PART TWO: THE BREAKING (Continued)
Day Six.
Novalee woke to silence. No Dante. Still away with Isabella.
Her voice was coming back—rough and damaged, but functional. The antibiotics Atlas had given her were working. The worst infections were clearing.
She could move without screaming now. Still hurt, but manageable.
Atlas brought breakfast. Set it on the dresser, watched her sit up slowly.
"Better," he observed.
"Better," she agreed, her voice raspy but there.
"Good." He checked her bandages, changed the ones that needed changing. "He won't be back until Day Eight. His mother has... extensive business to discuss with him."
Two full days. Two days without Dante.
"That's—" Novalee's voice cracked. "That's the longest I've had."
"I know." Atlas finished with the bandages. "Use it.
