CHRIS
The border felt colder than it was the last time we were here. The chill in the air bit at my skin, but it was the unease curling in my gut that kept me on edge. The forest around us was eerily quiet, the usual rustle of leaves and calls of night creatures absent. The shadows seemed deeper, darker, and more oppressive than usual. I could feel the tension radiating off Kyle as he paced restlessly, his fists clenched tightly at his sides, while Evans leaned against a tree, his arms crossed, scanning the treeline like a hawk.
We’d come here to meet Justin. I didn’t trust him, not entirely, but Kyle’s distrust was on another level. He’d been quiet the whole way here, his jaw set in that rigid, dangerous way that told me he was barely holding it together. I didn’t blame him. Valerie’s d
