Chapter 298

I surfaced from the dark slowly, as though I were dragging myself out of deep water. My body felt heavy, my head thick, and for a long moment I couldn’t tell if I was awake or still lost somewhere in the fog of fever. Shapes swam in and out of view, a dull light cutting through the haze. Then I saw her. Mira, sitting in the chair by my bed, her chin resting on her hand, her eyes fixed on me as if she was willing me to open mine. I thought I was dreaming again. My mind had played that trick before, conjuring her face when I drifted in and out of half-consciousness. ‘Mira?’ My voice was rough, barely more than a whisper. Her head snapped up, eyes wide. Relief flooded her face so fiercely it almost hurt to look at. She reached for my hand, holding it between both of hers as if she was afraid I might vanish. ‘You’re awake. Thank God, Ashton, you’re awake.’ I tried to shift, the simple act of moving my right arm sending a bolt of pain up to my shoulder. I clenched my jaw, forcing myself not