"Leave her! Save Ashford first. You have to save Ashford!"
In that moment, every last ember of hope collapsed. Something inside me went quiet in a way that had no name, and deep beneath that silence, a part of me I could barely feel anymore let out a thin, soundless keen that dissolved into the cold.
Seawater poured into my mouth and nose. I choked, unable to breathe. My strength bled away bit by bit, and the chill sank through muscle, through bone, all the way to the marrow.
When the next wave crashed over me, I had no strength left to rise.
Consciousness sank into the dark and did not surface again.
In the end, it was the rescue crew on the boat who pulled me from the water.
When I opened my eyes again, I was already lying in a bed at the Pack Infirmary.
Unlike Hazel Ashford, who was surrounded by a circle of concerned bodies, my bedside was empty.
The pack healer making rounds noticed I was awake. He turned through my chart, paused for a moment, and let out a quiet sigh.
"You just lost your unborn litter, and then you went into the water. If you don't rest and recover properly, your body will carry lasting damage."
"I understand. Thank you, healer."