Chapter 1139
The next morning, Zoey was already awake before the others. She stood at the edge of the clearing, bare feet dug into the soft earth, her back to the fire pit where smoke still rose faintly from last night’s embers. The air clung to her skin, humid and heavy, though the sun hadn’t yet risen. She wasn’t looking at anything in particular, just the trees, the silence between the leaves. But her smile lingered, faint and offbeat, the same curl of the lips that had marked Rose... and then Layla.
Jude rose from the treehouse slowly, careful not to disturb Sophie beside him. He stretched, shook the sleep from his limbs, then descended barefoot into the clearing. He saw Zoey instantly. And when she turned to face him, his stomach twisted. That smile. She didn’t try to hide it.
"Morning," she said, voice light and almost musical.
"Early for you," Jude replied, trying to keep his tone casual.
"I didn’t sleep much." She tilted her head. "Too much to think about."
He stepped closer, studying her. "Like what?"
She shrugged and walked past him, brushing his shoulder lightly with her fingers. "Like how beautiful the woods are when no one’s watching them."
He turned to follow her with his eyes. "Zoey..."
She glanced back. "Don’t worry. I’m still me."
But she didn’t say it like reassurance. It was more like an echo. Like she’d heard someone else say it first.
By the time the others stirred, the energy in the camp had shifted again, slight, but undeniable. Grace and Susan were the first to notice. They exchanged a glance across the fire as Zoey poured water into a bowl with a little too much flourish, humming a song no one recognized. Rose sat nearby, skin glowing in the filtered morning light, silent but visibly pleased. Layla leaned against a tree trunk, whittling a small stick into nothing, eyes half-lidded and unreadable.