Mark’s POV

Josh was pretending to sleep again.

His hand had not moved since last night, still resting near that knife he thought I had not noticed. I did not wake Rissa. She needed the rest, and I needed to see how far Josh would go if he thought no one was watching.

The fire had burned down to embers, the orange glow fading into ash and cold smoke. Outside, the forest was waking. Quiet at first, then alive with sound. Birds, wind, the faint ripple of water in the distance. But beneath it ...