When Belle opened her eyes again, she was in so much pain, ten times more than she had been when she and Rohan had journeyed to Groovestill to take those souls. Even her eyelids hurt as she tried to force them open, but they refused to move. She was cold, so cold that her body trembled uncontrollably, yet she was sweating at the same time.
Belle drifted in and out of blankness and wakefulness several times, but her fever had taken over, making it impossible to wake fully. Her throat burned when she swallowed, as if pine needles were being plunged down her throat, piercing the walls with each breath. The back of her eyelids felt like hot coals were pressed against them, and her ears rang deep into her brain.
