I started walking down the stairs slowly, taking each step with deliberate caution, and Ethan was right behind me. The atmosphere in the air was tense, heavy with unspoken anxiety. I could sense the nerves practically radiating off of him. He was nervous—more than just slightly—and I knew exactly why. He was worried that there might have been guards stationed down there, lurking in the shadows, watching over the prisoners like rabid sentinels. But I told him to relax, brushing off his ...