One week later,
The forest's damp night air still clung to Jayden as he vaulted silently over the balcony railing and landed on the cool wooden floor of his room. It was just past 5 a.m.—the hour where the night reluctantly loosened its grip and the first silver hints of dawn began to creep across the horizon.
His boots were caked with dirt, the faint scent of beast blood still lingering on him from the hunt. For five nights straight, he'd been going out there—moving through the wilderness like a shadow, hunting until the stars faded and the world stirred awake.
The room was dark, exactly as he'd left it, the lights switched off before he slipped out the night before. He shut the balcony door behind him with barely a sound, eyes adjusting to the inky shadows. His muscles ached with a dull, satisfying burn as he made for the light switch near the door.
But before he could take a step…
Click.
Light flooded the room in a warm glow, chasing away the darkness—and revealing her.
