A Deal of Despair

VESPERA

The agonizing pain was gone.

For the first time in what felt like an eternity, I felt a profound sense of ease. A luxurious, heavy warmth enveloped my trembling body, soaking deep into my frozen bones. I was at peace. I had never felt so comforted, so safe, in my entire miserable existence. The relentless ache in my joints had faded away, replaced by the softest sensation against my bat