Chapter 24
JACE MARINO
The first sound I hear is the heart monitor.
It's been beeping all night. Steady,unchanging. But now it feels different. Maybe because my own heartbeat has finally started to match it.
Or maybe because I'm so tired I've begun to hear things that aren't there.
The light in the room is soft now. Morning light.
It falls across Julian's face, pale gold against the band of tape holding the IV line in place. His breathing's steadier than it was. His skin's warmer too. He looks almost peaceful.
Almost.
I haven't moved from this chair since last night. The nurses came in and out. Checking his vitals, changing the IV bag, whispering around me like I'm a piece of furniture they don't want to disturb. I must look like hell. I can feel it in my bones. The ache that comes from too many hours of not sleeping, not moving, not knowing what happens next.
I don't care. I can't leave him.
When the door opens, I tense automatically, but it's just Luka.
