The Claws filed in next.
The six chosen Scales loaded in last, forming two tight rows nearest the doors — a wall of guns trained forward, ready to absorb whatever waited on the other side.
The elevator groaned under our weight but held.
Reo pressed the button, and the doors closed.
Slowly we lowered.
The twins leaned forward and looked at each other.
Then one whispered, "Where one falls—"
"—the other burns it all down." The other twin nodded.
Reo looked at the Scales in front of us. "When these doors open, you're the first line. Understood?"
They nodded, knowing exactly what it meant. The first line would be the first to die if someone were waiting on the other side with guns. No fear hit their eyes. Instead, they moved into position and readied their weapons.
Everyone went silent.
I could only hear breathing, the hum of the elevator cables, and the faint creak of metal as we descended.
After passing all of the floors, we went further down, past the lobby, past the parking garage, past the foundation.
Deeper.
The elevator didn't slow.
It just kept dropping.
I looked at Hiroko. "How deep does this go?"
"Deep enough that most people forget the darker part of the Depths exists."
After a few minutes, the elevator finally began to slow. My stomach lifted slightly as we decelerated.
Everyone raised their weapons.
And I glanced at my Tiger’s blood on my guns and had faith in her protection. I could almost feel her heartbeat through the dried blood on the barrels—lovingly steady, stubborn, refusing to let me go.
Tora.
My chest ached.
Not from fear.
From the distance between us.
I tightened my grip.
I should have put a ring on your finger before I left. I won’t make that mistake again.
Whatever was at the bottom of this elevator, it wasn't getting me.
Not today.
I had things to do.
