Chapter 172. Whispers Inside Her Mind

I must have fallen into a heavy sleep beside Daniel, but the moment I drifted off, everything shifted. I had no control over where my subconscious carried me, yet I felt myself drawing away from Daniel—even as the dream began. Blackness enveloped me first, broken by sudden explosions of light shooting in from every angle. Before I could make sense of it, I sank deeper into the void and found myself standing alone in the middle of nowhere.

I turned my head over one shoulder and saw wind whipping around me, tearing at the tall pines that flanked me on all sides. Branches snapped and tumbled to the ground. With one hand I brushed my hair from my face so it wouldn’t obscure my view.

Though I knew this was a dream, another part of me felt completely lost.

A dense forest stretched out ahead—a forest I recognized from the first time I’d encountered the dark creature. The howling wind and the whistle of its passage confirmed my worst fear: I was back in that exact place