Aria’s POV
The steady beep of machines was the first thing I registered, a rhythmic, monotonous sound that seemed to come from very far away. Then came the smell: antiseptic, bleach, and something metallic that made my stomach turn.
Hospital.
I was in a hospital.
I tried to open my eyes, but my eyelids felt like they weighed a thousand pounds. My head throbbed with a dull, persistent ache, and when I tried to move, pain shot through my right arm.
The accident, the car pulling out. The impact.
Everything came rushing back in fragments: the crunch of metal, the explosion of the airbag, the warm trickle of blood down my face. The sickening realisation that I'd failed to reach the mansion in time.
Damien. The security system. The verification check.
I tried to sit up, panic overridi
