“I didn’t know they’d injured her that severely,” he replied. “I just discovered the wound a few minutes ago.”
Jade laid her hand on Ivy’s forehead then looked at Bronto. “She’s warm. It’s probably from the infection.”
“I thought so,” he replied.
“It needs lanced and drained before she becomes septic.”
A concerned expression contorted his features and he nodded as if to agree.
Ivy’s gaze shot between both of them. “What does that mean?”
“We have to slice it open to drain the poison,” Jade explained, her eyes laced with motherly compassion.
Oh gosh. Ivy’s heart lurched and she swallowed nervously. “Or?”
“It’ll get worse, love.”
“If the poison gets into your bloodstream,” Jade added then paused, “you could die.”
Oh gosh. Oh gosh. Her eyes flared. “What about Birmon? Can he fix it?”
Jade shook her head. “That’s a lot of poison for the little creature to ingest. It may kill him.”
She couldn’t let that happen. She’d never hurt Birmon. “Then do it,” Ivy said, her voice trembling. “Quickly.”
Jade pulled her weaving blade from her pocket and handed it to Bronto. “This is small, so it’ll work better than yours. Sterilize it over the fire.”
He nodded as he removed it from her fingers and held it over the flame. When it turned red-hot he walked to the crate and rolled a small pelt that he fisted in his hand and carried to Ivy. His gaze never wavered from her eyes as he lay down beside her and passed the blade back to Jade. “I’ll hold her down,” he explained, his voice full of concern.
Hold me down! Ivy nearly panicked.
“Bite down on this,” Bronto instructed. When she nodded and opened her mouth, he placed the pelt between her teeth. “And hold my hand.”
Again she nodded. Inhaling sharply through her nostrils, she slid her palm against his. And when he laid his leg over the fur to hold her thighs in place she fought the urge to jump up and run. Although the pelt obstructed her ability to speak, she squeaked in fear and tried to swallow.
“Ready, baby doll?” Jade asked.
The pressure from Bronto’s leg grew heavy. As soon as Ivy nodded once more and clamped her eyes shut, he placed his lips on her brow.
“Make it quick, Jade,” he said under his breath. “Spare her some pain.”
Without any further warning the knife sliced into Ivy’s tummy. She squeezed his hand hard and crushed her eyelids together. Don’t scream. Don’t scream.
She dug her teeth into the leather and instinctively tried pulling her legs to her tummy but Bronto held them flush to the ground. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head and her shoulder writhed. She teetered on the edge of unconsciousness, wishing she’d pass out.
“It’s okay. It’s okay,” Bronto soothed as he placed an arm over her chest to steady her upper body. “It’s almost over,” he reassured her, kissing tears from the corner of her eyes. “Hurry it up, Jade,” he growled.
Long, torturous seconds later the excruciating pain eased. It hadn’t completely stopped but it was tolerable—until Jade began pressing on her belly.
Ivy whimpered, grasped Bronto’s upper arm and dug her nails into his flexed muscles.
“Just a little bit more, love. She’s removing the poison.”
Please hurry. Oh gosh, it hurt so badly. It throbbed as if she had a second heartbeat pounding in her tummy.
“I think we got it all, baby doll,” Jade said in a calming tone. “But I’ve got to clean it with peroxide. It’s going to really burn.”
Ivy opened her eyes and nodded. It couldn’t hurt any worse than the knife slicing her skin. But when Jade said, “Here goes,” in an apologetic voice and cold liquid poured over Ivy’s belly and ran down her sides, she tried bolting off the ground.
Bronto loosened the arm across her chest, giving her a bit of room to rise, and she slammed her face into his chest.
Mercy! They were killing her.
She released his hand and fisted his upper arm. She squeezed and squeezed, desperate to expel the scorching pain.
Jade fanned cool air over the wound but it didn’t lessen the sting. It was as if hot embers sizzled on her lower stomach. A dizzy feeling washed through her. Everything became a blur.
“Ivy?”
She heard Bronto’s voice but it was fading. Something smooth and cold was placed across her tummy.
“Ivy?”
The weight eased from her legs and she felt as if she were floating. Warm hands settled on the sides of her head and her face was gently tilted backward.
“Open your eyes, love. Look at me.”
His voice grew louder.
“Ivy, open your eyes.”
She struggled and fought and then her lids finally slinked open to a hazy close-up of Bronto. She blinked until her vision finally cleared and his handsome face came into view.
“Are you all right?” he asked. Though his voice reached her ears in a feathery tone, the skin between his eyes was bunched. A hint of alarm darkened his gaze and her heart melted.
She nodded.