(Ruby's POV)
The hospital room was quiet when we returned.
Mia was awake again, sitting up in bed with a tray of untouched food in front of her. She looked better than she had this morning. There was color in her cheeks. Her eyes were clearer.
My mother was in the chair by the window, a cup of tea in her hands. She looked up when Nicholas and I walked in, and I saw something in her face that I hadn't seen in years.
Peace.
Not the fragile peace of someone hiding from a monster. The real kind. The kind that came from knowing the fight was over.
"The doctor says I can leave in two days," Mia said, pushing the tray away. "Two days. Can you believe it?"
"I can believe it." I sat on the edge of her bed. "You've always been stubborn."
"Someone had to be." She looked at Nicholas. "The doctor also said the antidote is working faster than expected. My body is responding better than they predicted."
Nicholas nodded. "That's good news."
