**Evelina’s POV**
I awoke cold and alone. Gabe was no longer by my side. In fact, I was no longer in the clearing I had been in before. Instead, I was somewhere deep in the heart of the dense forest. I shivered, hugging myself to keep warm.
“Gabe,” I called out, looking around as if expecting him to appear at any moment.
But there was no response, only the eerie silence of the forest surrounding me. I pushed myself up off the ground, feeling a sense of unease creeping into my bones. The trees loomed tall and dark around me, their twisted branches reaching out as if to grab me.
I stood, looking around for Gabe and realized I was entirely alone.
“Help!” a voice of what sounded like a child, a little girl, called out. “Someone, help!”
Without hesitation, I followed the cry for help, pus
