Rosamund
"HELP! SOMEBODY, PLEASE!"
My voice tore through the house, raw and desperate, bouncing off the stone walls.
It was Julian who responded first.
He came through the drawing room door at a run, his coat half on, his boots unlaced, and the sight of Nevan on the floor stopped him dead for one frozen second before he recovered and dropped to his knees beside us.
"What happened?" He asked gently, arranging Nevan's body and freeing his airway.
"He just fell." The words came out between sobs, my hands still pressed against Nevan's face, my fingers smearing tears across the dark veins climbing his jaw. "He was walking to get me a cup of water and then he just, he dropped, and the band went dark, and the corruption is spreading, Julian, look at it, it's moving—"
