Ashley’s POV
My head throbbed so badly that it felt like a hammer was striking from the inside. Every attempt to move made my muscles protest: stiff, unyielding, almost foreign. My eyelids fluttered open, but even that small effort weighed me down. The phone lay beside me, its screen dim, almost mocking me with how close yet far it felt. My trembling fingers finally brushed against it, dragging it close enough to grasp.
I dialled Hayden once. There was no answer. The silence stretched like a blade, cutting into the fragile thread of strength I still had. I tried again. This time, his voice came through, rushed, concerned, heavy with a tone that usually grounded me. But now, my own voice betrayed me. It cracked, splintered, and then nothing. My throat was raw, unable to shape words, and t
