Silence had settled over the cell. Not the peaceful kind—no, this was the kind of silence that crushed in from all sides. A silence that watched. That listened. That waited.
The others were asleep, their exhaustion pinning them down in the dark. Even Varyth, whose tension never truly faded, had succumbed, his breathing slow and measured where he lay against the farthest wall. Darian had one arm draped over his own eyes, his face turned away.
Cindrissian was still as death itself, his breathing so silent I almost questioned whether he was breathing at all. Fenric sprawled nearby, his usually pristine form now streaked with dirt and dried blood. Linc lay as close as propriety allowed, their hands next to each other in the lightest touch.
But we were awake.
Shaelith. Brynelle. Me.
I twisted the strip of fabric in my hands, wrapping it tightly around the shard of bone I’d found in the corner of the cell. It wasn’t much, butit was better than nothing.
Shaelith’s voice was a whisper, so cutting it needed no volume to make an impact.“Are you sure about this?”
I let out a breath, finishing the final wrap before flexing my fingers, testing the makeshift weapon. It would do.
“Oh, absolutely not,” I said, dry as dust. “This is a terrible idea.”
A ghost of a smirk tugged at Brynelle’s lips.
Shaelith huffed, adjusting her position beside me, shifting her weight. “At least you’re self-aware.”
Brynelle’s whiskey-coloured eyes gleamed in the dim torchlight. “On the bright side, if this fails, at least we’ll be dead before we have to hear them say I told you so.”
I swallowed a laugh, though my chest twisted. “Nowthat’sthe real incentive.”
“I hate that I agree.” Shaelith shook her head.
We all did.
Because if the males found out what we were about to do, they’d shut it down before we could evenfinishexplaining.
Varyth and Linc, with their strategic minds,would tell us it was reckless, that we needed more information, more time. That we couldn’t afford a mistake.
Darian, whoserage had only grown wilderin the days we’d been here, would grab my wrist, shake his head, andrefuse to let us take another step toward the door.
Cindrissian wouldn’t even argue. He’d justlookat us.One look.And that would be enough.
And Fenric?
Fenric would sigh.Deeply.And then he’d make some snide remark beforephysically hauling me away from the door.
But they weren’t awake.
And we didn’t have time.
I looked at Brynelle, whose fingers hovered over the latch. She hadn’t touched it yet, hadn’t made a sound, but there was somethingelectricin the air. A single breath away from action.
Shaelith’s gaze flicked to me, then to the males, ensuring they were deep in sleep. A shared understanding.
“One chance,” Brynelle said.
I nodded. “Then let’s make it count.”
The words hung in the air for a heartbeat. Then Brynelle moved.
She reached for Shaelith, hand cupping her jaw, thumb brushing across the line of her cheekbone, and for a moment, the cell, the sleeping males, the impossible plan—all of it vanished.
There was only them.
