The silence was suffocating.

The moment the triplets stepped forward, the entire hallway froze.

A ripple of awareness shuddered through the crowd, like prey instinctively sensing a predator. Or three.

The air thickened, weighted with something dark, electric—somethi

The night air was thick, heavy, pressing against me like an unseen weight.

I lay curled on my cot, my body aching from the day’s torment, my bruises throbbing like old wounds refusing to heal. The pack house was quiet, save for the distant rustle of leaves outside

I kept my breathing slow and even, forcing my body into stillness.

Faking sleep.

Ignoring the unbearable heat curling in my stomach.

Ignoring them.

The room was dark, the only light coming from the moon spilling through the thin curtains, but I didn’t need to s