The space around me pulsed, empty yet alive, as if it were waiting for a sound that hadn’t been made yet. My pulse thrummed in my ears, sharp, insistent. Every nerve screamed alert, every instinct whispering danger. Adrian’s hand had vanished, but I could still feel the echo of his presence, a tether I couldn’t reach.
“Seraphina.”
The voice was calm, deliberate, yet threaded with an edge I couldn’t name. My stomach clenched. Recognition hit before understanding. The figure ahead of me moved slowly, deliberately, filling the emptiness with measured steps. Shadows clung to them, hiding intentions, revealing nothing.
I clenched my fists, the metallic taste of adrenaline sharp in my mouth. My thoughts raced, not with fear, exactly, but with calculation. Every move mattered. Every hesitation
