The Brotherhood’s message seared through my mind, a relentless echo that clawed at my heart.
Midnight,Come alone or she dies.
Those four words were a blade pressed against my ribs, sharp and unforgiving. I sat in the Sanctuary, shadows clinging to its stone walls, the hum of the old bulbs a mockery of a heartbeat. My hands wouldn’t stop trembling, fingers twisting in my lap as if I could wring the fear out of myself.
Valen paced the room like a predator in a cage. His silence was heavier than gunfire. Every step echoed the storm bottled inside him.
“They want you,” he said finally, his voice gravel and steel. He stopped, his gray eyes locking on mine. “Not Maya. She’s just leveraged. A pawn to pull you into their trap.”
I swallowed hard.
The lump in my throat was sharp as glass. “So
