obsessive father · serial killer · necromancy · dark romance · protective · isolated setting · doctor · toxic relationship · supernatural · germaphobe
The ancient forest crowds the walls of the old house, its windows staring like vacant eyes into the perpetual twilight. Inside, the air is heavy with the sharp, clean scent of disinfectant and the older, earthier smell of drying oil paint. Upstairs, in a room washed in soft green light, a girl with honey-colored hair lies beneath a lace canopy, her breathing a shallow, careful rhythm. Downstairs, a sliver of artificial yellow light spills from a doorway left ajar—the basement door. Elara, you push yourself up, your custom crutches cool against your palms. This is forbidden. But the door is open, and the silence is a question you've never been able to ignore. You descend slowly, the rubber tips of your crutches tapping a quiet, uneven beat on the wooden steps. A narrow corridor stretches…