Page 159
I press myself closer to the wall.
“Max?” My voice is barely above a whisper, caught between hope and disbelief. The sight of him hits me like a blow to the chest. His familiar features, marked with bruises and exhaustion, cut through the fog in my mind.
Before I know it, I’m on my feet, gripping the bars like they’re the only thing tethering me to reality.
“Hey, Nys.” His voice is rough and tired, and the grin he flashes me is only fleeting. “Ready to get out of here?”
“Gods, yes.” I move toward the door of the cell, attempting to ignore the unease that tries to slither into my mind. “Where is here exactly?”
“Beneath the Southern wing. The king had it built after a champion tried to desert during the last Games.”
He holds something up to the light and my pulse quickens. He has the lockpicks I gave him.
I choke on a laugh. “This is not what I had in mind when I said I’d teach you how to pick locks.”
“Let’s hope you’re a good teacher,” he says, already fitting the picks to the lock.
“The tumblers will be stiff. Push it back farther—there. Feel it?”
He nods, adjusting his pressure.
“Where’s Kal?”
“Trying to keep the king and Lord Malis distracted.”
I frown. “And you just managed to walk on into this cell?”
“There was a guard, but he was asleep,” he says. “So we probably shouldn’t talk anymore.”
The unease returns tenfold, a chill creeping over my skin. It all sounds far too easy. A lone sentry conveniently dozing at their post, practically leaving the way wide open for anyone to slip right in. A lure, tempting the prey so the predator can swoop in…
“It’s a canary trap,” I whisper. “Max, you need to leave.”
The lock clicks, the cell door popping open. Maxim stands, his expression torn between a grin and a frown.
“What’s a—”
The flash of steel is so fast, so final.
“Maxim!”
Maxim jolts, his body arching as he’s thrown forward into the bars with the tip of a blade through his stomach. The motion slams the cell door shut, the lock clicking back into place.
I reach for him as he stares back at me, brown eyes wide with shock and pain.
No. No, no, no…
“Nys—” He chokes off my name, blood spraying onto my face as the weapon is yanked out with a sickening squelch.
I sob as he crumples to the ground with an agonized gasp.
This isn’t real. This isn’t—
“I was hoping Aella would be desperate enough to take this risk, but it has its purpose too.” The Eagle steps into the light, sheathing his sword still dripping with blood. “I suppose she does not care for you after all.”
“I will kill you for this,” I hiss.
He glances down at Maxim, seeming to ignore my words entirely.
