Chapter 448: Bed Sores

Talia When I woke, the first thing I saw was Valerie’s bright green eyes staring back at me. She was perched on the edge of my bed, blinking rapidly, as if trying to figure out whether I was truly awake or still in the haze of sleep. For a moment, I was disoriented. How long had it been since I’d last seen her like this? At first, the memories came in like a trickle. It was my name I remembered—Valerie. I remembered Ariel. Yes, I knew I was not in the palace; it was only Ariel’s cottage that had the same roof, the same attached beams, and the wood crisscrossing patterns that I knew she hadn't built but had employed some poor soul to do in times past. Valerie! Suddenly the thought occurred to me. She was supposed to be home, not here—certainly not opposite me on the bed. Something was terribly wrong, I told myself. “Valerie?” My voice was rough, like I hadn’t used it in days. I reached out to her, and she immediately crawled up beside me, wrapping her small arms around my neck. The