Chapter 4: The Seventeenth Night
By night seventeen, I had stopped pretending.
I lay on the edge of my own mattress, stiff with anger, while Lucía slept between us like a wall.
Or at least, I thought she was sleeping.
Then I heard it.
Click.
My eyes opened instantly.
It was not the window. It was not the house settling. After that sound came a silence so deep I could hear the clock ticking on the dresser.
I pushed myself up slightly.
Lucía moved beside me.
Her hand slid beneath the blanket and wrapped around mine.
She squeezed once.
Softly.
It did not feel comforting.
It felt like a warning.
Don’t move.
Every hair on my arms lifted. I wanted to wake Esteban, but the words died in my throat.
Then I saw a thin line of light appear under the bedroom door, slicing the darkness like a blade… Continue Reading ⬇️
