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“About everything.”

I let him settle me back against the pillows, exhaustion making my limbs leaden. “I want to see Hargen first.”

Zoe opens her mouth, clearly to object, but Talon cuts her off with a sharp gesture.

“I’ll bring him,” he says. “He’s mobile now, thanks to you.”

Zoe’s lips press into a thin line, but she doesn’t argue further. They leave me alone, the door closing quietly behind them.

I sink back against the pillows, eyes drawn again to the window, to the glimpse of sky and freedom beyond. So many years gone. But I’m out. I’m alive. And something tells me this sanctuary, this peace, is temporary.

The world is changing. I felt it in the Shard’s power, in the connection to Hargen, in Talon’s eyes when he spoke of the phoenix. Old magics awakening. New alignments forming.

And I’m no longer watching from a cell. I’m part of it now, for better or worse.

Whatever comes next, I’ll face it in the open air beneath an endless sky.

Free. Finally free.

Chapter 27

Talon

I lean against the doorframe, watching as Hargen makes his way slowly into Lila’s room. His movements are stiff, one hand hovering near his abdomen where the bullet tore through him just days ago. Pride keeps his spine straight despite the pain I know he must still feel. Two days of recovery shouldn’t have him walking at all, but stubbornness is a powerful force.

Lila’s face brightens when she sees him, relief softening the sharp edges exhaustion has carved into her features.

“You shouldn’t be up. I would have come to you,” she scolds, but the worry in her voice betrays her.

“I’ve spent enough time horizontal,” Hargen replies, easing himself onto the edge of her bed. “Thought I’d see how my miracle worker is doing.”

Her fingers curl around his, a smile warming her face. “Miracle worker? Hardly. Just an old blood ritual my mother taught me.”

“One that saved my life at nearly the cost of yours.” His voice drops lower, tension underlining each word. “You shouldn’t have risked it, Lila. After everything you endured to get free…”

“Don’t start.” Her smile fades. “I made my choice. I’d make it again.”

Something twists in my gut as I watch them. The intimacy they share scrapes against something inside me. Years of connection, of secret moments hidden from Syndicate surveillance. And something more. Whatever passed between them during that ritual with the Shard.

My dragon stirs restlessly beneath my skin. I have no right to this jealousy burning in my blood. No claim on her. I don’t know her, despite the weeks spent watching her, planning her extraction, risking everything to get her out.

And yet the memory of those sweet moments of her… I had one tiny taste of her, and since then, it’s been all I can think of.

I straighten as Zoe appears beside me, her expression tight.

“Viktor’s waiting,” she murmurs. “He wants to see her. Now.”

“She needs rest,” I reply, keeping my voice low.

“Not my call. Not yours either.” She glances past me to where Lila and Hargen sit in quiet conversation. “Interesting dynamic, isn’t it? The witch and her handler.”

“He protected her,” I say, surprised by my own defensiveness. “As much as he could.”

“And you protected them both.” Zoe’s eyes narrow slightly. “At considerable risk to yourself.”

Before I can respond, footsteps approach from the corridor. Viktor appears, his presence dominating the room. He stands in the shadowy hallway for a moment, centuries of survival making him assess every situation before committing. The light catches half his face, illuminating dark, weathered skin that appears ageless despite the centuries he’s lived.

“Talon.” He inclines his head slightly. “How’s she doing?”

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