Rachel woke up to the soft glow of morning light filtering through the windows of the healing room.
Her body felt heavy and weak, like it had been weighed down by stones. A dull, burning pain throbbed in her left shoulder where the silver bullet had struck. Every breath hurt a little, but she was alive. She was breathing. She was here.
Her eyelids fluttered open slowly. The first thing she saw was Kylian.
He was sitting in the same chair beside her bed, exactly where he had been for the past three days. His clothes were rumpled, his hair messy, and dark circles lay heavy under his eyes. He hadn’t left her side once. His large hand was gently holding hers, thumb brushing slow circles over her knuckles even while he dozed.
When Rachel stirred, his eyes snapped open immediately.
“Rachel,
