Laila's POV
The sharp, sterile tang of antiseptic hung heavy in the hospital air, stinging the back of my throat as I shifted against the stiff sheets. Every muscle in my body screamed from the fall out of that car, the sprint through the warehouses, the rough hands of fear dragging me from one second to the next.
My veins still pulsed with the poison Brittany had slipped me, the drugs clinging stubbornly even though the IVs had flushed most of it out. I felt raw, brittle, like one wrong move would splinter me into pieces.
The buzz of my phone startled me. It rattled against the metal bedside table like a warning bell. The number flashing across the screen froze me in place. It had been years since I'd seen it, but I recognized it instantly. My stomach knotted as I answered.
"Mrs. Har
