Valeria's POV
After forcibly kissing—or perhaps I should say biting—Eric, unease lingered with me. But then again, Eric had threatened me first. If this had been the past, my fists would've flown at his face without hesitation. So, using his own tactics against him felt like a restrained response on my part.
Three days after the kiss, I departed for Australia to audition for a film. The shift in focus helped push my unease to the back of my mind. I had more pressing matters at hand—like securing the role and, more importantly, tracking down Black Mountain. I couldn’t afford to waste time. I had to find it and bring it to Marcus.
But I knew I’d hit a dead end. Eric clearly wasn’t going to tell me where the painting was. My only option was to seek out others in Shadowridge who might know
