I floated in and out of darkness.
Sometimes there were hands on my shoulders. Sometimes voices. Sometimes nothing at all, just a thick velvet quiet that pressed into my skull like it wanted me to stay asleep forever.
The first thing I remember clearly was the cold floor.
I was lying on it. Next to the bed. Next to her.
Then arms. Strong but shaking.
Nathan.
He slid his arms around me with a kind of gentleness that did not match how unsteady he was. He was breathing too hard. His grip trembled like he was about to collapse. But he kept holding me. Lifted me. Cradled me against his chest like I weighed nothing.
A voice shouted behind him.
Another said he should not be carrying anything.
Another said he was too weak.
Nathan ignored all of them.
I think someone tried to stop him. A
