All Chapters of Another Chance : Chapter 81 - Chapter 83

Reaching in the dark Mark’s POV I sat a few feet from the river, elbows on my knees, staring at the slow ripple of water as if it could tell me what to do next. Rissa slept — or tried to — bundled in her blanket, back turned to both of us. Her shoulders were tense even in rest. She’d been holding everything inside for too long, and tonight pushed something in her past its limit. I could see it in the way she curled forward, protecting herself even from sleep. Josh leaned against a tree on the opposite side of the camp, arms crossed, watching the woods like he owned the dark. Too calm. Too sure. A man who knew answers and enjoyed watching everyone else choke on questions. I didn’t trust him. Not before. Especially not now. What bothered me wasn’t just the way the hunters had stopped at the river as if a line had been drawn. It was the way Josh looked back at them without fear… almost like he was confirming something. He wasn’t limping anymore. He didn’t even pretend to hide it.

Darkness Rissa’s POVI stayed kneeling by the river long after Josh walked away.I kept my hand in the water until it went numb, just to prove I could still feel something real. Something untouched.I didn't trust my instincts.I hated that more than anything.They used to be sharp, a compass I could navigate an entire life with. But lately they felt tampered with. Tilted. Like someone slipped a finger on the scale and smiled while watching me try to balance.Water rippled around my fingers.Turn around.That voice from the vision or whatever it was lingered inside my skull like a thread I couldn’t pull free. I didn’t know if it came from inside me or somewhere else entirely.I told myself I’d walk for a minute, get my thoughts straight, then return.Instead, my legs moved on their own, taking me upriver along a narrow strip of stones. Not running. Not hiding. Just following… something.Distance gave me clarity.Or maybe it gave me the illusion of it — but I’d take the illusion ove