CHAPTER 169
KATYA POV
I stood there long after Marina left, staring at the bags like they might move on their own if I waited long enough.
They were everywhere. Sprawled across the floor, piled against chairs, leaning against the walls like silent sentries.
Hard leather trunks with brass corners. Bulky garment bags stuffed until the zippers strained. Cases so large they looked like they belonged on cargo planes, not staircases.
My back pulsed with a slow, relentless ache, like a warning drumbeat. Every breath pulled at the bandages beneath my uniform.
I swallowed and forced my shoulders to stay straight. Behind me, Gina clicked her tongue.
"She said top floor," she reminded me lightly, almost cheerfully. "And if you don't already know where the Donna's room is, I'll lead you."
The words slid under my skin. If you don't already know.
There was something there—something deliberate—but my mind was too fogged, too exhausted to untangle it.
