Someone was standing behind me, grinning like a wolf that had just spotted prey.

It was Tristan Shaw, the son of Riley Kirkland, the barber in Stonebrook.

He was four years younger than me, but he had grown up a street punk through and through. He dropped out of middle school and spent his days hanging around internet cafes, stealing chickens and dogs, or doing whatever petty crimes he could get away with.

He was only 15, yet he was already a regular at the police station. However, because he was underage, the police couldn't do much. Every time they caught him, they scolded him a bit and let him go.

Due to the age gap, I never had much interaction with him. We weren't close. Even if we crossed paths, neither of us would bother saying hello.

I never imagined fate would pull a stunt like this today of all days. Right after I put Alexandra on the bus, I ran straight into him at the bu

I said I wasn't even sure whether Tristan had seen me with that woman. But judging by how he reacted at that time, he most likely didn't.

"Sounds like he didn't see you then. Don't stress yourself out too much. Go upstairs and get some rest," Dad said, rubbing his temples.

"Okay." I nodded and headed upstairs.

Maybe it was because we were already in the dog days of summer, but the heat felt unbearable today. Back in this generation, we didn't have air-conditioning and only had an old fan pushing air around.

Even in the morning, the air coming from that fan was still warm. With the cicadas screeching nonstop outside, I tossed and turned for what felt like forever.

Drifting between being conscious and asleep, I slipped into a string of dreams.

The first dream was about that woman. I dreamed that Brandon dragged her back and broke her legs in front of the entire village. She crawled a

The moment I saw the woman, it felt like I got struck by lightning. Brandon's men had searched all night for her, and she was hiding inside the straw pile in my backyard.

If I hadn't already known she existed, her appearance would have scared me to death.

She looked like she weighed maybe 60 pounds. Her hair hung over her face. Her skin clung to her bones with no color at all. She looked like a ghost crawling out of a grave.

Her ankle was the worst. It was torn open and raw, and even after a full night, dark blood still seeped from the wound.

But what shocked me most was her eyes. Even after everything she had gone through, they still looked steady and unbroken.

"Y-You were hiding here."

I froze. I didn't know what to do.

The woman didn't speak. She just stared at me with those stubborn, sharp eyes.

"Dad… Dad…" I threw my clothes on and ran inside to get Dad.

When he saw the woman crouched beside the straw pile, he stopped cold.

After a brief shock, he stepped out into the backyard and checked every direction. When he saw no one around, he told me to help her into the house.

Inside, he asked her many questions. He asked where she came from, what her name was, and how she escaped Brandon's house.

But she didn't answer a single thing. She stayed silent like she didn't even have a voice.

Dad didn't push her. He brought water and medicine to clean her ankle, while I made some food and fed her.

By sunrise, she finally relaxed enough to trust us. Exhaustion took over, and she fell asleep.

After I carried her upstairs to an empty room, I rushed down to talk to Dad. "Dad, what do we do now? If Brandon finds out she's here, we're done for."

"We can't hand her back to him." Dad lit a rare cigarette and took a long drag. "If she goes back, he'll kill her. You know he will."

I asked, "What should we do then?"

Dad stayed quiet for a moment. Then he said, "Since the village already held that meeting, they all believe she's long gone. They won't come back to search our place. For now, we'll hide her here.

"This woman isn't fully clear-headed right now. When she gets better, we ask where she's from. If she has a home somewhere, we'll figure out a way to send her back."

It was the only plan we had.

Dad and I weren't saints, but neither of us could stomach the thought of giving her to Brandon. So we decided to keep her hidden.

The next few days, we lived with our hearts in our throats, terrified someone would find her. But luck stayed with us. She hid in our house for four days without anyone noticing.

With rest and food, she looked much better. Her mind seemed clearer too.

However, something scared me. Every once in a while, she would suddenly fall into terrible pain and wild panic. When that happened, we had to hold her still and keep her mouth covered.

Dad said she probably had a drug problem, but her willpower was strong. She fought through every attack on her own strength.

After a few days together, she trusted us a lot more. However, she still didn't tell us who she was or where she came from.

Then, on the evening of the seventh day, she finally spoke. She asked us to take her away from here. She said all she needed was a ride to the bus that went into the city.

"Let's leave tonight before dawn."

Dad made the decision right away. "Luca, you take her out. Use the mountain path to leave the village. Don't pass through the main district. Follow the old road we used when you were a kid and head straight to Eskaria. Then, buy the first bus ticket to the city."

"Okay." I nodded to show I agreed.

So around 1:00 am, when everyone in Stonebrook was asleep, I slipped into the night and led the woman quietly out of the village.

As we took the mountain path, we had to walk through the hill full of graves. To be honest, walking through a cemetery in the middle of the night was creepy. Cold chills ran up my back the whole time.

By the time we made it past the graves and reached the old path Dad mentioned, it was already after 2:00 am. I followed the route I remembered from childhood and brought the woman toward Eskaria.

We reached Eskaria around 4:30 am. The first bus to the city left at 5:00 am.

I went to the ticket counter and bought her a seat. Then, I bought a small basket of bread from a breakfast stall so she could eat something on the road.

I didn't want trouble to catch up to us, so before the clock even hit 5:00 am, I helped her onto the bus and slipped 300 dollars into her hand.

She didn't put on a show about it. She took the money right away. As she stepped onto the bus, she suddenly turned to me. "Thank you, Luca."

After all these days together, it was the first time she ever thanked me. Her voice carried real honesty.

"Remember my name. It's Alexandra Harper. One day I will repay you."

At that, she walked onto the bus without looking back. I stood there watching her disappear down the aisle, feeling dazed.

I didn't take her words too seriously. Dad and I helped her because it was the right thing to do. We never expected anything from her.

Once she was safely on her way, the heavy weight on my chest finally lifted.

It felt like the whole nightmare was finally over. Thank goodness no one in the village found out. If Brandon ever learned we hid her, he would have killed me for sure.

After letting out a long breath, I turned to grab a plate of pasta from the shop next door before heading back the same way.

However, the moment I turned around, every hair on my body shot straight up.

Someone was standing behind me, grinning like a wolf that had just spotted prey.

It was Tristan Shaw, the son of Riley Kirkland, the barber in Stonebrook.

He was four years younger than me, but he had grown up a street punk through and through. He dropped out of middle school and spent his days hanging around internet cafes, stealing chickens and dogs, or doing whatever petty crimes he could get away with.

He was only 15, yet he was already a regular at the police station. However, because he was underage, the police couldn't do much. Every time they caught him, they scolded him a bit and let him go.

Due to the age gap, I never had much interaction with him. We weren't close. Even if we crossed paths, neither of us would bother saying hello.

I never imagined fate would pull a stunt like this today of all days. Right after I put Alexandra on the bus, I ran straight into him at the bus station in Eskaria.

My head throbbed so hard it almost burst.

If Tristan had seen me sending off

Chapter 10