EMMALINE
The words hang in the room like a blade suspended over my head.
She’s in heat.
The implication is not lost on me. My treacherous body, the same one that burns and aches and shivers beneath my skin, craves Alexander. Craves him even though my mind wants nothing to do with him. The thought makes me want to claw my way out of myself.
The doctor continues, his voice calm and clinical, as if he hasn’t just shattered me into pieces. “It is normal for a female to enter heat after some time of being marked,” he explains, turning pages on his clipboard, writing notes that feel far too detached for what this moment is. “But in your case, the poisoning may have accelerated the process. Your system is still fragile, still recovering. And because you are already marked, if the mating ritua
