-LIANA-The safe house door slammed behind me with a dull thud, cutting off the city’s hum. I leaned against it, trembling, bruised, raw.My body ached in ways I didn’t know were possible. Ribs throbbed with each breath. My cheek stung like it had been branded. Arms sore from every shove, every punch,I felt each one in my bones, in my muscles, in the way my body refused to obey fully. But for the first time in months, I breathed air that wasn’t tainted by iron bars and fear.Was I more sensitive because of the baby? Maybe. Maybe I was more awake, more aware, more alive,and yet more vulnerable.Tristan walked toward me, a glass of water in hand. Water. It looked almost holy. I grabbed it, gulping every drop, letting the cool liquid wash down, soothing the rawness in my throat.He then crouched beside me, inspecting the worst of my injuries. His touch was calm, precise, clinical. Not gentle. Not condescending. Just controlled. He dabbed a cool cloth across my swollen cheek, eyes sharp,
Last Updated : 2025-09-02 Read more