His eyes scanned my bruised face, searching for answers. A careful, gentle hand caressed my cheek, intensifying the turmoil in his gaze. "He did this to you." It wasn't a question; it was a statement. But even if it was, I couldn't find my voice, trapped in frozen silence. Fear gnawed at my skin as I stood amidst cold-blooded killers, surrounded by chaos and lifeless bodies. And with how he held the gun, I knew more bodies would soon drop. *** To everyone else, she was a nobody. A vessel for their perverse desires, a desperate pawn willing to fulfill their every whim. A nearsighted girl, finding solace only within the pages of her books, a portal to escape reality. But what they failed to grasp was that behind those innocent blue eyes lurked a devil, dependent on her happiness, hiding in the shadows and watching over her. And that devil was prepared to sacrifice everything for her. The scariest part? She had no clue.