Victor's Haunting Echoes & A Lover's Healing Touch

I shot up in bed, a scream dying in my throat as sweat soaked the sheets around me. The nightmare clung to my consciousness like tar—Victor's sneering face morphing into Hazel's terrified one, then Rhys bleeding out in my arms. My father's voice echoed in my head, that same hateful rasp that had tormented me for years.

"Weak. Disgusting. No son of mine."

I slammed my fist against the headboard, welcoming the sharp pain that shot through my knuckles. Anything to drown out his voice. Victor Ryder had been dead for years, but he still lived rent-free in my fucked-up head.

The clock read 3:17 AM. Sleep was a lost cause now. I threw the tangled sheets off my body and stalked to the bathroom, turning the shower on full blast. Steam quickly filled the small space as I stepped under the scalding spray, hoping it would burn away the lingering tendrils of the nightmare.