Elisabeth's POV
The metallic tang of blood lingered in my nostrils long after we had driven away from that nightmare scene. No matter how many times I tried to clear my head, I couldn't shake the image of that man's contorted features. His eyes bulging with terror, mouth frozen mid-scream as if death had stolen his voice before he could call for help. The entire situation felt deeply wrong, unsettling me in ways I struggled to understand.
During the entire drive back to the estate, Jefferson remained silent as stone. His fingers gripped the steering wheel so fiercely that his knuckles had turned bone white, his jaw clenched tight enough to shatter teeth. I desperately wanted to break through the suffocating quiet, to say something that might ease this crushing atmosphere, but every word died on my tongue before I could speak it.
Perhaps because my own nerves were completely frayed.
