Author POV

Giovanni’s body burned.

Not the sharp kind of pain that came with a wound—but the deep, poisonous heat that crawled through her blood and settled in her bones. Her vision swam. Even blinking felt like lifting a mountain. The ropes around her wrists had rubbed her skin raw, but she barely felt the sting anymore.

Something inside her was wrong.

Very wrong.

Her breaths came in shallow gasps. The room spun slightly, the dim bulb above her flickering like it was mocking her ...