ISABELLA
White, blinding, sterile light swallowed me the moment my eyelids fluttered open. It an unforgiving brightness that pierced straight through my skull like a jagged knife.
I winced, trying to turn away from it, but the movement sent a sharp, searing pain lancing down my side, radiating through every inch of my body like fire. My breath hitched.
Fuck.
It hurt. Everything hurt. A deep, bone-deep ache settled into my ribs, my limbs heavy and unresponsive. My skin prickled with soreness in places I didn't even remember having nerves.
I sucked in a shallow breath, but the moment my lungs expanded, a fresh wave of agony ripped through me. My head spun. The room twisted and tilted, and the nausea clawing at my stomach became unbearable.
A weak whimper slipped past my lips before I c
