Campbell glared, suspicion glinting off his glasses. “Why should I believe you?”

Sully tore his attention from him to me, saying, “Because my lab creation almost killed the purpose of my creation. I watched it try to steal my future, and I’m done. No more elixir. Ever.”

Goosebumps spread over me.

I wanted to kiss him.

Hug him.

Tell him just how much I loved him.

Dr Campbell sighed with relief. “I’m glad you’re finally seeing sense. That you learned to love people and not just beasts.”

Sully shook his head, lowering his voice to a murmur, “Not people, Campbell. Just one.” He gripped my hand with possession, fire sparking and love tying us together with almost visible strings.

The doctor grunted and continued to treat Jealousy.

Sully swayed, bumping against the bed as his face contorted, and he rubbed his chest where his heart resided.

Fear sprang.

I was relieved Jealousy received help, but the longer the doctor fussed over her, the more my impatience grew for him to tend to Sully.

His knees suddenly buckled beside me, his own fatigue making it impossible for him to stay awake.

“Sully...are you okay?” I grabbed at him, trying to hold him up.

He groaned, pushing me away gently. “I’m fine, woman. I need to return and deal with Drake.”

“Sit down, Sinclair, before you fall,” Campbell muttered. “I’ll tend to you shortly.”

“But—”

“Sit just for a moment, Sully. Please.” I tugged him with annoyance. If he went to deal with Drake now, the guards would kill him easily.

“Fine. Ten minutes, and then I’m leaving. I’m not dragging this out any more than it already has.” Sully permitted me to pull him onto the bed. The frame creaked under his weight, and another heavy sigh spilled from his lips.

After everything he’d been through and everything I’d been the cause of...he couldn’t escape sleep any more than I could.

Please let it just be tiredness and nothing more.

Needing him close, I tugged him until he scooted closer. We leaned against the wall, every inch of our bodies—from our shoulders, hips, and knees touched—as if we couldn’t bear to be separate.

My head fell into the comforting crook of his neck and shoulder.

His rested on the top of my hair.

Our hands linked.

Our breathing slowed.

And the world went dark as we lost the battle to stay awake.

* * * * *

“Here, drink this.”

I hoisted up the heaviest eyes in existence, blinking back fuzz and cotton wool.

Pika was the only splash of colour in the otherwise white sterile room, his emerald feathers perched in the corner on a packet of gauze.

Dr Campbell leaned over me, his wizened face imploring. In his hand, he held the most delicious-looking smoothie I’d ever seen.

My mouth watered, my stomach snarled, and I sat up with a groan, allowing him to help me. Once I slumped in a sitting position, he passed me the smoothie.

A muddy colour, unlike the vibrant rainbow colours of Sully’s other concoctions.

“Sorry if it doesn’t taste all that appetising. I raided the kitchens and put in every vitamin and mineral I could find. Lots of tropical fruit along with kale and spinach and a bunch of other vegetables from the fridge.”

I sucked on the paper straw, wincing as the icy, earthy liquid hit my tongue. I wouldn’t have cared if it tasted like the bottom of a dumpster. I would drink every drop.

Slurping as fast as I could, tensing against the chill spreading through my stomach, I took in the rest of my surroundings. Sully lay beside me. We no longer sat like discarded toys against the wall but had been spread out on the bed, sleeping side by side, cramped and cosy, entwined in each other.

He remained asleep while Dr Campbell checked his vitals and added another bag of fresh liquid to the IV in the back of his hand.

A sharp bite in the back of mine made me look down, eyeing up the needle puncturing my vein.

The doctor saw me looking. “While you two were out, I took the liberty of taking care of you.” He glanced at Sully. “I sewed a few of his stitches that’d pulled apart again, rebandaged, injected more antibiotics, applied new eye drops, and tended to his other maladies the best I could. He’s running on empty, but I hope I’ve given him enough strength to keep fighting.” He smiled sadly. “I know this is all my fault, but...I couldn’t keep letting him hurt those girls. I hope you understand.”

I swallowed hard at the utmost sincerity and apology in his gaze. “You don’t have to explain to me.”

“I do. If only I’d waited a little longer. You would’ve stopped his use of elixir and Euphoria.” He shook his head. “I’m not the reason he’ll destroy four hundred vials of his drug. You are. He fell in love and earned a conscience along the way.”

“I’m also the reason he strangled Calico, Neptune, and Jupiter.”

He nodded. “You are but only because you finally woke him up that everyone deserves protecting. His violence came from affection for his own kind...something he never had before. So...thank you. And I truly am sorry for not waiting longer for you to succeed.”

I blushed. “It wasn’t my intention to make him change, Dr Campbell.”

“And that’s precisely why he has.” He patted my shoulder. “You loved him as he is, not for what he could be. There’s a difference in unconditional acceptance and being unable to see past the barriers we all erect. You forced him to look into a mirror and see what he’d become. He was the one who wanted change because he wanted to deserve you.”

Goosebumps slid down my arms. I didn’t expect nor want gratitude or worship. I didn’t want this man to think Sully’s evolvement had anything to do with me. I was just a simple girl who happened to lock horns with a god. I hadn’t done anything special. I’d just been special. Just as he was special to me. “We were meant to find each other...that’s all.”

“You were. And I’m glad, because now that you’ve given him his freedom, perhaps he’ll grant all those in his imprisonment the same luxury.”

Smiling gently at me, he rocked Sully’s shoulder and raised his voice. “Sinclair, time to wake up.”

Sully groaned.

“Sinclair!” Dr Campbell shook harder.

Sully’s eyes flicked wide, blank to start with, then filling with comprehension. He sat up stiffly, another groan rumbling in his chest. “Shit! I need to go.”

“Drink this.” The doctor shoved an identical glass into Sully’s hand, eyeing us up. His tone switched from the soft conversation we’d shared to pragmatic surgeon. “You’ve both received anti-inflammatories and intravenous glucose and saline. Your systems are heavily depleted, but with some proper food and the six-hour sleep you just had, you’ll rally round quick enough.”

“Fucking hell. Six hours? Jesus Christ!” He tried to climb off the bed but Dr Campbell pushed him back.

“Don’t worry. Drake is still comatose. His mercenaries left him on the tile in Euphoria so his wake-up call won’t be nearly as beneficial as yours. You have time.”

“Time is relative,” Sully snapped. “I need every second I have to kill him.”