Night fell, thunder humming like a warning. Tylor couldn't sleep—not after hearing Elena's voice, or seeing that flicker of Amaira's reflection not matching her.
He sat on the porch, fingers wrapped around a steaming mug, Kayla beside him, quiet.
"She saw something," Kayla whispered. "In the window. Another her."
"She didn't say?" Tylor asked.
"She doesn't need to. I felt it too."
Inside, Amaira traced the spiral on the clock again, but her mind wasn't there. In her sketchbook, she drew a girl with her face—same eyes, same smile—but standing over a fractured earth, holding a red balloon that was burning.
A soft knock.
Elias entered with a box—weathered and sealed with Elena's handwriting. "Found this in the attic. Tagged 'Mirror Project.'"
Amaira opened it slowly. Inside: photos, research notes... and a pendant. The center was cracked glass shaped like a pupil.
Tylor held up one note. "They didn't just clone timelines," he said. "They cloned people..."
Amaira's voice trembled. "What if I'm not the only me?"
They all looked at the window again.
The reflection was gone.