Devotion in the Dark

All her life, Valentine Thorne has believed in a god no one else can see.

They call him a delusion. A childish fantasy she refuses to abandon. Classmates whisper behind her back. Teachers exchange worried looks. Even her own family tells her to let go of the "monster" she prays to at night.

But Valentine has always felt him.

In the shadows of her bedroom. In the quiet space beneath her ribs. In the darkness that doesn't frighten her the way it frightens everyone else.

She has loved him faithfully, even when the world laughed.

Then one night, when cruelty turns into real danger, Valentine does the only thing she's ever known to do.

She prays.

And something answers.

He is not gentle. Not holy. Not kind in the way gods are supposed to be.
He is ancient hunger wrapped in shadow, power stitched with possessiveness. A forgotten god the world cast aside.

But he has never forgotten her.

And when he rises for Valentine, the world learns a terrifying truth:

The monster they mocked was real.

And he does not share what belongs to him.