Chapter 13

Elena's POV

I didn't sleep much.

Even with Anna beside me, even after the cops came and left, the image of that box haunted me.

Who does that?

Why me?

I checked my phone more times than I should've. Nothing new. No texts. No flowers. No boxes.

Still, I couldn't relax.

Julian called again in the morning, but I didn't pick up.

I didn't know what to say to him yet.

I stared at the ceiling. The silence felt loud. Anna was still asleep, but I was wide awake.

Every creak. Every shift in the wind. My heart reacted like it was under attack.

I needed answers.

But I had none.

So I got up. Quietly. Slipped into the bathroom and splashed cold water on my face.

When I looked in the mirror, I barely recognized myself.

This wasn't the same Elena who survived the boardroom, the betrayal, the scar.

This was someone tired. Paranoid.