[CAIUS POV]
I left the infirmary in disgrace, Healer Felix's sharp words dogging my heels. I couldn't scrub the sight of Iris lying in the infirmary from my mind. Her body was so small and frail, and her face was starkly pale to the point where the white bedsheets seemed vibrant and colourful. When she lay on the infirmary bed, she resembled a broken piece of driftwood buffeted by the ocean.
'Why are you so unhappy? Isn't this what you were hoping for all along?' Atlas's words were acerbic, and sarcasm dripped from every syllable. 'It's not every day we nearly kill our fated mate. I'm sure you must be so proud of yourself.'
'I didn't want her to die. I stopped it before they could kill her,' I protested, but it sounded weak to my ears.
A flush of shame formed on my cheeks. I could recall Iris's bloodstained teeth and lips. The splash of red blood on my white shirt was seared into my memory. I glanced down again, the red burning the back of my eyes. It came from her body.
