𝙱𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝙸𝚗 𝚂𝚑𝚊𝚍𝚘𝚠𝚜

𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 01: 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙳𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚕'𝚜 𝙴𝚢𝚎𝚜

---
The night was suffocating, through the very air clung

to Elara's skin. The city's streets, cold and desolate,

mirrored her life ─dark, silent and dangerous. She

should have been home by now, locked away from the

world that had already taken too much from her. But

she couldn't run from the shadows anymore.

A thin mist rolled in as she walked faster, heels clicking

against the pavement, each step louder in the empty

streets. Her breath was uneven, her pulse erratic. There

was no escaping the feeling that something ─or

someone ─was watching her. The sensation pricked at

her skin, leaving her raw, exposed.

"Too late to be alone, don't you think? " The voice

was velvet and ice, sending shivers down her spine.

Elara stopped, her entire body locking in place as the

man stepped out of the shadows. He was tall, his

silhouette cutting an imposing figure against the

flickering streetlight. His eyes ──dark and predatory─

seemed to glow in the dim light, pinning her in place.

"Someone like me?" she breathed, her voice betraying the

fear she tried so desperately to hide.

His lips curled into a smile, but it never reached his eyes.

"A lost soul."

She didn't move. Couldn't. The man's presence felt like

gravity itself, pulling her in. Everything about him

screamed danger, but she couldn't look away.

"I don't need your help," she said, summoning what little

courage she had left.

The man's smile widened as if her defiance amused him.

"Oh, you don't need help. But soon, you'll need me."

He took a step closer, and with it came a suffocating

pressure that made it hard to breathe. His eyes were on

her, devouring her every movement. Something told

Elara that once he had her in his grasp, there would be

no escape.

---