Ava's heart pounded so violently it felt as though it might burst from her chest.
She quickly assessed Victoria's condition. There were no visible external wounds, no blood, or harmed skin. She had been deliberately struck once, rendering her unconscious rather than causing real harm.
Michael, however, was another matter entirely.
A deep gash bled from the center of his chest, blood flowing steadily. Brutal marks streaked down his back, signs of the repeated blows he had endured when he shielded Victoria. By now he had lost too much blood. His skin had gone ghostly pale, and his body was colder by the minute.
But the most alarming part wasn't the blood loss.
Ava couldn't sense even the faintest trace of his spiritual energy.
That energy… That life force, which should have responded instinctively and aided his body's recovery when pushed to the brink of death… Was nowhere to be seen.
