Chapter 8 THE PERSON WATCHING

The light outside the lodge disappeared.

Lena remained frozen beside the window.

Ethan moved first.

He switched off every light in the house.

"Stay here."

"No."

His eyes found hers in the darkness.

"Lena."

"I'm coming."

For a moment, he looked ready to argue.

Then he reached for the flashlight.

They stepped onto the porch together.

The forest was silent.

Too silent.

No insects.

No birds.

Only the wind moving through the trees.

Ethan swept the flashlight across the road.

Nothing.

"Did you see someone?" he whispered.

"I saw a light."

"Where?"

"Near the tree line."

He moved forward.

Lena followed.

They reached the edge of the property.

Fresh tire tracks cut through the soft ground.

Ethan crouched.

"These weren't here when we arrived."

Lena's stomach tightened.

"What kind of vehicle?"

"Black SUV."

She immediately remembered something.

"Don't follow it."

Ethan looked at her.

"Why?"

"Because that's what they want."

"Who?"

"I don't know."

That was the truth.

In her first life, she had learned to recognize danger.

But this was different.

Someone was moving before they were supposed to.

Someone had accessed Ethan's private files.

Someone had come to the lodge.

And Lena had never seen any of this happen before.

The future was changing faster than she could understand.

Ethan stood.

"We go inside."

They returned to the lodge and locked every door.

Ethan called Margaret again.

"Get security footage from every Cross Industries building."

"All of them?"

"All of them."

"What happened?"

"Someone accessed restricted files."

Margaret became silent.

Then she said, "I'll handle it."

The call ended.

Lena sat at the table.

Her hands were shaking.

Ethan noticed.

"You said this never happened before."

"It didn't."

"Then something changed."

Lena nodded.

"Me."

The word hung between them.

Ethan sat across from her.

"What exactly happened when you woke up?"

Lena looked down at her hands.

"I remember dying."

She paused.

"Then I woke up."

"Nothing between those moments?"

"Nothing."

"What did you feel?"

"Cold."

Ethan waited.

"And then?"

"A voice."

His expression sharpened.

"What voice?"

"I don't know."

She closed her eyes, trying to remember.

There had been darkness.

Then something had whispered inside it.

Not words exactly.

More like a promise.

Again.

Lena opened her eyes.

"I heard one word."

"What?"

"Again."

Ethan stared at her.

Before either of them could speak, the lights flickered.

Once.

Twice.

Then went out.

Lena stood immediately.

"Power failure?"

Ethan checked his phone.

"No."

The lodge's electrical system wasn't connected to the city.

It had its own generator.

He walked toward the utility room.

Lena followed.

The generator was running.

Everything appeared normal.

Then Ethan noticed something on the floor.

A thin black cable had been attached to the generator.

His expression hardened.

"Someone was here."

Lena stepped closer.

"What is that?"

"A remote monitoring device."

She stared at it.

"Someone has been watching the lodge."

Ethan pulled it free.

The moment he did, Lena's palm burned.

She gasped.

A silver glow flashed across her fingers.

This time, something happened.

The room changed.

For one brief second, Lena saw an image that wasn't really there.

A road.

A black SUV.

A man standing beside it.

His face was hidden.

Then the image vanished.

Lena stumbled backward.

Ethan caught her arm.

"What did you see?"

She looked toward the door.

"A man."

"Who?"

"I don't know."

"What was he doing?"

"Watching the lodge."

Ethan's jaw tightened.

"Can you describe him?"

"No."

"Anything?"

Lena swallowed.

"He had something on his hand."

"What?"

"A ring."

"Do you remember the design?"

She closed her eyes.

A black ring.

A silver symbol.

Three narrow lines crossing a circle.

Her eyes opened.

"Three lines."

Ethan went still.

"You know that symbol?"

"No."

He didn't answer.

"Do you?"

Ethan walked to the table and opened the SunVolt file.

He flipped through several pages.

Then he stopped.

He turned the document around.

There it was.

A small corporate seal printed on one of the legal documents.

Three lines crossing a circle.

Lena stared at it.

"The lawsuit."

Ethan nodded.

"That symbol belongs to the company that owns the legal firm representing SunVolt."

"But why would they watch us?"

"I don't know."

Lena looked toward the dark window.

"Maybe they're not watching us."

Ethan looked at her.

"Then who?"

"Maybe they're watching me."

Silence.

That possibility was worse.

Ethan stepped closer.

"Why would anyone know about you?"

"I don't know."

But deep inside, Lena was beginning to understand.

Her rebirth had changed something.

Maybe her power wasn't a gift.

Maybe it was a signal.

And perhaps someone else could sense it.

Ethan picked up his phone.

"We're leaving at sunrise."

"Where?"

"Back to Manhattan."

Lena shook her head.

"No."

His expression hardened.

"Why?"

"Because whoever is watching us expects us to leave."

She pointed toward the maps covering the table.

"We need to make them think we're doing exactly what they expect."

Ethan stared at her.

Then slowly smiled.

Not warmly.

Not completely.

But with the first hint of respect.

"You've become very good at this."

"I had a lot of practice."

He nodded.

"Then we'll stay."

Lena looked at him.

"And tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow we start building."

"Building what?"

Ethan looked toward the basement.

"Your fortress."

A sudden noise came from upstairs.

Both of them froze.

Three slow knocks echoed through the lodge.

Knock.

Knock.

Knock.

Lena's blood ran cold.

Ethan reached for the flashlight.

Neither moved.

Then another three knocks sounded.

This time, from the front door.

Lena whispered, "We didn't tell anyone we were here."

Ethan looked at her.

"I know."

The knocking stopped.

A few seconds passed.

Then something slid underneath the door.

A white envelope.

Ethan approached cautiously.

He picked it up.

There was no name on it.

No address.

Only three black lines forming a circle.

Lena stared at the symbol.

Her palm began to glow.

Ethan opened the envelope.

Inside was a single sheet of paper.

Five words were written across it.

YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE COME BACK.

Lena stopped breathing.

Ethan looked at her.

For the first time since meeting her, he looked genuinely afraid.

Because the message wasn't addressed to him.

It was addressed to her.

To be continued.....