Chapter 339

Nina

I was standing in the middle of a dark forest, the air heavy and thick with fog. Moonlight pierced through the canopy of tall pine trees, casting elongated shadows that seemed to dance and flicker in the wind.

But I wasn’t alone.

There it was again—the shadow entity I had been seeing far too often lately. Its outline always seemed to be changing and morphing every time I saw it, and yet it always felt familiar in the most unsettling of ways.

“What do you want?” I called out.

But there was no answer. It beckoned to me instead, its spindly limbs contorting with the movement. For some reason, in my dream state, it had an almost seductive pull that I couldn’t resist. My feet moved almost on their own accord, drawn deeper into the forest until I reached what should have been an impossibility—a replica of Mountainview.

Except it was ravaged, a haunting semblance of the day the Crescent pack attacked. Glass windows were shattered, scattered papers and belongings blew along the sidewalk, and rogues roamed the empty streets, their snarls resonating through the air like demonic laughter.

My first instinct was to scream, but no noise would come out. And even as I took a few stumbling steps backwards, the rogues didn’t snap their heads in my direction. I was like a spectator, watching just out of sight, and they were completely oblivious to me.

As I stood there, I glanced up at the shadow entity, which had stopped just a few feet in front of me. Even though its face was nothing but two hollow eye sockets and an impossibly black void, I almost felt as though I could sense its intentions. It was waiting, expecting something.

“What is it?” I said, more to fill the silence than anything. “Why are you making me see this?”

The shadow entity didn’t respond.

Suddenly, a searing pain erupted in my leg, snapping my attention away from the horrifying visage in front of me. I looked down to see blood oozing from where James had shot me all those months ago.

The wound, which was now supposed to be a circular white scar, had somehow reopened, and my leg trembled under the intensity of the pain. I sank to my knees, clutching at the bleeding gash, my fingers stained red like wine.

All the while, the shadow entity loomed over me, its form expanding, stretching taller as if it was feeding off my fear and agony. I mustered every ounce of my willpower, focusing on driving it away.

“Go! Leave me alone!”

My voice came out as nothing more than a strained, desperate whimper, rather than the bold cry that I had intended.

And the shadow entity remained, unfazed and omnipresent.

Finally, unable to bear its mocking presence any longer, I looked up, my eyes meeting its formless gaze. ‘Who are you?”

In answer, the shadow entity’s silhouette contorted, its voidlike face shifting to form an impossibly wide grin, baring a row of sharp, white teeth.

And then it did something that sent chills racing down my spine—it pointed at me with its long, spindly finger.

Suddenly, I was jolted awake thanks to the sound of the doorbell blaring through the house. The pain in my leg dissipated just as quickly as it came. I was back on the couch again where I had fallen asleep before, a movie playing softly on the TV as the scent of herbal tea wafted through the house. How long had I even been asleep? It couldn’t have been long.

With a shaking hand, I reached up to wipe a bit of sweat away from my brow, and groaned softly. The doorbell rang loudly again, causing me to jump a bit. With a sigh, I stood and made my way to the door.

“Nina, we came as soon as we heard.”

Before I even opened the door, Lori was bursting in with Jessica on her heels. They both stopped to shoot me a worried glance, clearly taken aback by my haphazard, half-asleep appearance.

“I… Um…” I paused, furrowing my brow as my brain scrambled to think of how they knew already. Then, I remembered: Luke. I had fallen asleep just minutes after he left. Somehow, he had already managed to blab to Lori and Jessica in that amount of time.

“Luke told you?” I managed.

Jessica nodded, her arms folded across her chest. “I can’t believe you’d tell him before us.”

“Yeah,” Lori continued. “You’re lucky we love you, or we’d never forgive you.”

I had to stifle a laugh. “Alright, alright,” I said, stepping out of the way and letting them into the kitchen, where Jessica immediately got to work making a cup of coffee like she owned the place. “So the secret’s out already.”

“Just for us,” Lori assured me, settling onto a stool at the counter. “Don’t worry. Luke only told us because—”

“Because Lori threatened to peel his human skin off,” Jessica interjected. There was a slight smirk on her face as she turned back around, steaming coffee cup in hand. Something told me that it wasn’t just Lori who had made the threats.

“So, what are you going to do?” Lori asked, breaking the silence.

I looked down at my hands and took a deep breath before answering. “For now, I’m taking it one day at a time. I haven’t told Enzo yet; I’m waiting for him to get home.”

Lori and Jessica exchanged glances. “Don’t you think he’s going to be upset that you waited?” Jessica asked cautiously.

I nodded, my fingers tracing the floral pattern on the cushion beside me. “He will be, but he’ll understand. I want to tell him face-to-face.”

“And what about the baby?” Lori asked. “Are you keeping it?”

Lori’s question sent a pang through my chest. “Truthfully,” I said, “I don’t know. I wouldn’t be averse to keeping it. But I’m just not sure.”

“Well, I certainly wouldn’t be averse to a little niece or nephew running around,” Jessica said, “but if you do keep it, what about his new job? He could be gone for six month stretches or more at a time.”

Jessica said the words almost as though she suspected that I hadn’t thought of that, but just as soon as she uttered them, the expression on her face told me that she regretted them.

“Look, it’s not like I’ve had too much of a chance to think about it,” I said softly. “But… I don’t know. I could handle the pregnancy on my own, so long as Enzo could still follow his dreams, you know?”

Lori’s eyes widened, disbelief painting her features. “You can’t be serious, Nina. You’re going to medical school. I repeat: medical school. You need to worry about yourself just as much as Enzo. When are you gonna finally drop that lone wolf complex of yours?”

I met her gaze. She was right, but my resolve still lingered. “I could handle it,” I said. “And besides, I have you guys, and my family, and I have Enzo, even if it’s from a distance.”

“But what if something goes wrong, Nina?” Jessica interjected. “Luke mentioned the complications. If something happened, you’d be all alone here in this house in the middle of freaking nowhere.”

My heart clenched at her words. I opened my mouth to speak, but no words would come. Truthfully, I didn’t even know what to say.

Lori sighed, her hands coming to rest on my shoulders. “We just worry about you, Nina. We don’t want you taking on more than you can handle, that’s all.”

I reached up, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze. “I know you do. And I appreciate it, I really do. But this is something Enzo and I have to navigate together, even if we’re miles apart.”

The room fell silent for a while. Finally, Jessica broke the hush. “Well, whatever you decide, know that we’re here for you. No matter what.”

I felt my eyes water, touched by the sincerity of her words. “Thank you,” I said softly. “That means more to me than you’ll ever know.”

Jessica grinned, raising her coffee cup. “Don’t sweat it. Now, here comes the real question: should I go by Aunt Jessica, or Auntie Jess?”