Melody's POV
The cold woke me before the sun did.
I blinked up at the foggy glass windows of my car, my breath visible in the early morning air. My spine ached from sleeping curled up in the backseat, and my hoodie had done little to keep the chill out. Still, it was better than asking anyone for help.
Especially him.
Marvis had made his choice. He didn't want me around. So I didn't show up at the warehouse. I didn't text. I didn't beg.
I just… disappeared.
And no one seemed to care.
I stretched, rubbing the back of my neck, then reached for the glove box to pull out my emergency wipes and a protein bar. This was routine now. Wake up, wipe down, brush teeth at the gas station across the street. Pretend I wasn't slowly crumbling inside.
But this morning was different.
When I opened the glove box, something slid out.
A photo.
My breath caught.
It was a picture of me. Sleeping. In this car.
The same hoodie. Same blanket. Same position as last night.
And on the back, scribbled in sharp black ink:
"Nice kill. You're not invisible."
My stomach twisted.
I jumped out of the car, spinning around the empty lot. A stray cat darted across the cracked concrete. A parked truck idled two spaces away. But there was no one.
Nothing.
Except for a deep, sharp silence that crept into my bones.
Someone was watching me.
They had been close enough to take a picture. Close enough to leave it behind.
And smart enough to do it without waking me up.
I didn't call Marvis. Not because I didn't want to.
But because I couldn't risk him seeing me like this.
Besides… part of me didn't trust him anymore. If Darius was part of the circle that murdered my parents, then Marvis, his enemy must know more than he's saying.
Still, I had nowhere to go.
I pulled my hood up and started the car, driving to the only place left where I could think in peace.
The cemetery.
I stood in front of their graves. Mom and Dad.
The wind stung my face as I read the names over and over again.
This is for you, I thought. It always was.
My hand trembled slightly as I reached into my coat pocket and pulled out the photo. I tore it in half. Then into quarters. Then into nothing.
"You're not invisible," they said.
Good. Let them see me. Let them know I'm not done.