"And then?" I pressed.
Zasen clasped my shoulder. "Then, if the doors do open, we'll be able to see. You can lead us through this place, right?"
I nodded.
"And narrow halls mean we'll be able to use a small force to defeat a large one," he assured me.
Kanik made a noise. "There's one thing you're forgetting, Zasen." And he turned to me. "Ayla, do they have guns with them?"
I sucked in a breath. "No! The weapons are locked away. When the hunters return, they have to secure them in the weapons room. That's at the back!"
"Guards?" the woman asked, still listening in. "Anyone armed to secure the door?"
"I don't know," I admitted. "On the other side of that door is a long hall. It's almost as long as the Reaper's camp. At the end of it, the hall splits. One side is where women aren't allowed. The other side leads to the dining hall and other communal areas. We were never allowed into the hall that leads to the door. At most, we could look up it, but it was too long to see anything."
"So a long push," Zasen realized.
"I say we do it," one of the Reapers insisted.
"I'm in," Rymar said. "Zasen, you have twenty-two people willing to do this. Even if we go down in a blaze of glory, we'll hurt them badly enough Lorsa will be able to recover."
He nodded. "Okay. Do we leave the dogs out here?"
"No," I said, glancing at Holly. "She knows how to find Tobias. She can lead me to him and Callah!"
"Nice," Kanik breathed.
I nodded, feeling even better about this. "We can do this! I know halls they don't. I know places we can hide to get around them, and with only twenty of us..."
And Zasen huffed out a laugh. "This could work?"
"I don't know," I admitted again. "That's the problem. I do not know!"
"Do youthinkit can work?" Kanik pressed.
Swallowing hard, I jiggled my head in a meek and nervous little nod. I did think it could work. I was more terrified of what would happen if it didn't. I might die, but that was okay. My bigger fear was living. Being wounded to die slowly, or worse, being locked away in quarantine, aware of what's up here, but forced to breed children for one of the elders!
"Just don't let me live?" I asked, looking up at Zasen.
"No," Kanik said. "Ayla, the goal is to live."
"No one's going to get to you," Rymar hurried to say.
But Zasen's orange eyes found mine and held them. "I swear, Ayla," he said, ignoring the others.
"No!" Kanik snapped.
"She's not asking to die!" Zasen barked at him. "She's asking to not be held prisoner and raped, you idiot!"
"Oh," Rymar breathed.
Kanik's shoulders simply slumped. "Yeah. I didn't think about that. They'll try to spare her."
"And make me pay," I agreed, reaching down for Holly. "But the girls won't let that happen. We can do this. Ihopewe can do this."
"Wewantto do this," the Reaper woman assured me. "It's time for the Moles to see what it feels like to be invaded. They killed my nephew. I'm going to make sure all of them lose someone now."
"Then let's do this!" Zasen said. "Torches! Do not light them yet. Only one, and I will hold that."
