Chapter XIX
I OPENED MY EYES to hazy light. I felt cold, and my own shivering was what had awakened me. I couldn’t tell where I was, but it felt comfortable and safe. A cold hand covered my forehead, and I heard a distant, but unmistakable voice. Louis. Then a second one, crying and talking at the same time. Loud. Although my head was pounding, I couldn’t help but smile. Hesrah. She was okay.
“Glad to see you, too… but keep it down,” I whispered. I tried to wave away the dizziness and to sit up.
“Oh, no. Stay right there,” Louis said, holding me down on the bed.
“Please… I want to sit up.”
He arranged my pillows and helped me up. Hesrah came on the other side of the bed with a steaming bowl of soup. I could feel the iron scent, overpowering and twisting my stomach. I frowned and looke
