Chapter 25

• The dull glow of artificial light seeping through Marie's eyelids caused her consciousness to flicker like a reluctant moth. The antiseptic smell hung heavily in the air when she opened her eyes and blinked. The beeping and soft humming noises emanating from the adjacent apparatus did little to ease the pulsating anguish that gripped her body tightly.
• "Where am I?" Her mouth hardly made sense, the words lost in the darkness of the hospital room.
• He arrived to the sound of a ruffle at the door. Dave entered, his figure silhouetted against the dim hallway light. His face emerged as he got closer, lines of concern engraved in it that softened as his eyes met hers.