#Chapter 165: Stolen Glory

ELENA The world tried to pull me back. I felt my body rise toward the surface, like a swimmer breaking through the final layer of water before air. My awareness strained toward consciousness. Light. Motion. The scent of the herbs in Dr. Voss’s office. But something inside me screamed not to go. Not yet. Not now. Not when I was finally close. My heartbeat thundered behind my ribs. My hands clenched unconsciously against the worn arms of the chair, fingertips tingling. I wasn’t ready. But I was afraid too. Afraid of what might be waiting for me if I stayed submerged. "Elena," Dr. Voss's voice came through the fog, low and commanding, like it had in other sessions. But this time it wasn’t comfort. It was an anchor. "Don’t wake up yet. You need to finish this." Tears leaked from the corners of my eyes. My breath caught. I couldn’t speak the fear that churned inside me. Could only whisper a strangled, "Please…" "This is a reckoning," he said, firmer now. "This is a memory t