Chapter 147

• CHAPTER 147: SHATTERED SILENCE
• The vibration of the alarm rattles the wooden bedside table, sharp enough to slice through the remnants of her dreams. Lena jerks awake with a startled gasp, hair tumbling across her face in a dark tangle. For a beat she lies disoriented, pupils darting across the familiar shadows of the bedroom, her heart thudding like a trapped bird in her chest. The sound had startled her so violently it feels almost like a physical blow. She didn’t see it coming at all.
• “Oh my God…” she groans, pressing the heel of her palm against her heavy eyelids. Her body still feels sluggish with sleep, every movement reluctant. She wipes her hands across her eyes in slow, clumsy strokes, forcing them open, forcing herself into the day.