Elena’s POV

After Damien left, I remained where I was, my back pressed firmly against the cold pillar as though it were the only thing keeping me upright, while everything else around me seemed to drift further and further away.

The world felt distant, muted, as if I had been separated from it by a thin but impenetrable layer.

Snow stretched endlessly before me, its pale, blinding reflection casting a fragile light across my already bloodless skin, making me look so faint that it almost ...