Ishe alive? He was alive before they knocked me out.
I know I shouldn’t antagonize the guard, but I have to know.
“Is he alive?” I call out, my voice smaller than I expected. “Ronan. Is he alive?”
The guard laughs, a cruel, bitter laugh. “Oh, you better believe he is. How does it feel, bitch? Your little plan failed. It failed, and you’ll die in here. That’s if he doesn’t kill you first. Both of you.”
“Please, I didn’t—”
“SHUT THE FUCK UP BEFORE I KILL YOU MYSELF.”
I shut up.
Ronan is alive. He’s alive.
I saved him. I came here to kill him, and I saved his life instead.
Oh, fucking hell. Why did I do that? Even if I ever manage to get out of here, Adria is going to kill me.
I should have just let him die.
No, I shouldn’t have. I couldn’t have, and I know it.
What I don’t know is why. Why did I save him? What made me shoot my arrow at his assassin instead?
Has he gotten to me so thoroughly? Has his plan worked that much better than mine?
Godsdammit.
“—right now, so help me Vahlo if you don’t let me in there, I swear I’ll—”
There’s a voice coming from down the hall. It’s female, and it’s familiar, but it’s not Adria.
It’s Quinn.
Great. Just great. Just what I need, another person who hates me. Did she come here to gloat? To spit in my face? To kick me while I’m down as low as I can go, so low I can barely sit up?
Quinn’s short, red hair is plastered to her forehead with sweat. She’s wearing a full set of Royal Guard armor, and there’s dried blood on her cheek, maybe hers. “I always knew I’d find you here one day.”
“Go to hell, Quinn,” I say, but I cough up something that looks suspiciously like a blood clot as I do.
“Shit, Sylvie,” she says, rushing to the bars. “Let me in there now. RIGHT FUCKING NOW!” she screams at the guard.
He fumbles with the keys, and she snatches them from him, flinging the door open.
Oh gods, she’s going to kill me.
She rushes over to me, and I cower away from her, trying to drop a shadow but failing. “I was going to mess around with you for a bit, but I had no idea what state you were in. Can you walk?”
“What?” Is she…is she trying to help me?
“Oh, fuck it,” says Quinn, and she picks me up. Shepicks me uplike I’m nothing.“Vayla help me, you smell like death.”
“What are you doing?”
“I’m getting you out of here. I saw the whole thing. I know you saved him. Just hang on.”
The guard tries to protest, but she raises a hand beneath me, and I feel the heat of the flame in it. “Don’t even fucking think about it.”
