Chapter – The Lock Must Break

The message carved into the wall burned itself into my thoughts.

“He is the key. You are the lock.”

I stared at those words until my vision blurred. Nico’s absence felt like a gaping wound in the center of my chest. Every room was too quiet. Every shadow held his voice. And now, this cryptic riddle, left not by accident, but as a clue.

A warning.

Or maybe... a prophecy.

I sank down onto the edge of his bed, fingers brushing against his pillow.

“She wants me,” I whispered aloud.

My pulse thudded heavily as it dawned on me. “She’s not just after Nico......