Stuck in an Island with Twelve Beautiful Women
Chapter 1207

Chapter 1207: Chapter 1207

Finally, Lucy stepped forward. "You three go ahead. We’ll come behind you."

For the first time, Rose’s smile twitched - just a hair. A fracture. But it vanished quickly.

"Of course," she said sweetly, and the trio turned and disappeared down the narrow trail that led behind the waterfall, Grace nestled between them like a lamb in velvet jaws.

The moment they were out of sight, the tension broke like a dam.

Susan dropped to her knees, tears welling as she stared at the spot Grace had just stood.

"She didn’t even look at me," she whispered. "Not really."

"She’s still in there," Jude said quickly, crouching beside her. "I know she is."

"No," Zoey said, voice low and sharp. "She’s fading. Just like Layla did. Just like - " She stopped herself. Bit her lip. Looked down the trail with fire in her eyes.

Natalie put a hand on her shoulder. "If we rush in, we lose more."

"Then what?" Lucy snapped. "We let them keep converting?"

"We find out what it is," Sophie said. "We follow them. We don’t confront. We observe. We learn."

Emma nodded. "And if there’s an opening... we strike."

A tense agreement rippled through them. Jude rose to his feet. "We move quiet. Together. No one wanders off."

They descended carefully, the sound of the falls growing louder, swallowing their steps and words in its thunder. The mist thickened, curling into their clothes, hair, lungs. The trail narrowed sharply, but Jude remembered Rose’s words - "behind the falls."

And there it was.

A small opening, half-hidden by vines and spray, just wide enough to slip through. The others had already gone in. Jude felt it like a weight in his chest, an instinct screaming low and hot: do not follow.

But they did.

Inside, it was dark and echoing, the roar of water muffled but ever-present. A cavern opened before them, lit by faint bioluminescence - spirals glowing faintly on the stone walls, pulsing slow and rhythmic like a heartbeat.

And there, in the center of the space, stood Rose, Layla, and Grace.

They were not alone.

Something rose from the pool at the cavern’s heart. It was tall, slender, wrapped in a robe of liquid black that dripped and reformed constantly. Its face was hidden, but its presence screamed ancient . Its fingers were too long. Its breath, if it breathed, made the torches flicker.

The spiral on the wall behind it glowed brightest of all.

Jude reached for Sophie’s hand.

They watched as Rose stepped forward and knelt before the being. Layla followed. Then Grace.

The being reached forward and touched each of their heads. The cavern pulsed with a low, harmonic tone.

And then Rose turned.

Her voice echoed against the stone.

"It’s time."

Zoey flinched as Rose’s voice rippled through the cavern, too resonant, as if more than one mouth had spoken. Her words didn’t just echo - they vibrated , like they had weight. Meaning. Command. "It’s time," she said, and the walls responded with a low hum that made Jude’s bones ache.

The being behind her did not move again, but its presence spread, like smoke seeping into every crack, every breath. Layla rose first, her eyes gleaming - not just with reflection, but with depthless, swirling darkness. Grace followed, slower, but her expression was the same - empty calm wrapped in beauty. And Rose... Rose was not the same woman they had pulled from the river days ago. Her beauty had grown sharper, colder, like a statue polished by unspoken winds. There was reverence in the way she stood before the creature behind her, but there was also ownership.

Jude pulled Sophie behind a stalagmite, barely breathing. The others crouched around them - Zoey tense, eyes wide; Lucy with her blade drawn but still; Natalie holding Stella’s hand tightly; Susan trembling beside Emma, who was as still and focused as a statue.

"We’re out of time," Zoey whispered. "This is the conversion."

"No," Sophie murmured. "It’s a ritual."

"And that thing is the god," Lucy said grimly.

"No." Jude’s voice was low but clear. "It’s not a god. It’s inside the spiral. It’s... part of the island. A watcher that’s gone wrong."

They watched in horrified fascination as Rose raised her hand and gestured. The glowing spirals on the walls intensified, casting long shadows across the damp stone. Something started rising from the water - thin, glistening tendrils like roots or veins, pulsing in time with the spiral hum. The tendrils wrapped gently around Layla’s arms, her legs, her throat. She smiled as they did. Grace knelt again, and they began to thread into her hair like growing vines.

"They’re feeding it," Sophie said. "Or it’s feeding on them ."

"Maybe both," Emma whispered.

The pulsing reached a low climax, and then Rose raised her eyes. Her gaze turned directly toward where Jude and the others were hidden.

Jude’s blood froze.

She couldn’t see them.

She couldn’t.

But she smiled.

That same awful, slow, serene smile.

"Come out," she said, voice like honey cracked with thunder. "You don’t need to hide. You’re part of this too."

No one moved.

Not even a breath.

Rose tilted her head. "Still shy?"

Layla turned then. "We can feel you. All of you."

The being in the water pulsed again, and a long hum filled the space. The spirals on the walls began to rotate - move - not physically, but optically, as if reality itself was twisting. The sound pressed in against their skulls, an invisible pressure behind their eyes.

Zoey flinched and gasped, grabbing her temple. "It’s in my head - "

"Don’t listen," Emma snapped, pulling her back.

But Grace was walking toward the shadows now, slow, barefoot on the wet stone. "You don’t have to be afraid," she said gently. "It’s beautiful . I feel so light."

Susan’s mouth opened, a choked sound leaving her throat.

Grace turned to her. "I’m still me, Suze. I just see more now. The island... it never wanted to hurt us."

Susan took a step forward.

Emma yanked her back.