Gwen stirred awake, every muscle in her body aching as though she had been through a storm. Her neck felt stiff, and her back throbbed. She stretched slightly before the weight of reality crashed back over her. She wasn’t at home. She wasn’t safe.
Her eyes darted downward, and her breath caught. Damien.
He was lying there, still as stone, oxygen mask strapped to his face, his chest rising and falling with painful effort. But his eyes, those dark, burning eyes, were already open, locked onto her. They bore into her with an intensity that made her heart stutter.
“Damien… Damien, are you alright?” she whispered, shifting closer to him, her voice breaking.
He didn’t answer immediately. His lips parted slowly, and when he finally spoke, it was in a hoarse rasp.
“Water…”
Gwen scrambled, fu
