My lungs still burned from smoke, every step heavier than the last.
But the thought of leaving someone to bleed out in the snow gnawed at me.
“We’re close?” I rasped.
Jenny nodded quickly, her golden hair a mess of soot and sweat.
“Yes, just past the ridge.”
We crested the hill.
The moon was high, painting the snow silver.
But there was no bleeding man.
No body.
No sign of struggle.
Only shadows.
Torwald’s growl rumbled low, dangerous.
“Amber. It's a trap!”
Jenny stopped, her shoulders stiffening.
For a heartbeat, her sobs vanished.
Then she turned, her doll-perfect face lit by moonlight, her lips curving into a smile too sharp to be human.
“Oh, Amber,” she whispered, her voice silk and venom. “You make this too easy.”
The forest stirred.
Figures melted out of the d
