Consciousness returned slowly, like waking from a dream that had not yet decided to let go.
The first thing Julia felt was pain. A dull, throbbing ache behind her eyes, spreading down through her neck and into her shoulders. Her head pounded with every heartbeat, a relentless drum that made her want to close her eyes and sink back into the darkness.
The second thing she felt was cold. Then Julia groaned and forced her eyes open.
The room was unfamiliar: grey and rough stone walls lit by a single lantern hanging from the ceiling. A high window admitted a sliver of pale light. The air smelled of medicinal herbs, old wood, and the sharp tang of ozone.
She was lying on a bed with a thin mattress beneath her, a rough blanket pulled up to her waist. Her clothes had been changed. Someone had removed her torn, bloodstained shirt and replaced it with a loose linen tunic that was not hers.
Where...?
