LOGINThere was something about the room that refused to let me breathe properly, not because the air itself was lacking but because everything within it felt deliberate.Like it was arranged in a way that had intention and made it impossible to ignore the prulspe behind it.From the position of the bed, to the faint lingering scent in the corners, something medicinal wouldn't stop ooIng from there corners.The more I sat on that bed, the more I noticed how unsettling everything seemed, I tried to understand, but I couldn't. I couldn't understand how anyone could have found comfort in such a place without puking.Ben stood close enough that I could feel the presence of him without needing to look directly, and even though his hand had left mine, the memory of his grip lingered against my skin in a way that made it difficult to forget how easily he could close that distance again, how quickly control could shift back into his hands if I gave him even the smallest reason to take it.“You’re q
The door opened before the guard announced anything, and I didn’t bother turning immediately because there was only one person who came in without knocking twice.Bruce stepped in, shut the door behind him, and took his seat like he owned the room, which in a way, he did.“You look settled,” he said.“I’m adapting,” I replied, finally looking at him. “You didn’t come here to check on my comfort.”“No,” he said. “I didn’t.”I leaned forward slightly. “Then say what you came to say.”He studied me for a second longer than necessary before speaking, and that hesitation told me whatever this was, it wasn’t small.“There’s been a development,” he said.“There’s always a development,” I replied. “Make this one worth my time.”He exhaled. “Mia is missing.”The name didn’t surprise me. The timing did.I leaned back slowly, letting that settle in properly before responding. “Missing,” I repeated, more to process it than to question it.“Yes.”“When?”“A few days ago.”I nodded once, my eyes st
I still didn't understand him.What did he mean by that?“I already told you,” he continued, his thumb brushing lightly against the back of my hand in a gesture that would have felt gentle if it had not been layered with everything else, “you’re different from her.”My gaze flickered briefly toward the girl before I could stop myself, and this time I let it linger just enough to acknowledge her presence without making it obvious that my attention was drawn to her in a way that mattered, because I could feel him watching even in that moment, measuring the length of my glance, the shift in my focus, the meaning behind it.She was still watching me.Always watching me.And there was something in her eyes now that hadn’t been there before, something beyond fear and desperation, something sharper, more urgent, like she had placed all her hope into a single, fragile possibility and that possibility was me.I forced my attention back to him.“In what way?” I asked, my voice steady, controlle
“You?” I watched the corner of his lips curve. “You want to know about yourself? Are you sure?””My lips quivered, too afraid to speak, so I nodded instead.“Yes. Tell me.” I whispered.The question hung in the air lined then it should have been there. Ben straightened slowly, turning back towards me with a look that felt too far focused, far too intentional.“You’re different,” he said.The certainty in his voice made my chest tighten again.“You understand me,” he added, stepping closer to the doorway, closer to me, until I could feel the shift in the air between us again.I forced a small nod, even though everything inside me resisted the motion. “I’m trying to.”His smile returned.Soft.Satisfied.“I know you are.”Behind him, the girl shifted weakly, her hand moving slightly across the mattress as though she was trying to reach for something, anything, and before I could stop myself, my gaze dropped to the movement.Her fingers brushed against the edge of the mattress.Closer an
The door did not swing open all at once, and somehow, that made everything worse, because the slow, deliberate creak of the hinges dragged the moment out longer than I could bear, I stretched the space between what I already feared and what I was about to see into something almost unbearable, while my body remained rooted in place, unable to step forward or back, caught in that fragile in between where instinct screamed at me to run but something far stronger held me there.Ben did not rush it. Of course he didn't. His hand remained steady on the handle, his movements controlled, as though this was not a reveal but an invitation, something he had been waiting to offer at the exact right time, and when the door finally opened wide enough for the darkness inside to begin taking shape, I realized with a sinking certainty that this moment had never been accidental.It had always been coming. The first thing that reached was the smell. It wasn't strong enough to choke or overwhelm me but i
The house had never felt this short before, not even on the night when the snow buried everything outside and the world outside seemed to pause along with it, because this kind of silence was different, heavier somehow, like it carried something unresolved with it… something that refused to settle no matter how still everything appeared on the surface.Nora's words lingered long after she said them, weaving them into the back of my mind in a way that made it possible to ignore the truth buried inside them, even when I wanted to.Let her go.It should be simple. I had done it once, hadn't I?For goodness sake, I was the one who thought of leaving her before and I did.I walked away from Mia when she needed me the most, convinced myself that it was the right thing to do, that distance would keep her safe, that cutting ties with her would somehow shield her from the danger that has been closing on me long before she ever became a part of my life.And yet, somewhere, here I was, thinking
Marriage was a crazy thing to say from the point I stood. I barely wanted to be near the man, not to mention having his last name.For once I regretted being present but I made no expression, I kept my calm and I smiled.“That's lovely, Lily.” Was all I could say. Ethan looked my way, he smiled gen
I did not look back. The choice did not come from strength but from instincts, the same quiet discipline that had always been what I governed my actions with.I stepped out of the hallway lightway and into the dim of the living room, shadows gathering around me as if they understood I needed to dis
The cold came back first. Not the air, not the snow. Inside me, it crept in through the space Bradley left behind, through the echo of his words, through the image of Ethan's hands striking bone. It settled somewhere behind my ribs and stayed there, heavy and unmoving. Ethan stood a few feet away w
The scarf was still warm, that was the first thing I noticed. It wasn't stiff with frost. It wasn't buried either. It laid there half crushed in the snow like it had fallen in a struggle.I picked it up slowly. My hands were steady, a little too steady. “She wouldn't have dropped this.” Lily whispe







