Page 13 of Regal Rising

“My husband was having an affair and sold me to the salon so that he had enough money to live happily ever after. He tossed divorce papers at me, and the salon enforcers made me sign them.” She glanced down. “This happened afterward.”

“You mean your height.”

“Yeah. That was when they strapped me down and invited an endless wave of Elite.”

“Oh, fuck. I am so sorry.”

Ela shrugged. “It happened. It’s over. But when I got loose, I had nowhere to go, so since I was being drawn this way, I kept going. Pandora found me in an alley with some kittens. The kittens went to the shelter, and she brought me here. She’s very kind.”

“So, you were like this in the alley?”

Ela blinked and made herself invisible. “This is why they had to strap me to the table and keep me on a chain.”

Rex stared at where she had been. “Whoa. Right. I am sorry. I don’t know what to say.”

Ela resumed her appearance, and Rex kept wrapping. “It’s fine. I am either very calm or completely mad right now.”

“Are you dangerous?”

“To the women here? No. Absolutely not. If I find my enemies, I am guessing that I can be.”

“What is your attack?”

“I just do things with my hands, and things happen.”

“What?”

“I wave my hands, and things happen. It’s why they locked me down.”

“Your wounds are infected. You will need to see a doctor.”

“Oh. It will be a while before I can work.”

Rex smiled, knelt, and patted her knee. “We will bring someone in. Now, your ankles, please.”

Ela carefully put her socked feet up on Rex’s knee. The wrapping made her wince, but the burn was welcome.

“What was inside the cuffs?”

“Oh. Small teeth. Like a cheese grater. It was supposed to hold me still, but they put a moving section in the centre to open my legs, and it changed the angle, causing damage every time.”

There was a soft gasp, and Rex’s head came up. “Ira. Are you eavesdropping?”

Ela saw a small girl poke her head around the corner. The girl looked like a more golden version of Regis.

The girl looked at the ankle that wasn’t wrapped. “Someone hurt you.”

“Yes, but I am free now. Each day, I get better, and I have something I didn’t have before.”

“Your hair is short.”

“I haven’t had time to let it grow. If it distresses you, little miss, I can make it grow.”

Ira touched the soft fuzz. “Does it hurt to grow?”

“A little. I have been using my energy to keep from being infected.”

“Oh. So, someone did that to you?”

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