Chapter 1173
Rose stood at the water’s edge, her hair plastered to her glowing skin, the light within her pulsing with the rhythm of the song. She looked like an offering, her arms lifted, her face turned up toward the dark thing that rose above her. Jude took a trembling step forward, his hand slipping from Sophie’s as he fought the pull of the song, of Rose’s voice, of his own desperate need to reach her.
"Rose!" His voice cracked through the mist, raw and ragged. "Don’t do this! You can fight it. Come back to me, come back to , us., "
For one breathless moment, the light in her dimmed. Her head lowered, her eyes met his, and he saw it, , truly, saw it, the woman he loved staring back at him through the veil of whatever had claimed her. A tear slipped down her cheek, silver in the moonlight.
"I’m sorry," she whispered, her voice breaking. "I tried."
Then the dark shape behind her loomed higher, the mist shuddered outward in a sudden gust, and the song rose to a deafening crescendo. Jude stumbled back, Sophie catching him, their hearts racing as the thing in the pool seemed to inhale the night itself. The air grew colder, the trees bending as if in supplication, and the island felt as if it tilted toward some terrible, inevitable end.
Lucy stepped forward, blade raised, defiance burning in her eyes. "Enough!" she shouted, her voice like steel. "We’re not letting this take you. Not her. Not any of us."
Scarlet, Zoey, Grace, Susan, Natalie, Emma, and Stella joined her, forming a line between Jude and Rose, between the group and whatever nightmare had risen from the water. The ground trembled beneath their feet, the pool’s glow deepening to a sickly, unnatural light.
And then, the dark thing began to withdraw, sliding back beneath the water’s surface, the mist swirling to hide it once more. The song faded to a low hum, the clearing falling silent but for the sound of the wind and their ragged breaths. Rose turned away from them, her form already dissolving into the mist.
"No!" Jude cried, trying to break free, but Sophie held him, her strength the only thing keeping him grounded. "Rose!"