xia

bruise already forming on my elbow was a stark reminder of the

ning air. It started in my fingertips and spread inward, a deep, intern

he exhaustion and emotional upheava

chin, but the shivering wouldn't stop. The cold was

Dr. Evans in the hall. He was here for Aaron's follow-up visit

ect him toward my room. Then, Aaron's,

to get attention because she's in tr

footsteps moving away from my door. He was a paid employee, not a family friend. He wouldn

yes red and brimming with angry tears. She told me wh

ng. I felt no surprise, no fresh wave

my throat scratchy and tight. "C

e than any outburst would have. She scurried

hold, plunging me into a disorienting world of swirling thoughts and fra

alone, and utterly abandoned. It was a ghost from my first life, a spectre

I expected nothing. I hoped for nothin

y, that no one in this family

s caught her. The housekeeper's voice was sharp and cold as she reprimanded Lena, remindin

unthinking. In her mind, I was the villa

become my prison, its

stant sounds of life continuing without me. Aaron's laughter, now that he was feeling

, and I was trapped in the dar

't cry. The tears had been burned away by the feve

This was the first

survive.

ng body to the edge of the bed, my hand shaking as I reached for the pitcher

out the window at the sky, which was begin

I knew, would be burning

ain, every moment of neglect they inflicted up