Mikkel scrambled toward the opening, his broad shoulders barely squeezing through, but he made it with determined effort. Hilda followed more easily, her slight frame an advantage in the tight space. As Freya prepared to go next, she paused, looking back at me with an expression I couldn't quite read in the dim light.
"Why are you doing this?" she asked, her voice barely audible over the ominous creaking of the failing structure. "You could have waited outside. No one would have blamed you."
I met her gaze steadily. "Would you have left us if the situation were reversed?"
She hesitated only a moment before answering honestly. "I…don't know."
"Well, I do know. And I couldn't live with myself if I stood by while you were trapped." I gave her a gentle push toward the opening. "Now go, bef
