Beth walked into the hospital with her shoulders level and her jaw set.
It wasn’t the same hospital where Seren was admitted. This one was smaller with less specialized units, but it still held the same hospital smell, a combination of antiseptic, recycled air, and people. Lots of people.
Every step she took felt weighted. Beth could have sworn there was an invisible force trying to hold her back, or maybe it was just her self-preservation at work. It wasn’t as though she wanted to be there, and the thought of what waited for her ahead sent bile up her throat.
Swallowing, Beth tried her best to hold it all together. Not an easy task when Santiago walked beside her.
She was acutely aware of him in the way she was always acutely aware of him, except that here the awareness had a differe
