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I bit back a smile as heat flooded my cheeks. “Shut up and put it on,” I laughed.

Elias maintained his sultry grin as he placed his arms in the sleeves and lifted the shirt over his head. He didn’t wince even once, but I knew he was holding it back.

“Satisfied?” he asked after completing his task successfully.

“You’re full of shit,” I said with a smile. “I know that hurt.”

“You didn’t say it couldn’t hurt, you only said I couldn’t wince,” he replied.

I placed my hands on my hips. “I miss shirtless-Elias. He was less of a smartass.”

Elias laughed deeply, and it made my heart flutter. He steppedtoward me and planted another kiss on my lips, stealing my very breath away. It seemed like now that he had one taste of me, he couldn’t get enough. And I definitely returned the same sentiment.

We packed up the rags and medicines and his bloodied clothes, and we were ready to go. I wished I could have changed out of my bloody clothes as well, but without my pack, I had nothing but my current clothes, my knife, and my new necklace. I decided I might take another quick dip in the lake and put fresh clothes on, if not to wash away the blood, but to wash away the memories of my capture.

Unlike Elias’s prediction, it took over an hour to reach the lake. We stopped to rest more often than usual, and I could tell both of us were hurting. I noticed Elias tenderly touch his side a few times, especially after lifting his arms in any way. And I admitted I would feel a little dizzy from time to time. As promised, I would let Elias know and he would make us stop immediately, against my wishes to keep going.

When we finally reached the lake, we had to walk around to the other side before I recognized the shore area where I was taken. We located the shrubs that I hid most of my things under, and were pleased to find that they were still there, untouched. Trybe would have killed me if I had lost her best bow so soon after wielding it, I thought.

I smiled, missing my new friend already.

“Would you mind if I have another dip in the lake?” I asked Elias. I rubbed either side of my arms and held back a shiver, even though the weather was quite warm. “I just feel…dirty.”

Elias’s eyes darkened in understanding. “Take all the time you need. I’ll scope out the area.”

I bit my lower lip. “Don’t go too far,” I said, almost a whisper.

Elias planted a kiss on my forehead, and my tenseness released. “I won’t let anything happen to you, I promise. I’ll stay right where I can reach you.”

I rested my head against his chest for a moment and took a deep breath. “Okay. Thank you,” I said with a half-smile. I almost asked him to join me in the water, but he was already heading into the woods, as if he didn’t want to see my naked body.

I decided not to read into it, knowing that he was a gentleman at heart and he probably just wanted to respect my privacy. With Elias now out of sight, I pulled a shirt from my pack and laid it out. I quickly undressed and made my way into the chilly water with nothing on but Trybe’s necklace. Somehow, the necklace gave me a sense of safety. Maybe it was just Trybe’s words – her silly superstitions that it was a protection stone. But the idea of it brought me a sense of security. Or maybe that was just because Elias was near.

The second I waded in past my waist, I began to feel anxious. Memories flooded in of my short time with my ill-intended abductors. I shivered, and not because of the cold water.

“I’m here, Aura,” I heard Elias’s voice call out from behind the trees, as if sensing my anxiety. “You’re alright.”

I let out a breath and walked a little further until the water reached my chest. Then I dunked my shoulders under and scrubbed at the dried blood on my chest and neck. Vick’s blood. I wanted to wash quickly, but I found myself scrubbing and scrubbing. If I washed away his blood, I could also wash away the memory of his hands on me. But even after the blood was gone, the memory remained. So I kept scrubbing. And scrubbing. And scrubbing.

Tears welled up in my eyes as the reality of the last day’s events began to really sink in. I almost died. I was almost violated. I wasn’t even so sure that I hadn’t been, fromthe amount of time I was unconscious around the three men. I choked back a small sob.

“Aura,” I heard Elias call out again, but I just kept scrubbing. “Aura. Come out, love.” His voice was gentle, beckoning, but I still tuned him out. Still continued to scrub until my skin was raw. After an eternity of scrubbing, I felt two strong hands gently squeeze my shoulders. I whirled around, coming out of my trance, to find Elias standing next to me in the lake, still fully clothed.

At that moment, the thin walls that were holding me together collapsed, and I began to sob. The strong, unbreakable princess was replaced by a scared girl.

Elias immediately pulled me to him, his warm energy a vast contrast to the bitter chill of the lake. He scooped me up as I continued to cry, and carried me to shore. He grabbed a blanket from one of our packs and briefly put me down to wrap me in it before picking me back up. I closed my eyes as I pressed my face against him and felt him walk over and sit down somewhere, cradling me in his arms.

He didn’t speak. Didn’t interrupt. He just held me and let me cry, like he knew it was exactly what I needed. We stayed that way for long minutes, until my body stopped convulsing from silent sobs. I took a shaky, deep breath in, and released it.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered.

“No, Aura.I’msorry. I should have been there to protect you. I should have prevented all of this.” This guilt in his voice was heartbreaking.

I pulled myself away just enough so I could look into his eyes. “Please don’t blame yourself,” I begged. “I’ll only feel worse.”

He pressed his lips together, then reached up to wipe a tear from my cheek.

“I was fine until…until the lake brought back the memories, I guess. Maybe I’m not as brave as I thought I was.”