The next morning felt strangely peaceful, as if the world itself was holding its breath.
I sat at the long dining table with Damon beside me, the smell of warm bread and roasted meat filling the room, yet my appetite came and went in waves.
Sunlight filtered in through the tall windows, casting soft golden patterns across the polished floor. It should have felt normal, comforting even, but nothing felt normal anymore. Not when it felt like a knife was hanging above my neck, ready to drop any second.
Damon had barely left my side since we woke up. If I shifted even slightly, his attention snapped back to me as if I were his center of attention… Maybe I was. I could feel his gaze on me even when he pretended to be focused on his plate.
I was just about to tease him for it when the doors opened.
