Denise stood still after Liam left.
Not because she wanted to obey him.
But because the mansion had gone quiet in a way that felt wrong again.
Not peaceful.
Not empty.
Alert.
She exhaled slowly and walked toward the window.
Outside, the forest line looked unchanged.
Still.
Dark.
But after everything she had seen, “still” no longer meant safe.
Denise pressed her fingers against the glass.
“What am I supposed to do with this?” she whispered.
A faint vibration ran through the floor.
She froze.
Then another.
Like something heavy had moved somewhere deep below the mansion.
Denise stepped back immediately.
“No,” she muttered. “No, I’m not doing this again.”
She turned toward the door.
Locked.
Of course it was.
She tried the handle anyway.
Nothing.
Then—
a soft sound behi
