The next thing I knew, we were standing outside Dimitri and Noemi's house. I felt Will's breath on my ear again as he softly said, "We're here. Do you want to rest for a while, or do you feel up to company? I know the minute I knock on the door, both of them will probably come out with questions."

I knew he was right, but all I wanted was to sleep for a week. My eyelids felt like two-ton weights were pinning them shut. "It's okay," I murmured, my voice barely audible. "We can tell them what... what happened, and then... then I can rest."

But I wasn't sure where to start. Everything before arriving in Montgues was a blur of voices and movement. I remembered going to the guest room to pack a bag while Will told Liv and Julie the truth about where we were going; I pictured myself slowly getting out of bed, grabbing the bag I brought to the Callahans', pulling out clothes, then stuffing them back in.

He swallowed hard as he knocked on the door, the sound unusually loud in the tense silence that had fallen over us. My left arm was still wrapped around his neck as I cradled my right arm against my chest. It was only when the door opened that I realized I had closed my eyes.

I heard Dimitri's voice first, his accent even thicker with confusion lacing his words. "Malia? What has happened? Are you being hurt?"

A light, feminine voice followed Dimitri's, and it took a moment for recognition to sink in. "Dima?" I vaguely recognized Noemi's voice from the last time we'd been in Montgues.

Dimitri ushered us inside, and as the door closed, I heard a hushed, rapid conversation between him and Noemi. "Qu'est-ce qui se passe? Est-ce qu'elle va bien?"

I struggled to follow the French through the haze of exhaustion and stress that had fallen over me. What is going on? Is she okay?

Will gently set me down on the couch in their living room before sitting down beside me. "Just rest, Lia. Noemi's going to get you something to drink."

I rested my head on the back of the couch, taking slow, steady breaths. I could hear Will talking quietly with Dimitri and Noemi, but I didn't bother trying to understand the words. It was only when I felt Will sit down beside me that I tried to crack my eyes open. His voice was very close to my ear when he spoke again. "Don't try to get up, Lia." I clung to him as he pulled me into his arms. I felt him tilt my head up as he placed the lip of a glass of water against my lips.

"I need... I need to tell them..." My voice trailed off, worn out from forcing each word out through a mouth that felt numb. The truth, I wanted to say. But the rest wouldn't come. The adrenaline from the nausea had worn off almost immediately, leaving a cold emptiness in its place.

I felt a warm hand on my shoulder, but didn't move from where I had laid my cheek on Will's chest. Dimitri's low, calming voice filled my ears, tension and worry filling every word as he spoke to Will. "Is she being hurt? Are you? I see bruises on your face, but I do not see any injury on Malia. Did someone hurt you—both of you?"

Though I knew he hadn't intended them to, Dimitri's words pulled me back into the memory of Declan's ambush. I felt him roughly grab my arm as he hauled me out of the car; I heard my bloodcurdling scream echo in my ears, along with a cry that I dimly registered coming from my mouth here and now. Declan's words filled my ears, drowning out Dimitri's voice and the sound of my screams and cries. "'Not so fast, Lia. You're mine now.'"

I shied away from Will as I curled up into a ball, putting as much distance between him and me as possible without falling off the couch. My heartbeat thundered in my ears, but it unfortunately wasn't loud enough to drown out Declan's words. His voice enveloped me completely, consuming my awareness to the point that I could no longer tell where I was or what was happening around me. "'Not so fast, Lia. You're mine now.'"

My voice came out as a rushed, terrified whisper that was nearly indecipherable. "N-no, please! Don't... don't hurt me! Don't... don't touch me! Please let me go! Please, just LET ME GO!"  The words rose until I was pleading, begging anyone who would listen.

Will's firm and steadying voice—a lifeline in a sea of terror—cut through the haze of hysteria that had enveloped me. "Lia, concentrate on the sound of my voice. You are safe. You are not there anymore. Do you hear me? You are not there anymore. You are safe. We are safe."

His words didn't register in my hysteria-addled mind. I began thrashing on the couch, trying to free myself from the icy grip of terror that had seized my insides with an iron fist—as surely as Declan had seized my arm. I was sobbing now, panting through clenched teeth and a tense jaw. "Please let me go! Please, just LET ME GO!"

Strong, steady arms grasped my own, holding me down. I had all of a second to take a breath before I felt the rush of wind as the swirling void swallowed us up. When the world finally stopped spinning, I felt the sharp prick of a needle in my arm as Julie's comforting, warm voice drifted toward me. "Malia, sweetheart, you have to calm down." The hysteria and adrenaline, along with the words, faded away as my eyes rolled back in my head. "Just rest, Malia. I'm not going..."

