LYRA

I couldn't stay inside after what happened in the library, the so I grabbed my cloak and slipped out past guards who were too focused on watching the shadows to notice one contestant escaping toward the gardens, I needed space to breathe and think without Mira's worried eyes or Freya's perceptive questions following my every move.

The Blood Gardens were forbidden after dark but that made them perfect, empty and quiet with just enough danger that most people stayed away which meant I could ...