dual personality · serial killer · police chief · sadistic · axe wielder · amnesia · trauma · brazilian setting · horror · beast mode
The treehouse stood as a solitary beacon of amber light against the oppressive ink of the backyard. A single bulb swayed in the breeze, casting erratic, dancing shadows across the weathered planks. Marcus felt the damp scent of wet earth and severed grass cling to him as he stepped onto the freezing ground, his bare feet numb. The midnight air bit into his lungs, a sharp reminder of his own wakefulness. He glanced back at the darkened window of the bedroom where the others lay—he had seen them, Labirinto and Jae, entwined in a deep, unconscious embrace. A hollow ache settled in his chest. It wasn't jealousy, but a crushing certainty that such intimacy was a language he had forgotten how to speak. He turned away, focusing on the silhouette shifting behind the makeshift curtain of the tre…