Kari laid awake, staring at the ceiling. She didn’t need to look at the clock to know it was late. Despite how tired her body felt, she couldn’t seem to settle her mind down to sleep.
The afternoon with Evan had been nicer than she expected. After spending time together in the woods, she had to go for evening patrol duty. Luckily, Gabe had been her patrol partner again, leaving her alone to sort through her confusing thoughts.
But now she was replaying the events of the day, contrasting Evan’s brutal attack on Joe with his gentle behavior in the woods. She was lost in thoughts that she almost missed the sound of the door closing in the hallway, the muffled shuffle of footsteps, the creak of the loose floorboard outside her father’s office.
Kari rolled towards the bedside table, lookin
