Lana’s POV
Pain.
It seeped in like a slow tide—burning, gnawing, dull at first, then sharper. My shoulder screamed each time I shifted, but it was nothing compared to the pain swelling inside my chest. I blinked against the sterile glow of hospital lights. The walls around me were too white. Too quiet.
Then came the voice I wasn’t ready for.
“I thought I lost you.”
My breath caught. I turned my head slowly, and there he was—Artemis. Sitting by my bed like a broken man trying to piece himself back together. His hair was tousled, his shirt wrinkled. Dark circles haunted his eyes, and his hands trembled as he reached for mine.
“You shouldn’t be here,” I whispered, my throat raw.
He didn’t flinch. “I needed to be.”
We stared at each other, the weight of everything we didn’t say pressin
