Chapter 53 The Quiet After The Light

• The light faded slowly, like someone pulling a curtain across the world. Jared blinked until shapes returned, until the white around him loosened into shadows and walls. His breath came unsteady, but he stayed standing. He had to. Emma’s voice still clung to him like a hand that refused to let go.
• He rubbed his palms together out of habit. The gold lines still moved beneath his skin, restless, almost alive. They pulsed every time he remembered her fading shape.
• He didn’t call her name. It felt dangerous to speak it, like the room might break again.