The abandoned mines looked like a giant had torn a wound in the mountain and left it to rot.
Rusted supports leaned at broken angles. The old warning signs were half buried in dead ferns. A cold, steady breath poured out of the entrance, colder than anything the morning air should have carried. It curled around my ankles like fingers, sliding under my skin. Every instinct I had screamed at me to turn and run.
Instead, I stepped closer.
The mark on my wrist glowed like a steady pulse, dragging me forward with each beat. Every time I tried to slow down, the light flared, pulling harder. Like a leash. Like a summons.
Like a command.
Nathan tightened his grip on my hand. His palm was warm despite the cold, his fingers laced through mine so tightly he might have been afraid I would vanish
