Chapter 1067
Jude stood alone by the river, the morning sun catching on the ripples as small fish darted beneath the surface. The same water that had almost taken Rose. His fingers were wet, stained with cold, but his mind was far from fishing. The image of Rose, soaked and unconscious by the rocks, replayed again and again. She had been pale, lips slightly blue, and yet... something about her expression even then hadn’t felt entirely human. It was the way her mouth curled, almost smiling, just before her eyes opened.
He hadn’t mentioned it to the others, not when they’d carried her back, not when she lay silent in bed, nor when she awoke the next day with more energy than anyone should have after nearly drowning. At first, he chalked it up to relief, gratitude for survival. But then Layla started acting differently too. Too differently.
He watched them now from a distance as Rose and Layla walked together past the treehouse, their fingers brushing, laughing about something Jude couldn’t hear. A laugh that didn’t sound like Layla’s usual snort or Rose’s low chuckle. No, this was synchronized, melodic, like it belonged to someone else entirely. And Zoey, sweet, observant Zoey, was following behind them, eyes half-lidded, smile ever-present, like her thoughts were somewhere else entirely.
When had Zoey ever let herself get swept up in games and whispers?
The three of them moved as one now. A triangle of soft touches, glances exchanged too fast to track, words spoken in whispers only they seemed to understand. Jude had seen things like this before among the group, moments of closeness, romantic trysts that began and ended with the tide, but this wasn’t like that. There was no beginning. There was no teasing buildup. Just a sudden, all-consuming link between them. It felt unnatural.
Last night during dinner, Zoey had sat between Rose and Layla. She didn’t speak much, only smiled at everyone, only moved when one of the other two did. When Rose leaned close to whisper something, Zoey blinked slowly, as if in trance, and smiled that same unblinking smile. Layla’s hand was on her thigh the entire time. Jude had pretended not to notice. He hadn’t even brought it up when they all turned in. But he hadn’t slept well.
He was Jude. He was supposed to be the one who noticed things. The one who connected dots, saw patterns. But this time, the pieces weren’t fitting the way they should.
He dropped the fish net into the water, let it rest, and turned his eyes toward the forest. The sun was higher now, warming his neck. Somewhere nearby, Grace and Emma were gathering berries, their voices rising faintly in a duet of laughter. He wished for a second he could lose himself in that sound. But the unease crawling under his skin wouldn’t let him.
Earlier that morning, Rose had slipped into his bed before the others woke, her fingers finding his chest, her lips on his neck. There was a hunger in her touch that hadn’t been there before, not new in intensity, but new in intention. Her eyes didn’t leave his the whole time, not even when she arched against him, whispered his name, kissed him until the world narrowed. But even as his body responded, his mind was elsewhere. She felt different. Warmer. Wetter. But less real somehow. Like something imitating Rose, not the girl he’d once coaxed from the edge of a broken heart.