Page 87 of Fallen Empire

Ruth gave me a soft smile, the kind that said she wouldn’t tolerate bullshit, even if I tried. “Good girl.”

Jaxson stepped forward, but Ruth lifted a hand. “Let her try first. You can play knight in shining armor in a minute.”

He smirked, but stepped back. His hands flexed like it physically hurt not to touch me.

I braced myself, gripping the sheets, and slowly pushed upward. Every muscle trembled. My ribs screamed. My thighs burned like they’d been torn apart and barely sewn back together. But I kept going, inch by inch, Until I was upright.

Breathless. But upright.

“There we go,” Ruth said gently. “I’d call that a win.”

But all I could think was—this was just the beginning. If sitting up felt like surviving a war, what the hell would standing feel like?

Would it feel like that needle I’d sterilized with a flame before pushing it into my own skin—makeshift stitches closing one of the gashes Bruce left behind?

Or worse?

Jaxson was beside me the second Ruth stepped away, his hand bracing my lower back like he couldn’t stand the distance a moment longer.

“You good?” he asked, voice low, as if afraid talking too loud might knock me back over.

I nodded again, slower this time. “Yeah,” I whispered. “Just… give me a second.”

He didn’t say anything. Just stayed close, his palm splayed against my spine, thumb moving in slow, grounding circles.

“I can try to stand,” I added, surprising even myself.

Ruth raised a brow from the foot of the bed. “One step at a time, sweetheart. We’ll get you there, but not today. Today is about reminding your body that it can still move. That it’s still yours.” With that, she turned to leave.

Her words hit something soft and raw inside me. Because it hadn’t felt like my body in a long time. It felt like a battlefield. A crime scene. A canvas of scars that told stories I didn’t want to remember.

But now, for the first time, maybe it could also be something else.

Maybe itcouldbe mine again.

I glanced around the room taking it all in. “Where’s Millie?”

He didn’t miss a beat. “She went home to shower,” he said gently. “Tried to act like she wasn’t hovering, but I think seeing you awake gave her the green light to breathe again. Hopefully she’ll sleep in her own bed tonight.”

A wave of guilt tightened in my chest. “She should.”

“She needed it, Savannah,” he added, reading the shift in my expression. “She’s been camped out here for days. Haven’t seen her in anything but leggings and dry shampoo since Monday.”

That tugged the corner of my mouth. “Sounds about right.”

“Plus. She’s been a pain in my ass. If you hadn’t come back to us, I’d probably end up putting her in a grave right beside you.”

It was brutal. Honest. “What?”

“I’m joking. Kind of. Millicent has been an entirely different person without you around. I’m not sure I could handle her.”

I thought back to the conversation I’d had with Millie earlier. It was almost like she’d been waiting—like she’d held it all in just so she could tell me the moment I woke up. About her parents. About the pain she’d kept locked tight behind that polished smile. And I couldn’t help but wonder if that was all… or if there were even deeper wounds she still kept buried. The kind too heavy to name. The kind you carry alone because you think no one else could possibly understand.

Maybe my trauma was helping her heal, too. And the truth was, I’d be fine with that. She was the strongest person Iknew. She saved me when I came to Manhattan, without even knowing I needed to be saved. Without asking for anything in return. Just showed up, like she always does. Like I know she always will.

I looked back at Jaxson. He hadn’t said anything in a while, just watched me like I might disappear again. Like if he blinked, I’d vanish.

His eyes dropped to my arm, then slowly rose to meet mine.