Chapter 33 · The City Goes Quiet

I can't hear my own breathing.

That's the first thing that hits me when Derek's voice stops echoing through the clinic. My chest is moving. I know it is. But there's no sound. No rasp of air. No heartbeat thudding in my ears. Nothing.

Rena's mouth is open like she's screaming. Her face is red. Veins standing out on her neck. But the room is silent.

The creature that broke through the window is still there. Crouched on top of the medical cart. Its body is wrong—too many joints, skin like wet leather, eyes that don't blink. It's watching us. Waiting.

Derek's voice comes again. Not from him. From that thing.

"Run if you want, Ivy. You won't get far."

I grab Rena's arm. She jerks toward me and I see her lips moving. Fast. Angry. But I can't hear a damn word.

Cole is across the room. He's staring at his hands. Opening and closing his mouth. He's been mute for years but this is different. This isn't his curse. This is Derek stealing what little we had left.

I point to the door. Rena shakes her head hard. Points at Cole.