(Evelina's POV—Deep in the Game Forest)
The forest swallowed us whole.
Cold air clung to my wet skin, biting through the remains of my dress. My hair dripped down my back, each drop a reminder of the river that had nearly killed me… and the hands that dragged me back.
Rowan walked beside me, one arm still firm around my waist, anchoring me every time my knees trembled.
We didn't speak.
We didn't need to.
The only sounds were the snap of branches under our feet and the distant hum of engines—far behind us now, but not far enough.
A forest under a bridge.
Of course.
This cursed game bent physics when it wanted tension.
But even that wasn't what unsettled me.
Someone sent the assassins. And there were only three possibilities left: Theo Vinter. Kael Valtore. The Hartgrave family.
Rowan's fingers brushed my hip—a whisper of contact, stabilizing me as I stumbled over an exposed root.
He didn't look at me. Just murmured, "Careful."
