Night had fallen by the time Scarlett made it home, the house dark and empty. Her mother's night shift had already begun, leaving Scarlett alone with her thoughts and fears.
She checked every lock twice, drew every curtain, and still couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. After a meager dinner of cold cereal—the only thing her churning stomach could handle—she retreated to her bedroom, pulling out her notebook of lucid dreaming research.
The pages blurred before her eyes as exhaustion tugged at her consciousness. No matter how much she tried to focus, her mind kept drifting back to the day's events: her mother's strange behavior that morning, Claire's fear, Liam's memories, and Lucien's absence.
Where was he when she needed him most?
Her phone remained stubbornly silent, her text
