Beneath the Surface of Safety

Previously

…That night, as I lay awake in bed, the hum of the refrigerator a low thrum in the background, I thought about Rostova’s words. “Sometimes, keeping things buried too deep can be more dangerous than letting them see the light.” It was a truth I had lived by, a truth that had kept my family safe. But for how much longer? The vigilance was a constant, exhausting weight. And I knew, with a sinking certainty, that the surface of safety was a fragile thing indeed. The shadows were always there, waiting for their moment to stretch and reclaim the light. And I would be watching. Always watching.