Mary Ann’s POV
The bed beside mine was empty.
For one terrible moment, I could not breathe.
The sheets were disturbed, and bloodstained bandages remained inside a metal tray near the foot of the bed. The medicines that had surrounded Modric during the journey were gone. So were the healers who had worked over him.
Only the faint smell of silver antidote remained.
“Modric?”
My voice came out weak.
The mate bond answered with a quiet pulse.
Alive.
I felt him.
Faintly.
Farther away than before.
But alive.
Relief should have settled me.
It did not.
I pushed the blanket away and tried to stand.
The room tilted immediately.
My legs weakened beneath me, forcing one hand against the bed frame.
The door opened.
Elara entered carrying a tray of medicine.
She saw me upright and st
