“There’s more you’re not telling us.”
Dr. Sinters’ voice was hoarse with tears. “She has dozens of them. All around her heart.” She sniffled. “I don’t know how she’s still alive.”
My breath caught.
Rowan’s voice turned razor-sharp. “Can they be removed?”
“No. Not now. Maybe a month ago—maybe. But they’re too far gone. Cutting them out would kill her.”
He went still. I saw his throat move as he swallowed the grief.
Dr. Sinters looked between us, eyes wide with something colder than fear. “You’re all going to hang for this. The Guild won’t stand for it. They’ll find you—and when they do, they’ll make an example out of all of you.”
Her gaze pinned Rowan. “Even you.”
Rowan didn’t blink.
He gave Sam a silent nod.
The doctor didn’t even scream. Sam twisted her neck swiftly, and she crumpled to the floor with a thud that echoed far too loudly in the small room.
Silence descended, thick and final.
Renata appeared in the doorway, her voice low and urgent. “We need to go. Now.”
So we ran.
Or at least—they ran.
Rowan half-carried me, his breath sharp and jaw clenched. I tried to keep up, but the hallway spun beneath me. My chest burned like fire, every inhale a punishment.
“I’ve got you,” he whispered, over and over.
But I was slipping. I could feel it.
Everything went gray. Then black.
The last thing I remembered was Rowan’s voice, calling my name
And then—nothing.
Chapter 51
“Netali’s Vow is most sacred.
It is only to be uttered with sincerest reverence and purest love.
But take caution, for breaking this vow will fragment the soul,
sacrificing one’s true happiness for eternity.”
- The Old Book
Iwas surrounded by a black void.
But not nothingness. There were sounds. Distant, muffled voices. Footsteps thudded. Strong arms caught me before I hit the floor.
I opened my eyes a crack.
