Not once.
Not for the mud, not for the storm, not for the weight of a broken woman in his arms.
As darkness closed in, as the rain and thunder dissolved into distant echoes, the last thing I registered was the heat of his body and the firm press of his hand at my back, keeping me from slipping away completely.
Then the world slipped out from under me again.
For the second time that night, darkness took me.
And this time—
I didn’t fight it.
I let go.
I welcomed it.
Chapter 7
ELENA
Iwoke to gentle tapping on my arm.
Not loud. Not demanding. Just small, careful taps—hesitant, as if whoever was touching me was afraid I might vanish if they pressed too hard.
My eyes fluttered open.
At first, everything was haze and warmth.
The room was hot—almost stifling—air thick with the dry hum of a heater working overtime.
White walls glowed faintly amber in the low light, shadows soft instead of sharp. For a moment, I didn’t know where I was. My body felt heavy, wrapped in cotton and ache, like I’d been pulled back from somewhere far away.
Then I turned my head.
Yannis was kneeling beside the bed.
His pale face hovered inches from mine, eyes too big for his small features, storm-gray and glossy with unshed tears.
Dark curls stuck up at odd angles, as if he’d been running his hands through them again and again. He looked exhausted—like a child who had stayed awake long past fear because sleeping felt too dangerous.
He tapped my arm again.
This time harder.
Worried.
“I’m awake,” I whispered, my voice hoarse but there. “I’m here.”
Relief flooded his face so fast it hurt to see.
His shoulders sagged, breath rushing out of him in a shaky exhale he hadn’t realized he was holding.
I pushed myself upright slowly.
Pain answered immediately—deep, dull aches along my ribs, a raw burn in my throat, stiffness in my limbs like I’d been folded wrong for hours.
As I moved, memories crashed back in fragments, sharp and disjointed: open graves yawning under moonlight, rain pounding the earth into sludge, blood blooming in dark water, Ruslan’s arms locked around me as he carried me through the storm like I weighed nothing at all.
