Chapter 43

Naomi

I sat by Cal’s side, watching him sleep as I tried to come up with a way to help him. Suddenly, time seemed to reverse and everything that had just happened was undone. Odette walked backwards down the stairs, meticulously retying Cal’s robe and sealing up his wounds as the blade slid back into place. Tobin and Ataz appeared before them, lifting Cal and carrying him back up the steps. The sun rose and set in rapid succession as they all came and went from the cellar. I even witnessed the disturbing interactions between myself, Odette, and Cal - how he used my body for his own pleasure without any remorse. Time sped up until the Manor around us transformed, its walls now adorned with unfamiliar faces that I could no longer recognise. It was disorienting and unsettling to say the least.

As I stood in the open field, a sense of emptiness washed over me. The once grand Manor House, with its promise of luxury and opulence, was yet to be built. But even in its absence, the surroundings