Not yet.
I need Karia.
I have to let go of Stein to get to her.
As I lift my gaze, still keeping my grip on him, his arm in the air as if he is waiting for some final crescendo, I see the blue of her irises.
She says nothing.
Does nothing.
But our gazes lock.
A shuddering of relief floods through me, warming the frigidness of my wound.
But a moment later, there is a slithering sound at my back. It’s enough to make me let go of Stein, thinking of another threat behind me. And if I go down, I do not know what Stein will do to Karia.
Fingertips graze along my exposed spine.
A hint of nails, digging in.
And a voice in my ear whispering,“Curre.”
Latin.
Run.
Chapter 11
Karia
“Flashlight!” Stein’s voice clips out in the darkness.
A breath later, a tunnel of bright white light beams through the underground.
I blink, my throat dry, the gunshot ringing in my ears.
But it’s Stein I see first.
His blue gaze is on mine.
A smile plays along his mouth.
He drops the scalpel he used to hurt Sullen, and the ping of it chimes in the room.
I don’t know who was shot.
I need to turn around, to find Von, Isadora, ensure they are still standing. But there is commotion at my back, scuffling, and the light wavers in the dark.
Sullen looms behind Stein, his face pale, complexion ashen.
I can’t discern precisely what this room is, but I see dark walls, cement floors, and a gap in the wall ahead of me. A door slid open, flush with the divider. The thing that kept Sullen from me.
The scent of pennies is bright here, but smoke is the most overwhelming. Someone extinguished the fire; it’s why the lightwent out.Someonewho was probably one of my friends. I do not know why they chose now to take my side, but a rush of gratitude sweeps through me at the same moment I step back from Stein, my fingers curled into fists, my eyes narrowed on his.
Then he lifts his hand, as if to slap me.
I freeze, my body rigid.
