Cassian’s POV

Pain. That was the first thing I felt. A crushing, suffocating pain that seemed to come from everywhere at once my head, my ribs, my lungs. I couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe. Every inhale burned like fire.

Then came the sound, steady beeping, the low hum of machines, the faint hiss of oxygen. A hospital.

My vision swam as I forced my eyes open. Blinding white light stabbed at me. For a moment, everything was just a blur, ceiling tiles, IV drips, the faint shadow of ...