"Riley, look at me! I'm back!"
But she didn't react. Not even a flicker. I understood within moments — I was back in the same untethered state as before, weightless and invisible, caught in the space between worlds like something the living couldn't quite reach and the dead hadn't fully claimed. Had I really died this time? Was this it?
My first thought wasn't about the children.
It was about Lewis.
Was he alright?
I looked around the room quickly. Aside from Riley and a handful of nurses moving quietly between monitors, Lewis was nowhere. At least I wasn't anchored to one spot this time — I was free to move, unmoored and restless, and without hesitation I rushed out into the hallway.
