Ember's POV I woke to pain. It was the first thing I felt....the raw, burning ache under my skin, as if my veins had turned to molten metal. My body jerked before I could stop it, my back arching, a strangled cry tearing from my throat. The air stank of smoke and blood, and when I opened my eyes, the world was drenched in red light. Dawn. Or what was left of it. The forest was still smoldering, ash drifting like snow around us. Zane’s arms were around me, his voice breaking somewhere above my head, but I couldn’t focus on him. Every pulse of my heart sent fire racing through me, glowing faintly beneath my skin like threads of living light. I couldn’t breathe.“Stay still,” he said, his voice rough, desperate. His hand pressed against my cheek, the heat of his skin barely registering against the inferno that was tearing me apart. “Ember, please, just breathe.”“I can’t,” I rasped. “It’s....too much....”He tried to hold me down, but I twisted away, gasping as the air around me shimmer
Last Updated : 2025-10-13 Read more