The Shadow is watching me. He says I owe him everything. I have to meet him tonight. If I don’t, he’ll hurt the people I love. I’ve tried to leave, but it’s too late. I don’t know who I’m dealing with.

Nora’s hands shook as she read. The Shadow. Whoever or whatever it was, Ivy was terrified of it.

“I need to get out of here,” Nora whispered to herself, looking over her shoulder. But then she froze—footsteps, faint but growing louder.

She quickly shoved the journal into her backpack and ducked into the shadows. The door creaked open, and two figures emerged—Alex, and someone else she didn’t recognize.

“He won’t stop looking for her, you know,” said the stranger, a tall man with a dark, menacing air. “We should’ve dealt with her sooner.”

Alex gritted his teeth. “I know. But she’s too important. She knows too much.”

Nora’s pulse raced. What did Ivy know?

The two men walked away, leaving her hidden in the darkness.