Chapter 42 The Truth Beneath The Shadows

• I struggled to catch my breath, my heart pounding so fiercely in my chest that I feared it might burst free. My eyes darted around, desperately trying to focus, but the world continued to whirl around me. Shadows enveloped the space, and an unsettling glow flickered like a distant ember, creating an atmosphere that felt utterly wrong.
• Before me stood a figure—Asher? No, it couldn’t be him. The shape wavered and morphed, defying comprehension. His features were hauntingly familiar yet grotesquely altered, like a mirage collapsing under the weight of reality. His eyes—golden and fierce, reminiscent of his wolf form—cut through the darkness, their intensity rendering me motionless.
• “Asher?” I murmured, though deep down, I already sensed the truth. The voice that echoed back was not his—it was deeper, more primal, a mere shadow of the man I once knew.