Chapter 24

Aria

I'm halfway to the door when I hear it. A soft, mocking laugh that sends a chill down my spine, freezing me in my tracks.

I turn slowly, my heart pounding in my chest. And there she is. Soren, standing in the shadows, her arms crossed and her eyes glinting with a calculating light.

"Going somewhere, Aria?" she asks, her voice dripping with false sweetness.

I swallow hard, trying to force down the panic that rises in my throat. "Soren," I say, my voice trembling despite my best efforts to keep it steady. "What are you doing here?"

She steps forward, her lips curving in a cruel smile. "I could ask you the same thing," she says, her tone light and mocking. "Did you really think you could just run away? Did you think no one would notice, that no one would care?"

I feel a flicker of anger beneath the fear, a spark of defiance that refuses to be snuffed out. "I don't know what you're talking about," I say, lifting my chin. "I'm not running away. I'm just... I have to..."

But Soren cuts