It’s been three days since the body disappeared without a trace.
Three days of silence that feels engineered.
Three days of pretending things are normal, even though Daniel keeps testing the waters.
We eat breakfast as if we’ve been in this routine for a decade. Fluffy eggs and thick bacon and toast that’s perfectly crispy. The coffee is exactly the way I prefer it, and I have yet to get bored with being locked in this fortress with my HimLock guys.
Jace steals bites off my plate like he doesn’t have the same food minus the hot sauce. And then he fusses about the spice level. This morning, he discovered I can do more pullups thanhim, and I laughed until I cried when he asked me to do it again naked.
Kieran always, always touches me every time he’s near. My wrist, my shoulder, the small of my back… It feels like he’s checking if I’m still solid, but I suspect it’s just his way of acknowledging my presence without breaking his concentration.
Silas soaks it all in. He pulls me into his lap while I pretend-argue with Jace, and he lets me go with whispered commands of distracting Kieran. I think they’re happy to see Silas relaxing. He still doesn’t talk as much as the other two, but his actions are loud.
From the outside, it looks calm.
Domestic.
Safe.
Inside, I’m filled with exposed voltage, waiting to put my hand flat on a chest and stop a heart.
Because Daniel is still out there.
He keeps slipping into the security feeds like a bad habit the system can’t quite break. Sometimes it’s a blurry shot, and it’s never centered… But it’s always just enough to remind me he exists.
A shadow in the hallway of my apartment building.
His side profile reflected in a storefront window near my usual stops and shops.
He was being careful until recently.
I almost found myself hopeful the new behavior would stick…
Then we saw him outside the loft.
He comes only once, and he doesn’t go near the door. But he stands outside for twenty minutes with his hands in his pockets, like he’s supposed to be in the warehouse district. Like he’s just casually waiting for a bus or a friend.
The footage makes my teeth ache.
Right now, though?
The wall of monitors is alive with views of my apartment and Daniel.
From the hallway camera, we watch him kick the door in as if he’s part of a SWAT team.
He moves through my apartment, from screen to screen in front of me… And I can’t quite figure out what he’s looking for. Maybe a sign that I’ve been back? Or something he’s left in his many returns?
Whatever he’s searching for isn’t there anymore.
He stops in the center of the living room, lets his shoulders drop, and screams so aggressively that his entire body shakes. Kieran unmutes the sound and immediately regrets it, turning the volume down as fast as he can while rubbing at his ear.
But Daniel has no words today.
Just sounds.
Raw. Animalistic.
Completely fucking unhinged.
