AMANDA
It's Ashton. I'm sure of it.
I almost didn’t believe it. How could he be here, in this place, in Theodus’s territory?
That is a f*****g suicide.
I grit my teeth, my jaw aching as I fight back the tidal wave of emotions threatening to drown me. Anger. Terror. A flicker of hope that feels more like a curse.
He shouldn’t be here.
My nails bite into my palms, the sharp sting grounding me. Ashton’s face rises in my mind again, the stubborn tilt of his jaw, the quiet fury in his gaze. That look—it’s burned into my memory. I know it too well. It’s the look of someone who’s about to do something reckless, someone who doesn’t care what it costs.
Goddamn it. What the f**k was he thinking?
Theodus shifts beside me, a low murmur escaping his lips. My body goes rigid, my breath catchi
