CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
Consciousness hits me like the first gasp of air after a deep dive. I pry my eyelids open, but everything's a blur. The ground shifts beneath me—or wait, it's not the ground. It's Jake. His arms are secure around me, lifting me from the chalky desert floor as if I weigh no more than a feather.
"Easy," he murmurs, his voice a low rumble against the hum of panic in my ears.
"Jake?" My voice is ragged, dust and confusion coating my tongue.
"Shh. I've got you, Lily." There's a tension in his jaw, a grim set to his mouth that tells me I must look as bad as I feel. A shiver courses through me, despite the heat radiating from his body.
He strides into the infirmary, a makeshift sanctuary with stark white walls standing defiant against the relentless desert sun. The door swi
