I didn’t sleep.

How could I, when every sound made me jump? When every creak of the floorboards sent my heart racing? When my mind kept replaying Marcus’s voice, Dante’s offer, the weight of a choice I didn’t know how to make?

By the time dawn light crept through the windows, I’d worn a path in the carpet from pacing.

A soft knock interrupted my spiral of anxiety.

“Kira? It’s me.” Lyra’s voice, gentle but firm. “Can I come in?”

I opened the door to find her holding ...