I was lost in the darkness. It was suffocating, pressing against my skin like a thick fog, cold and unforgiving. The curse writhed inside me, threatening to pull me under completely. I struggled to breathe, my lungs burning as though the air had turned to poison. I reached out, grasping for any sense of reality, but there was nothing—just the unending blackness and the sinister echo of the vampire’s laughter.
But then, through the haze, I felt a pull. It was faint, but it was there—a thread of warmth cutting through the cold. I clung to it, forcing myself to follow, fighting against the curse’s grip. The warmth grew stronger, and suddenly, I was yanked back into the light, gasping as I tumbled onto the forest floor.
Kieran was crouched beside me, his face twisted in fear and anger. His e
