Chapter 56

Aubrey's POV Consciousness returned slowly, like swimming up through dark water. The first thing I registered was the soft mattress beneath me, then the familiar scent of my bedroom. When I opened my eyes, Knox's worried face came into focus beside me. "Hey," he said softly, his hand finding mine immediately. "You scared me." The gentle concern in his voice made my chest ache. I tried to sit up, but the lingering effects of Jax's mental assault made my head spin. "Careful," Knox steadied me with a hand on my shoulder. "Avery said it was exhaustion, that you've been pushing yourself too hard with the training sessions." Of course that's what Avery would say—what else could explain someone suddenly collapsing? The true cause lingered in my mind like poison, Jax's power still a phantom presence at the edges of my consciousness. "Why did you want to talk to Natalie?" Knox asked carefully, his thumb tracing circles on the back of my hand. "Before you collapsed?" The question sent ice throug