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Sebastian exhaled, voice lower now, almost reluctant. “They also found a cache of polaroids in the bedroom…they…found your father’s in the bathroom.”

The doors slammed open so hard, they hit the wall and rebounded.

“Peter!”

Nicola stood in the doorway, breathless, one hand pressed protectively to her stomach.

“Nicola,” I rasped, already moving.

She didn’t hesitate as she ran straight to me, and I met her halfway. The moment she hit me, I pulled her into my arms so hard, it knocked the air out of both of us. She let out a broken sound against my chest, gripping the back of my jacket like she was afraid I’d vanish if she loosened her hold. “I got here as fast as I could,” she choked out.

My hand came up immediately, steadying her head against me, fingers trembling only slightly where they pressed into her hair. “She’s alive,” I said, voice rough. “Evie’s alive.”

Nicola stepped back half a pace, then immediately forward again like she couldn’t decide whether to fall apart or hold on.

“She’s alive?” she repeated, almost disbelieving.

I nodded and held her as I tried my hardest not to lose it. Because finding Evie alive was a dream. But now it was reality, and I wasn't sure how to deal with it just yet. Where would we go from here? Where would she stay? Would she want to stay in her room again? Or would she want to leave this town and never look back? Whatever the answers were, I was never leaving her again. Whatever may come, I’d be by her side every step of the way.

We all turned at the same time when the door opened, and a woman stepped out. “Evelyn Rosen?” she called, eyes scanning our faces.

“Yes,” I answered immediately, untangling myself from my wife and stepping forward.

The woman adjusted her glasses, glancing down at the page. “Are you her family?”

“Yes,” I said quietly. “I’m her brother.”

“Hello, I’m Dr. Silver,” the woman said gently, clipboard tucked under one arm. “Miss Rosen has been moved to a private room. You’re welcome to see her now, and then we can talk through everything in detail.”

“Yes,” I said immediately. “Of course.”

“Peter?”

I turned slightly. Jackson was standing just behind me, still unsteady on his feet. “Please,” he said quietly, voice raw. “Please let me see her.”

I should’ve pushed back. This was the guy who left and never looked back, moving on with his life. But the Jackson that stood before me wasn’t the footy player I saw on the TV, or on the cover of Nicola’s gossip magazines with a new woman on his arm every week. The Jackson in front of me was broken and bruised. So I didn’t even hesitate.

“Let’s go,” I said.

We both silently followed Dr. Silver into an elevator, down a long hallway, and stopped in front of a door, the numbers 098 splayed across the wood in finger-smudged metallic lettering. I held my breath as the door opened, revealing a sight worse than anything I'd ever seen before.

“Evie…” Jackson choked out behind me before he crossed the room in seconds, taking her hand like it was the only thing tethering him to the world. Dr. Silver stepped in quietly beside us.

“It can be quite confronting seeing someone you care about like this,” she said softly. “But I want to reassure you, this is the best possible place for recovery right now.”

“Is she going to make it?” I asked.

Jackson looked up at that, like he was afraid of the answer. Dr. Silver exhaled gently. “Her vital signs are stable, but she’s been through severe physiological trauma.” She glanced at the chart, then back to us. “The strangulation caused significant airway obstruction and oxygen deprivation. As you saw, she went into cardiac arrest in the ambulance, and again on arrival.”

I felt something cold settle heavily in my chest. Dr. Silver continued, softer now. “I won’t lie to you. It’s critical, but we’ve done everything we can medically. The next stage is her body’s response.” Dr. Silver adjusted her watch, then offered a small, professional smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “But she’s strong,” she added gently. “People don’t survive what she’s survived unless they are.”

Jackson bowed his head against Evie’s hand again, his shoulders trembling as he held on like letting go wasn’t an option he could survive. “She is,” he muttered hoarsely, thumb brushing over the back of her hand with a kind of desperate care. “She’s always been strong.”

Dr. Silver gave a small, sympathetic smile. Her hand rested briefly on my shoulder before she let go. “Please let me know if you need anything else,” she said quietly. “I’ll leave you two with her for now.”

I nodded once, grateful I could still manage something as simple as that. “Thank you,” I whispered before she closed it behind her. I sucked in a breath and glanced down at Evie, still not quite sure yet if I was stuck in a nightmare or a dream. I hadn’t concerned myself with her appearance in the ambulance on the way here. There hadn’t been time for anything except getting her here and keeping her alive.

But now, I could see everything. Her hair was longer than I remembered, tangled and unkempt, like it had been left to grow without care. Grey strands threaded through the brown in uneven streaks, brittle at the ends, some broken short around her face, as if they’d snapped off over time.