Gabriel guided Katelyn onto the bed, his heart sinking as he saw the extent of her injuries. Her wrists were bleeding from where she had clearly been bound, and a jagged, sharp cut marred her cheek. A maidservant quickly moved to drape a silk sheet over her, preserving her dignity just as the royal physician hurried into the chamber.
The heavy doors swung open again as Mabel and Raidan rushed in, their faces pale with terror after hearing the news of their daughter's return.
"Kate!" Mabel cried out, her voice breaking. Gabriel instinctively stepped back to give them space, his jaw tight with a mixture of relief and simmering rage.
"Oh my god! Wha—what happened to my daughter?" Mabel sobbed, her fingers hovering tremulously over the cut on Katelyn's face. She looked up at the doctor with pleading, frantic eyes. "How could this happen?"
Raidan turned his gaze toward the physician. "Harriet, stop the bleeding. Do whatever you must to make my daughter right again."
