Leya releases a soft hiss— like hot water falling on iced rocks, as the cotton swabs gently on her cheek. She presses harder, grinding her teeth back and forth while dabbing at the small cut.
It was barely perceptible, yet the pain and shame swathed over her shoulders like a blanket that weighed her down.
Her reflection squinted back at her, a soft sheen of water still glossing her skin from the brief shower. Hair damp and hanging in loose dark tendrils about her shoulders.
Leya lowered the bloodied cotton and tilted her cheek this way then that, studying the damage on either side.
It had been eight hours since the incident; Kairo Pressing her into the corner, his hand caging her face in a grip that frighteningly reminded her of someone else, his claws extended and digging, digging.
H
