Allyson's POV
Michael stayed perfectly still. So did I.
Fear crashed through me like a wave, burning heat spreading across my face.
My fingers were still wet.
Every instinct told me to flee, and this time I listened.
I spun around and ran, pulse hammering, lungs struggling for air, knees threatening to give out beneath me.
I grabbed the door handle and stumbled through it, slamming the wood behind me with a sharp bang.
Then I froze.
Standing in the empty corridor, I couldn't move. My chest rose and fell rapidly.
Everything felt tilted, wrong, spinning out of control.
My body was still trembling from what had just happened as I stumbled down the hallway, desperate to escape the memory of my actions.
I turned the corner too quickly, too disoriented, and crashed directly into someone.
Harriet, the housekeeper.
"Oh!" she exclaimed, stepping backward as a neatly folded towel tumbled from her grasp.
My stomach dropped.
