Page 17 of Reverence

A loud thud echoed through the room.

Whatever he’d been holding had clearly been abandoned without a second thought.

I couldn’t breathe and my body trembled as I looked up at him, opening my mouth to speak, but no words came.

“Amala.”

The concern in his voice was unmistakable.

“Are you okay? What the hell is going on?”

He rushed towards me, gripping my shoulders as I struggled to remain upright.

I blinked rapidly, fighting for air.

Nothing.

My lungs refused to cooperate.

I would’ve fallen straight off the bed and face-planted onto the floor if Ares hadn’t caught me.

“Fuck.” His eyes darted across my face. “Tell me you’ve got an EpiPen.”

I pointed weakly towards my suitcase in the corner.

That was all I could manage before my vision began to blur.

My body went frighteningly limp as heat spread across my face and neck. Confusion clouded my mind, and suddenly the room began to spin.

I fell backwards, my head sinking into the soft pillow and the burning sensation around my throat intensified.

Hives.

Shit.

I tried not to panic. Tried to focus.

Tried to remember how to breathe but time suddenly distorted.

One second, it felt as though the walls were closing in around me.

The next, I felt something cold against my skin.

Then a sharp sting pierced my upper thigh.

The EpiPen.

Relief came slowly at first.

Then, suddenly, my lungs opened enough for me to drag in a desperate breath.

I inhaled sharply, panting with my eyes squeezed shut.

When I opened them, the room continued to spin.

Ares removed the epinephrine auto-injector and tossed it aside before lifting me from the bed with alarming ease.

“Amala, can you hear me?” My eyelids fluttered.