The house had never felt so quiet, yet the silence was loud, ringing in my ears like a physical pressure. I stood in the middle of my room, my heart hammering against my ribs so hard I was sure the wood in the walls could feel the vibration. The glow of the moon bled through my curtains, casting long, skeletal shadows across the floor. I was a wreck of nerves and Need, caught between the crushing weight of my guilt and the soaring, jagged high of the risk Theon had dangled in front of me.
I waited. I waited until the floorboards stopped creaking upstairs. I waited until the distant sound of the plumbing settling told me Mom had finished her nighttime routine and climbed into bed. I waited until the heavy, oppressive stillness of the house felt absolute.
Then, I moved.
I didn't bother wi
