جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 278

Ciara’s POVI woke up slowly, my head heavy and my body strangely warm beneath the blanket. For a few seconds, I simply stared at the ceiling without moving, trying to understand why I felt as though I had slept for an entire day. The room was quiet, the lights dimmed low, and when I turned my head towards the narrow window built high into the wall, the faint bluish darkness outside told me dawn was not far away.I blinked several times and pushed myself upright.Strangely, I felt refreshed.There was no headache, no weakness and barely any soreness, which made absolutely no sense considering what Dax and I had done before I fell asleep. The memories returned in messy flashes, and heat immediately climbed into my face. Me ordering him around. Dax actually obeying me. Purple light. His ridiculous face whenever I pushed him past whatever patience he thought he had. After that, things became hazier, and the last clear memory I had was lying exhausted against him while sleep dragged me un

Dax’s POVThe underground emergency laboratory had existed beneath the estate for years, but after Ayla arrived, it no longer looked like anything I remembered.Two days.That was all it had taken her to turn a perfectly organised medical room into something between an ancient research chamber and the aftermath of an explosion. Half the equipment she brought from Shadowfen did not belong anywhere near human technology, yet she had somehow connected all of it together. Thin crystal tubes ran between machines meant for blood analysis, several rune-covered stones floated above one of the examination tables and sheets of handwritten calculations covered almost every free surface. There were bottles containing liquids I had already decided never to ask about, pieces of old manuscripts lying open beneath protective glass and, for reasons known only to Ayla, a severed claw suspended inside a silver cylinder near the wall.I stood near the entrance with my arms crossed, watching my sister m

Ciara’s POVI had walked the same hospital corridor so many times that I was beginning to recognise the tiny imperfections in the marble floor.My phone remained clutched in my hand, the screen lighting up every few minutes because apparently I had developed the ridiculous habit of checking whether Dax had somehow called without my phone ringing. He had not. No message, missed call or nothing from the man who usually found a reason to contact me even when he had only been away for an hour.Something was wrong.I could feel it.The past three days had almost felt normal, or at least as normal as my life could possibly become these days. Mom had woken up, and seeing her eyes open had removed a weight from my chest that I had been carrying since she collapsed. She was still weak, but she could talk, eat small meals and sit up with help. The doctors were pleased enough with her improvement that her discharge had been scheduled for tomorrow.She had not tried to tell me anything else.I d

Asher’s POVI had barely stepped back into the estate when I saw Inara storming down the corridor like she was on her way to murder someone, and for the first time since meeting her, I actually slowed down.Daggermouth was always angry about something. That was basically her natural state. She could insult a servant, threaten a guard, argue with Lance, curse me out and then somehow end the conversation asking for food like none of it had happened. I was used to that version of her. What I was not used to was the cold pressure rolling off her now, so heavy and sharp that even the wolf inside me lifted his head in immediate interest.Something was wrong.I had been gone for three days because Dax sent me into the witch realm to retrieve an old item he apparently needed urgently. The trip had been irritating enough to make me consider setting half the place on fire, but I had finally returned expecting the usual Blackthorne mess. Instead, the first thing I found was Inara looking like s