The hum of chatter in the lecture hall was louder than Evelyn remembered. Too loud. Every laugh, every scrape of a chair, every whispered word cut into her like a blade.
She sat in the second row, notebook open, pen in hand, though her eyes never truly focused on the professor's slides. The diagrams on the screen blurred and wavered, shapes twisting into edges of knives before snapping back into harmless text.
"Evelyn?"
Amara leaned closer, her whisper sharp enough to break through Evelyn's fog. "You're spacing out again."
"I'm fine," Evelyn murmured, though her fingers gripped the pen so tightly her knuckles turned white.
Amara's gaze lingered a moment too long, protective but possessive all at once. She reached out, brushing her hand briefly against Evelyn's arm under the desk. "Just remember you don't have to do this alone."
The words should have been comforting. But Evelyn caught the faint curve of Amara's lips, something unreadable glimmering in her eyes before she turned her attention back to the lecture.
---
Outside the university gates, Silas stood leaning against the shadowed corner of the brick wall. He didn't belong here he knew it. The swarm of students, the rush of footsteps, the easy laughter of people his age…it all felt like another world.
A world he had never been part of.
But he stayed. Watching. Waiting.
His hazel eyes flicked constantly across the crowd, searching for a face he feared and loathed. Edgar. He could feel him—like static in the air, like a storm creeping closer.
Every instinct screamed that the man was near.
He shoved his hands deeper into his jacket pockets, restless energy coiled in every line of his body. He couldn't sit in a lecture hall like Evelyn. He couldn't pretend at normalcy. All he could do was stand guard, like a shadow that refused to leave her side.
---
Inside, Evelyn's pen slipped from her fingers. It clattered against the floor, the sound far too sharp, and her whole body jolted as if struck.
Her breath caught. For a fleeting second she swore she heard it again shhh....slice... slice... the whispers of knives humming low at the edge of her mind.
She bent quickly to grab her pen, her chest tightening. When she sat up, her eyes flicked instinctively to the window.
And there far across the courtyard stood a figure.
Not Silas.
Older. Taller. A grin stretched too wide across his face.
Edgar.
Her heart slammed against her ribs.
"Evelyn?" Amara's voice snapped like a whip, pulling her back. "What is it?"
She didn't answer. She couldn't. Her throat locked up as her eyes stayed fixed on the figure outside.
But when she blinked....he was gone.
---
Outside, Silas straightened, every nerve ending on fire. He didn't see Edgar, not directly. But he felt him.
Somewhere close. Watching.
Silas's jaw tightened as he scanned the building again, searching each window until he caught sight of Evelyn, pale and wide-eyed, staring out toward him.
Something in his chest twisted at the look on her face.
Danger....Fear.....
And Silas knew without a shred of doubt that the game Edgar was playing had only just begun.
---
The lecture ended in a blur Evelyn could hardly recall. Students shuffled past her, laughter and chatter swelling into a tide she could barely breathe through. She stayed in her seat, frozen, gripping her notebook until the corners bent beneath her nails.
"Evelyn."
Amara's voice cut through the noise. Calm. Steady. Too steady. She leaned down, her hand brushing Evelyn's shoulder. "You're trembling."
"I…" Evelyn swallowed, her voice hoarse. "I saw him."
Amara's eyes narrowed. "Who?"
"You know who," Evelyn whispered.
For just a heartbeat, something flickered across Amara's face. A glint of recognition—maybe even satisfaction—but it vanished so quickly Evelyn thought she imagined it.
Amara's hand lingered on her shoulder, grounding but heavy, like an anchor. "Then we leave. Now."
---
Silas spotted them as soon as they emerged from the building. Evelyn was pale, her steps uneven, her gaze darting nervously to every shadow. Amara kept close, almost too close, her hand firm around Evelyn's arm as though steering her instead of guiding.
He pushed away from the wall, falling into step beside them. "What happened?"
Evelyn opened her mouth, but Amara cut in first. "She saw him."
Silas's hazel eyes sharpened. He glanced at Evelyn. "Where?"
"The courtyard. He was standing there. Smiling." Her voice cracked. "And then he was gone."
Gone. The word echoed in Silas's head like a curse. Edgar wasn't the kind of man who simply vanished. If he was here, then he was planning something. Waiting for the perfect strike.
Silas scanned the crowded campus, every stranger suddenly suspicious, every corner a potential hiding place. His hand twitched toward his jacket pocket where his small folding knife rested. Not much. But it was something.
"Stay between us," he said finally, his tone firm. "We get back home. Together."
Evelyn nodded, though her chest tightened at the way both of them flanked her,Amara on one side, Silas on the other. Like two forces pulling her in opposite directions.
---
They reached the gates, weaving through streams of students. Evelyn felt eyes on her with every step, the weight of a gaze that didn't belong to Silas or Amara.
Then she saw it again.
Across the street, half-hidden by a row of parked cars.
Edgar.
Standing perfectly still, his head tilted slightly as though amused by the panic crawling over her face.
Her breath hitched. "There!" she cried, pointing.
But when Silas and Amara snapped their heads in the direction—he was gone again.
Vanished.
Silas cursed under his breath, his jaw set tight. "He's playing with us."
Amara's grip on Evelyn's wrist tightened. "Ignore him. He wants to scare you. Don't give him the satisfaction."
But Evelyn couldn't ignore it. That smile—it was burned into her mind, sharper than any blade.
---
The walk home was silent but heavy. Evelyn's heartbeat never slowed, every sound magnified the rustle of leaves, the click of footsteps on pavement, the distant hum of traffic.
Silas stayed sharp, scanning constantly, his body a taut wire ready to snap.
Amara, though, walked with a calmness that unsettled Evelyn. She didn't glance around, didn't tense at the thought of danger. Instead, she looked only at Evelyn, her presence steady, her voice low when she finally murmured, "You're safe. With me."
Evelyn wanted to believe it. She wanted to believe both of them.
But Edgar's grin followed her all the way home, haunting, hungry.
And deep down, she knew this was only the beginning.