KIRA

The healer said the third week would be the turning point...

She was right.

On the fifteenth day of the chelation protocol, Kira walked into the war room and said it's gone with the particular expression of someone who hasn't fully trusted a good thing yet.

"The hum?" I said.

"The hum." She pressed two fingers to her sternum, the gesture she'd been making for weeks. "Since this morning. Just gone."

The relief I felt was disproportionate and I didn't try to hide it. ...