The first gray light of dawn seeped into the cabin, painting the wooden walls in pale hues. The silence inside was thick, but the storm of the night before still echoed in my bones. I sat on the edge of the cot, watching Adrian as he slept. His breaths were shallow, his bandaged side rising and falling, every movement reminding me of how fragile he really was.
We couldn’t stay.
The thought had looped in my head all night. Daniel was close—too close. The sound of crunching leaves outside yesterday had been no trick of the imagination. He was hunting us, circling like a predator who wouldn’t rest until he had what he wanted. And Sarah… I didn’t know where her loyalties lay anymore.
Adrian stirred, his eyelids fluttering open. His gaze found me instantly, warm despite the exhaustion etched
