AT THE SAME TIME
EMPEROR LIANWEI POINT OF VIEW:
The air in the chamber was suffocating. Every sound—the hiss of boiling kettles, the scrape of needles, the shallow breaths Mei Shen still clung to felt like a hammer against my skull. At the bedside, Huan would not release her hand. His small knuckles were white, his jaw clenched though his eyes brimmed with tears. Beside him, Bai He hovered like a sparrow torn from its nest, her face pale and stricken.
"Lady Mei Shen…" She whispered, her voice trembling. "Please wake up. Please don't leave them." She brushed a damp cloth across Mei Shen's brow, her movements desperate yet careful, as if any roughness might shatter her.
And then against all odds Mei Shen's lashes fluttered.
"Mother!" Huan gasped, leaning closer.
Her eyes cracked open, hazy, unfocused. She exhaled a shallow breath, lips parting. I bent over her, my chest tight enough to snap.
"Shen…" My voice cracked.
