Elyse pov
Two days.
I’d survived two days in the refugee camp, and somehow, I was still breathing.
It wasn’t comfortable. The mattress was as thin as paper, the tent smelled like unwashed bodies, and the food was barely enough to keep hunger at bay. But compared to Lord Casimir’s mansion, compared to Papa’s dungeon, compared to running through the forest bleeding and terrified, this was almost peaceful.
Almost.
I still woke every few hours, heart pounding, expecting guards to drag me away. Still flinched at loud noises. Still felt the phantom ache in my belly where my baby had been.
But I was alive. Hidden. Safe.
For now.
“Elena, you coming?”
Mira stood at the tent entrance, already dressed and ready for the morning food distribution. The other women were stirring, preparing for a
