Aurora’s POV
I came to with a pounding headache, dark shapes surrounding me like shadows. The air was thick and musty, smelling of stale cigarettes and something sweet that made my stomach churn. As I blinked against the dimness, the jarring recollection of the last moments before my blackout hit me with the force of a freight train. Gino had been there, towering over me, eyes narrowed like angry coals. I had underestimated him, and that mistake had cost me more than I could bear.
Panic began to swell in my chest as I pushed myself up, groaning at the ache radiating through my skull. I was in a small, sparsely furnished room, the low light straining to break through the filthy window. “What the hell?” I muttered, shaking off the remnants of disorientation. My instincts kicked in, hyper-a
