43

43

ANNALISE

TIME LOOP

The night air was cold and thick with silence, a stillness that only heightened the tension gripping my chest. I stood watch over the tower, the village below asleep and unaware of the dangers lurking beyond. The moon cast a ghostly glow over the trees, and every shadow seemed to shift and slither like a predator waiting for its moment. I couldn’t shake the unease that crawled up my spine.

Spencer was supposed to meet me here tonight. I’d felt a strange urgency when we planned to meet, like something terrible was brewing. My hand tightened around the hilt of the dagger hidden beneath my cloak. Where was he?

I closed my eyes for a moment, reaching out with my senses. The pulse of the forest felt off. Something dark was stirring, something ancient. The scent of damp earth and moss filled my lungs, but beneath it, I caught the faintest whiff of something else. Incense—sharp and foreign—whispering through the air. A cold dread settled over me. I’d only ever encounter