Reya's POV
It was already close to evening, the day’s endless noise had finally dulled into a hush. The last coughs and whispers of the patients faded into the damp evening. I stood alone in the front room, not wanting to think anything.
Leena had gone, but her words kept replaying Ashriel isn’t even Alpha yet. Ashriel disappeared. Ashriel—
I dug my fingernails into the wooden desk as if that could anchor me to the present. I needed it. Needed the tiny bite of pain to remind me I was still here. Still Aurelia. Not Reya.
I let out a long, controlled breath and shrugged out of my blood-specked coat. My arms ached. The tight pull of my braid at the nape of my neck made my scalp itch. All I wanted now was a cup of weak tea, a bath that might warm me down to the marrow, and maybe five minut
