(Aurora's POV)
He pulled out a small knife and cut through the rope at my wrists. My hands dropped forward and I couldn't feel them at first, just the returning ache of circulation. He put his hands on my arms and steadied me, and then he drew me in against his chest, slowly, like he was giving me the option to pull back.
I didn't pull back.
He held me, and his voice was very low and very steady when he spoke.
"I'm here. You're safe."
I believed him.
---
The treatment room at the urgent care clinic smelled like antiseptic and recycled air. A nurse cleaned the shallow mark the knife's spine had left along my cheekbone, applied antiseptic, and gave me a tetanus shot. The needle barely registered.
I sat on the edge of the examination bed and stared at the ceiling.
The damage Jasper h
