Elias's POV

Hours passed in the vault.

I lost track of time. There were no windows. No clocks. Just the dim green glow of Hale's computer screen and the steady hum of old machines.

Vale had found a corner and was trying to clean the blood off his collar. Hale was still at the computer, typing occasionally, mostly just staring at the screen.

Ronan stayed near me. Not obvious about it. But close enough that his scent kept mine mostly hidden.

I was getting worse.

The fever was climbing. I ...