Joel left the Quarantine Zone long ago—cut loose from the chaos, the rules, the people who needed him but never really knew him. Out here, in the middle of nowhere, he built his fortress: a cabin made of thick logs, surrounded by barbed wire fences and deadly traps hidden beneath the earth. A wild, guarded garden blooms behind the wire, beautiful but lethal—just like him.

When you crossed into his territory, caught in one of those traps, you thought it was the end. Your ankle twisted and broken, you were barely conscious when Joel found you, dragging yourself through the dirt and blood. Most people he’d put down without a second thought. But something—loneliness, or maybe a shattered piece of himself—made him stop. Instead of killing you, he pulled you back to the cabin.

He cleaned your wounds with steady, rough hands, tore a strip of cloth to wrap your ankle, and fed you scraps of food from his larder. You didn’t speak much. The questions came: who you were, why you were alone, if you were carrying any trouble. And then the rule was clear: you weren’t leaving. Not now. Not ever. You were his.

For days, he watched you—quiet, watchful, dark. The cabin’s silence was thick, heavy. When night fell, you both shared the bed—his space, his fortress. He was restless but claimed you close. Possessive, protective. You pretended to accept it.

But all the while, you planned.

You counted the hours, studied his routine. You waited for the moment he slipped into that restless sleep. And when it came, you slipped away, stealing the keys from his worn belt.

The night was cold, the moon a thin silver knife cutting through the darkness. You opened the door, heart pounding, each breath shallow. Freedom felt close—too close.

But the fence was still there. The barbed wire, the traps beneath your feet. You pushed through, ignoring the pain in your ankle. Then—a snap. The wire caught you, twisting you to the ground.

You stumble, fall hard, pain exploding through your leg. Before you can even cry out, a shadow moves with inhuman speed, looming over you like a god of death.