Chapter 5655

“Ma’am, why does everyone here look at us that way?” Jared asked, trying to keep his tone light even as unease crawled up his spine.

The old woman’s hands trembled, just once, before she forced a smile. “Think nothing of it. They’re all good people.

Rest now. I’ll fetch supper.”

She slipped out, the door thudding shut behind her like the final word in a grim sentence.

Jared met Sylvia’s eyes across the dim room. Neither spoke, but in that silent exchange, they laid out every fear.

Something here is wrong. We need to be ready to run.

Two days crawled past. Every hour, the villagers’ stares grew bolder, their smiles thinner. At night, Jared heard whispered gatherings beyond the livestock pens-dozens of voices murmuring over the crackle of hidden fires, as though rehearsing a terrible chorus.