The hospital hallway was thick with silence. The only sounds were distant sobs and the occasional squeak of nurse's shoes against linoleum. Leila sat motionless on the floor outside Luke's room, her back against the cold wall, as nurses and doctors moved past her like ghosts.
Valeria leaned against the vending machine, arms crossed tightly, trying to hold herself together.
"He was supposed to be safe," she whispered.
"He was safe," Isabel muttered, pacing. "We all were. That apartment was locked up, sealed, no sharp objects, no accidents. And yet…" Her voice cracked. "It still happened."
Kai hadn't spoken a word. He stood by the window, watching the ambulance that brought Luke roll away, empty now. A ghost ship.
Cody was on the phone with Luke's parents. Every few words he choked, apologizing for something none of them could control.
It was Valeria's phone that rang first. She stared at the unknown number, hesitant.
"It might be the police," she said.
But when she answered, it wasn't an officer.
"…Valeria?" a familiar voice asked.
Her heart skipped. "Eva?"
The others froze and turned to her.
"Yes. I—I don't have much time. They don't usually let me call out," Eva's voice sounded far away, tired, strained. "But I saw the news. The ferris wheel. And now Luke."
"You know?" Valeria whispered.
"I saw it in my dream. I felt it. Luke… the cabinet… the umbrella…"
Leila rose from the floor. "Where are you?"
"The Graymist Mental Facility. On the edge of town, near Red Hollow. They keep me here. Say it's for my own good."
Kai stepped closer. "Eva, are you… okay?"
There was a pause.
"No," she said softly. "I'm not. But I know things now. Things about the pattern. About Death. You have to come here. It's the only way I can show you. You're running out of time."
Cody took the phone. "We'll be there. Just hang on."
Before the call ended, Eva added one final whisper:
"Tell Leila… it's not over. Not even close."
Later That Night
They drove in silence toward the facility. The road stretched long and winding, flanked by thick trees and mist. The car headlights barely cut through the fog.
Leila sat in the back, head leaning against the window, eyes glassy.
"She knew," Leila said. "She saw Luke. And she knew."
Isabel looked at her through the rearview mirror. "You trust her?"
Leila nodded. "If anyone understands what we're dealing with… it's Eva."
As they reached the tall iron gates of Graymist, the building loomed ahead—white, cold, and ancient, like a prison for souls.
Inside, Eva waited in a small, sterile room—walls padded, a single window facing nothing but forest. Her hair was longer now, her face thinner, but her eyes still burned with knowing.
She stood as they entered.
"Welcome to the last place Death hasn't touched," she said.
The door creaked shut behind them.
The End of Chapter 29