When I opened my eyes again, I was lying down. I sat upright with a gasp, swaying slightly as a rush of dizziness made white spots swim in my vision. My right arm was tucked tightly against my chest, and pain stabbed icy, relentless fingers into my brain. The light seeping in through the window sent bolts of white-hot pain through my skull, and I couldn't help the wince that crossed my face as I furrowed my brow.

I draped my arm over my eyes when I closed them, breathing through the pain. A warm, gentle voice reached my ears, but I struggled to follow the words. "Malia? Can you hear me, my love?"

I let out a weak groan, the sound barely audible. I sighed as a cool hand touched my cheek. I'd recognized Will's voice the moment he'd spoken, and some of the panic I'd felt upon waking had lessened—but only slightly. Uncovering my eyes, I cracked one open and saw Will's blurry figure in front of me.

"Dimitri... Noemi..." Their names were barely more than a breath. I had managed to break the surface of the sea of unconsciousness that had held me under for so long, but I could feel myself slowly sinking back into the darkness.

My eyes fluttered closed, but I forced them open again. As my vision slowly cleared, I sank back against the pillows of a bed in an unfamiliar hospital room, shaking my head to clear it. The last thing I remembered was Julie's voice filling my ears as the sting of a needle pricked my arm. But that didn't make sense. Hadn't I just been in Montgues with Dimitri, Noemi, and Will? How had I gotten back to Chalmet so quickly?

"You—you're here. W-what happened?" The words were tinged with panic even as I worked to raise my voice above a whisper. My heart raced when I struggled to sit up, giving up seconds later when my arm began to shake uncontrollably. I felt as though I'd just run a full marathon without stopping. I gulped down air, fighting to catch my breath.

Will's voice was soft as he responded, his eyes filled with worry as he scanned my face. "I'm here. Take it slow, Lia. You had a panic attack in Montgues. In your hysteria, you accidentally brought us back to Chalmet. We couldn't get you to calm down, so I had to call Mom to help. She sedated you, which gave us enough time to bring you to the hospital. You've been unconscious ever since."

Flashes of memory sliced through my head like lightning bolts. Each one stabbed my brain like the light had pierced my eyes, but I welcomed the pain. I watched myself shy away from Will in Montgues, curling up in a ball and putting as much distance between us as I could without falling onto the floor. I saw myself thrashing on the couch, trying to free myself from the grip of icy terror that had enveloped my insides with an iron fist.

Ghostly voices filled my ears, and I struggled to differentiate one from another. "'Malia? What has happened? Are you being hurt?'"

"'N-no, please! Don't... don't hurt me! Don't... don't touch me! Please let me go!'"

"'Lia, concentrate on the sound of my voice. You are safe. You are not there anymore. Do you hear me? You are not there anymore. You are safe. We are safe.'"

My breathing quickened as Will squeezed my hand. "Take deep breaths, Lia. Focus on the sound of my voice."

A knock on the door nearly made me jump out of my skin. "Will? Is Malia awake? Can I come in?"

I slumped back against the pillows at the sound of Julie's voice. Tears spilled down my temples and into my hair. I let out a hoarse sob, covering my mouth with my left hand. Will never took his eyes off me as he answered Julie. "Yeah, Mom, she's awake. Come on in."

Julie's head popped inside when she opened the door, her expression almost identical to Will's as she scanned my face. "Oh, sweetie. How are you feeling?" She brushed away a stray hair, then gently placed her cool hand on my forehead and rotated it soothingly. "You don't feel feverish. Are you in pain anywhere?"

No sooner had the words left her mouth than another bolt of pain shot through my brain. I clenched my eyes shut, breathing through the ache. My voice was weak as I responded, and both Will and Julie had to lean in to hear me. "Head—headache." One-word answers were all I was capable of at the moment.

Julie glanced at Will; the two of them had a wordless conversation before the former looked back at me. "I'll get you something for the pain. Do you think you could manage to eat something? I gave you IV fluids, but you haven't eaten since being admitted."

I gave a barely perceptible nod. Will took a breath before speaking. "Liv's in the waiting room. She wanted to see you, but we told her to wait until Mom said it was okay. Do you feel up to company?"

"Sure." My voice was barely audible. It was a struggle to keep my eyes open, and I could feel unconsciousness tugging me back under.

I vaguely registered Liv coming in and Julie giving me something for the pain. Neither stayed very long, and it was only when we were alone that Will kissed my forehead as he sat in the chair beside the bed. "Get some sleep, Lia. You're safe now, I promise."

Despite the old panic beginning to rear its ugly head, I could no longer resist the pull of unconsciousness. The last thing I remembered before drifting off was Will squeezing my hand and whispering, so softly I almost didn't hear him, "I'm sorry I couldn't protect you, Lia. I'm so, so sorry."