Chapter 56 A Steady Beep-beep-beep Sound

• The first thing Zara felt was the pain. It was a dull, throbbing ache in her head and a sharp, pulsing agony in her arm. Her eyelids felt heavy, as if made of lead. When she finally managed to open them, all she saw was a world of blurred white and a blinding light. A steady beeping sound filled the quiet room, a rhythmic noise that made no sense to her. She tried to move, and a low groan escaped her lips as the pain in her arm suddenly flared, a hot, searing fire.
• A person came into focus. It was a woman in a white coat, her face calm and professional. "Zara? Can you hear me?" the doctor asked, her voice soft and gentle. "You're in the hospital. You've been in an accident."
• The word "accident" sounded strange, disconnected from her own reality. The last thing she remembered was running. Running from the ballroom, from the lies, from the man who had shattered her world. The memories came flooding back, bringing with them a wave of pain and anger. Jayden's cruel laughter. Leo's desperate cries. The frantic rhythm of her own feet pounding against the pavement as she tried to escape.