Chapter 115

He hesitated. "I’ll get Cindy."

A few minutes later, Cindy knock the door.

We walked through the cold halls and out into the mountain air. Everything smelled like smoke from the vines they had burned.

The ritual grounds looked simple in the daylight—just black stone and silver lines. But I knew how dangerous they were.

As we walked down the steps, I looked at her. "Do you know what happened to Stella?"

Cindy looked at the ground immediately. I felt a cold chill.

"What happened, Cindy?"

She was quiet for a long time. Then, she whispered, "I saw the guards carrying her body this morning."

It felt like the floor had dropped away. "No... Is she alive, or…" My voice broke. Declan had promised me she would live if I stayed. He had lied to me again.

Cindy’s face turned hard. "I don’t know. And what did you think would happen? You tried to run. Did you think he would just let her go?"

"She didn't do any