The moonlight filtered in through the gaps in the curtains, casting long, thin shadows across the room. It was quiet, almost too quiet. I couldn’t sleep, not after the conversation with Freddy. My mind was still reeling from our exchange. I wanted to escape, I wanted to protect my child, but I didn’t know where to go anymore. Freddy’s words haunted me—You’re safe with me, Aliana. I can give you everything you want—everything you need.

But the world he had built, the world I had become trapped in, was anything but safe. It was suffocating.

Suddenly, the quiet was broken by the soft click of a door opening. My heart...