Warm.
The hands that were shaking me were warm and they felt vaguely familiar.
Still disoriented, I tried to jerk away only to be assaulted with a fresh wave of pain. An involuntary moan left me as I was lifted off the floor into strong arms, unable to put up any form of resistance. None of it mattered anymore. The one thing on my mind wasn’t the evidence, the plan or the people. It was how I felt like I was finally safe, away from all that pain and from the cold. The smell of snow and steel made me smile.
I was home.
Soft. The ground was too soft and it was warm too!
As the sleepy haze cleared and my senses sharpened, I became more aware of my surroundings. There was movement in the room and the lights were too bright. Stabbing pain reminded me why I should have pretended to be asleep. Surely that groan has alerted the guards on duty.
“Titus, are you awake?” the gentle yet familiar whisper shocked me into opening my eyes again.