Mara’s POV
The city doesn’t explode.
That’s how I know Kieran is planning something worse.
We leave the docks without sirens, without shadows breaking loose behind us, without blood on the concrete. Eli disappears into a waiting car Declan arranged in silence, shaking so hard I can hear his teeth knock when he thanks me. I don’t tell him it was never about gratitude. Survival doesn’t require it.
The drive back is too smooth. Too ordinary.
Seattle glows the way it always does—late-night traffic, neon reflected on wet pavement, people laughing outside bars with no idea how close fault lines run beneath their feet.
Declan keeps one hand on the wheel, the other relaxed on his thigh. Controlled. Watchful.
“You didn’t hesitate,” he says finally.
“I did,” I reply. “Just not where it showe
