Later that evening, Clara was in the park when a sudden shout drew her attention toward the distant greenhouse. Five teenagers emerged from behind the fencing and began running across the grass. One spotted Clara, pointed directly at her, and shouted to his friends. They changed direction immediately, accelerating toward her with alarming urgency and spreading across the surrounding paths.
Clara felt a sharp prickle of sweat break out along her hairline. The boys weren’t just passing through; their trajectory was locked onto her, and they were moving with an alarming, unexplained speed. Panic, cold and sharp, flared in her chest.