The silence after Daniel’s departure clung to the cabin like smoke, acrid and suffocating. The echo of the door slamming shut replayed in my ears, rattling against the fragile walls until I could hardly breathe. My body trembled with the enormity of what had just happened—the confession torn from my lips, Daniel’s eyes burning with fury, his promise of regret.
He knew.
There was no going back.
I sank onto the cot beside Adrian, my chest heaving, my hands still trembling around the blood-stained cloth I had pressed to his wound. He shifted, groaning, his hand reaching for mine with a shaky grip.
“Emma,” he whispered, his voice cracked but steady enough to cut through the whirlwind in my head. “You told him.”
Tears blurred my vision. “I had to. I couldn’t hide it anymore. He saw us—he s
