Elara's POV

I've been lost for three hours and my phone died forty minutes ago. I'm starting to think hiking alone was the worst decision I've ever made.

The trail disappeared two miles back. The trees are thicker here, older, the kind that block out sunlight and make everything feel like dusk even though it's mid-afternoon.

I've been walking in circles. I know because I've passed the same fallen oak twice and the second time I almost cried.

That's when I hear it. Not an animal sound. Footsteps. Heavy, fast, and coming toward me.

My heart stops as panic surges through me. Before my brain can send signals to my...