Chapter 40

**Emma's POV**

“In the ward… he’s not breathing! If he stops breathing—” My voice cracked, panic tightening my throat like a vice.

The doctor and I bolted back to the ward, my heart pounding, each step more frantic than the last. But when we pushed through the door, the bed where Amory had been laid was… empty.

“He was right here!” I cried, spinning in disbelief. My stomach dropped, dread rising like a cold tide. What was happening? Where had they taken him?

The doctor shot me a skeptical look, his eyes narrowing as if I was playing some kind of twisted joke. Before I could protest, a voice from outside the room caught his attention.

“Doctor,” someone called, and without a word, he turned on his heel and left.

Confusion clouded my thoughts, and I stumbled out of the room, my legs heavy, my mind spinning. Was I losing it? Had they moved Amory to another ward without telling me? The lobby was a sea of faces, people rushing back and forth, oblivious to my rising panic. I started searchin