Chapter 37

• Belle***
• The air was thick. It clung to my skin like a second layer, heavy with the weight of fear, of something far darker that seemed to seep into the very walls around me. The stench was unbearable—rotting stone and rusted iron, mixed with the pungent scent of despair. My chest felt tight, my lungs struggling to pull in the air.
• Victor's presence was suffocating. He was standing just in front of me, his grotesque smile twisted, the gleam in his eyes one I could never forget. His gaze flickered between Jake and me, and I couldn’t help but shudder, my body stiffening involuntarily. His fingers curled around my wrist, digging deep into my skin, and I winced but refused to let him hear it. No. Not now.