sahira’s fingers dug into her palms as she restrained herself from hitting him.

Finally, after what seemed like hours but was probably only minutes, the Elite and their guards started filtering out of the stables. The women were with them and looked as unhappy as the men.

They didn’t speak as they glided toward the porch, but Sheree stopped beside a couple of guards and pointed a finger at the three of them. “Make sure all of them stay in their rooms tonight.”

Apparently, they wouldn’t be attending tonight’s feast or made to pretend this wasn’t all a sham anymore. What happened out there?

Sheree turned away and lifted her skirt to climb the stairs. Desmond sent them a scathing look that caused Sahira’s skin to crawl before he followed his pretend wife into the castle.

Finally, Zeth emerged from the stables with Fath on his shoulder and at least a hundred guards surrounding them. But the overwhelming number of guards wasn’t what caused her heart to plummet. It was the blood splattered across Zeth’s clothes and face.

But more than that, it was also Orin leaning heavily against Zeth’s side as the demon’s arm around his waist helped support him while they walked. Loth had a hand against the side of Orin’s face while gazing at him.

The brownies had all hated Orin when they started their journey together, and Orin had felt much the same about them, but that had changed along the way. Now, only concern etched Loth’s features as he sought to comfort his friend.

Blood also coated Orin, but she couldn’t tell if that blood was from him or whatever animal they hunted. What happened out there?

CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE

“Orin,” Sahira breathed.

Releasing Elsa’s hand, she sprinted forward to get to him. When one of the guards tried to block her again, she darted to the side and went low to avoid the hand he swung at her.

She’d only succeeded in pissing them off, but she didn’t care. All that mattered was getting to Orin and finding out what happened.

Orin’s head lolled forward, his black hair tumbled across his forehead, his skin was the color of paper, and his toes dragged across the ground as Zeth carried him. So focused on him, Sahira didn’t notice the blackened and bloody rags wrapped around his hand until she was almost to him.

No, not a hand… a stump where his hand used to be.

“Orin!” Sahira cried as she arrived at his side.

She clasped his face and traced the contours of his cheeks as he lifted his beautiful, crow-black eyes to meet hers. A small smile twitched at the corner of his lips.

“Hello, Enchantress,” he murmured in a weak voice.

“What happened?”

“We have to keep walking,” Zeth said. “He has to rest.”

Sahira went to drape his other arm around her shoulder to help Zeth with him but stopped herself. She was afraid she’d hurt him if she grasped anywhere near his missing hand.

Orin lifted his arm and draped it around her shoulders. Pulling her close, he kissed her cheek. “I can still hold you.”

She choked back a sob as she slipped her arm around his waist. The guard she’d managed to evade scowled when they came closer; she hoped the man would leave them be. His kind had done enough damage for today, but she’d claw his eyes out and set his ass on fire if he tried to separate her from Orin.

Thankfully, the man didn’t try to interfere. Instead, he stepped out of the way as Elsa and Pip joined them while more guards surrounded them.

Sahira and Zeth helped Orin up the stairs. His boots dragged against the ground as he slumped further against them until he was a dragging weight on Sahira’s shoulders. His head remained bowed between them, and she was fairly certain he’d either passed out or was about to.

“What happened?” Sahira demanded again.

“I lost the hunt,” Zeth said. “The penalty for that was to have my hand cut off. They forced Orin to do it.”