Zara
I didn't want to open my eyes, but not because I was scared. But because I knew when I did, he'd be there. And I wasn't ready to look at him. Not when I could still feel the blade.
Even when I could still see his face, past or not, shoving steel through my chest like it meant nothing. So I pretended to sleep. I tried to slow my breathing. I tried to keep my hands from shaking.
But guess what? It didn't work.
The room smelled like antiseptic and regret. Dim candlelight flashed across the stone ceiling. A worn blanket itched on my arms. And Ronan sat beside me, silent, like he didn't know if he had the right to speak.
Good.
He didn't.
But he spoke anyway.
"Zara," he said softly. "I know you're awake."
Of course I was.
My body might've been weak, but my mi
