NINA’S POV
The moment I stepped out of that cave, the cold wind hit me like a slap to the face.
Nothing about me felt real anymore.
I could still feel Zane’s eyes on my back, even though I hadn’t turned around. I couldn’t. Because if I did, if I saw that pain in his gaze again, I’d crumble.
And right now, I couldn’t afford to fall apart.
Not when I was just starting to understand the pieces.
I didn’t speak as we moved through the woods, the silence between us with everything we weren’t saying. My limbs were sore, every step a reminder that I had seen things I wasn’t supposed to… things I wasn’t meant to.
And now I was different. Changed. I didn’t know if I could ever look at him the same.
Something dark stirred inside me… watching, like a beast waiting for permission to breathe.
