Chapter 43

• Shadows danced across the walls, twisting and contorting like malevolent spirits eager to claim their next victim. My heart pounded in my chest, each beat echoing in the silence like a drumroll heralding the arrival of some unspeakable horror.
• But still, I refused to let fear consume me. With every ounce of strength I could muster, I pushed myself to my feet, my muscles trembling with exertion as I faced off against the darkness that threatened to engulf me. "You may think you have won," I declared, my voice trembling but defiant. "But I will never surrender to you. I will fight you with every breath in my body, until my last dying breath."
• His hand tightened around my neck, squeezing the life out of me with each merciless grip. I gasped for air, the crushing weight of his hold leaving me gasping and desperate for reprieve. Pain shot through me like lightning, searing through my veins and leaving me trembling in agony.