Chapter 23 Fractured Illusions

• Hospital
• Tristan carried Felicia into the emergency room, his arms tightening around her as she whimpered against his chest. His mind raced. The sight of her frail, bloodied form had stirred something in him, but a gnawing unease refused to settle. The doctor on call, a no-nonsense woman in her late forties, swiftly examined Felicia as nurses moved around efficiently.
• "She has some minor lacerations, but nothing deep," the doctor noted, pressing gently on Felicia’s wrist. "No broken bones, no head trauma... it's remarkable, really."