The silence after the door opened was not truly silence. It felt more like a sudden drop in pressure. The air in the room shifted in a way Willow felt in her chest and throat before she could even process what had happened. A cold, suffocating stillness filled the small gift room, pressing against every surface and every breath, telling her one thing with perfect clarity.
This moment had been waiting for all of them.
Miles stiffened immediately, his breath catching in his throat as his eyes snapped toward Christy, instinctively searching her face as if he could somehow read how much damage had already been done. Christy had gone pale, the color draining from her cheeks so quickly that the diamonds at her ears looked unnaturally bright against her skin. They glittered with sharp flashes of light each time she moved even slightly. She was not crying. She was not screaming. She was absorbing.
