My consciousness did not return slowly. It slammed into me like a runaway train crashing off its tracks.
I jerked awake, gasping for air as if I had just been dragged up from the bottom of the ocean. My breath shook, and my chest rose and fell wildly. The bloodstained snow was gone. So were the night fog and the suffocating stench of death.
All that remained was a silence that reeked of wealth.
I blinked, trying to adjust to the dim light illuminating the enormous room. I was lying on a canopied bed with dark red silk sheets. The air was warm, carrying the scent of cedarwood, aged wine, and something cold... like freshly printed banknotes.
"Breathe, Miss Vale. Your lungs need to remember how to work without being burned by magical energy."
The voice was as smooth as velvet, yet sharp
