Chapter 52
When I finally regained consciousness, I felt as though my insides had been scoured with razor-sharp sand, my skin flayed and then inexpertly stitched back on.
But I was no longer burning.
I opened my eyes to a room full of brightness and the smell of lemons. Parnese, I instantly thought. The air of Raine did not feel this way—dry and citrus-scented. The sunlight lay across the tile floor in a warm beam, and gauzy blue curtains fluttered beside the half-open windows. I let out a deep sigh.
Not of contentment, but of immense relief that I breathed, and blinked. And lived. The pain I felt now was distant compared to the agony I dimly recalled.
I turned my head on the clean white pillow to see a silver hand bell on the bedside table. Shakily, I reached over and managed to lift
