Elizabeth's POV

The week dragged on like an endless nightmare, each day heavier than the last. My phone never left my side. I carried it everywhere, waiting for the buzz that would remind me I wasn’t alone — that someone out there was still pulling my strings.

But for two days straight, silence.

It should have felt like a relief, a breath of air after drowning in fear and anguish for so long. Instead, it was worse. Silence meant they were watching quietly, biding their time. Silence ...