"Then why hasn't she called me back?" Maya demanded.
"Because she's been sleeping," Nicholas said. "Deeply. The kind of magically-induced sleep that helps witches recover from power exhaustion. She'll call you when she wakes up."
Maya looked at him with tears streaming down her face. "Is she really alive?"
"Yes," Nicholas lied.
"Are you sure?" Maya pressed. "You're not just...you're not lying to me? She's really okay?"
"She's okay," Nicholas said. "I promise. We would never hurt her. You know that."
Maya's expression was conflicted. Like she wanted to believe but could not quite make herself.
"When will she call?" Maya asked.
"Soon," Nicholas said. "A few days at most. Just give her time to recover."
Maya pushed herself to her feet slowly. She looked at Nicholas. Then at Lucian. Then back at Nicholas.
