Jace pov
Pain woke me gradually—a dull, persistent ache radiating from my abdomen that brought consciousness back in slow waves. I blinked against the harsh fluorescent lights, my mouth dry as sand, my body feeling like it had been run over by a truck.
Hospital. I was in a hospital. The antiseptic smell, the beeping monitors, the scratchy sheets—all of it registered in fragments as my brain struggled to piece together what had happened.
The attack. The rogues. Grace fighting beside me. And then—
The rogue. The silver blade. Grace's back unprotected.
My heart rate spiked, the monitor beside me beeping faster as panic flooded my system. I tried to sit up, needing to find Grace, to make sure she was safe—
"Easy." A soft voice, familiar and precious. "You're okay. I'm okay. Everyone's ok
