(Ava’s POV)
The truck smelled like old pine, cold metal, and secrets that had soaked too deep into the upholstery to ever leave. We drove without headlights for the first mile, the woman at the wheel navigating the logging road like she’d memorized every rut and betrayal in the dirt. The forest pressed close on both sides, branches clawing at the windows as if they resented our escape.
No one spoke.
My phone stayed dark, which somehow felt louder than the buzzing had. Like a held breath. Like the pause before something decided whether to strike.
Brian’s hand was still wrapped around mine, warm despite the cold seeping through the floorboards. I focused on that, and pressure, pulse, and proof. The rest of my body felt like it was vibrating on a frequency just shy of panic.
Finally, Mar
