The forest felt different after Adrian left.
It wasn't quieter, not in any way that could be measured by sound. The wind still threaded through the trees, leaves still shifted under its touch, and somewhere deeper in the woods, something moved with the quiet confidence of a creature that knew it belonged there.
Yet none of that reached Elara the same way it had before. The world no longer pressed against her senses as something external. It lingered closer now, brushing against her awareness as if it recognized her.
Or worse, as if it had been waiting for her to recognize it.
She stood where he had left her, her breath slowly evening out, though the tension in her body refused to fully dissolve. Adrian's presence had disappeared from sight, but it had not truly left. It clung to the edges of her thoughts, sharp and deliberate, like a blade that had been drawn but not yet used.
He had watched her.
Measured her.
