Page 102 of At the Mercy of Midnight
But she wouldn’t leave Silas.
Not when he needed her.
Not when she had finally made a choice totrustsomeone, a monumental occasion. He couldn’t be torn from her now.
She refused.
Securing the mask, she stood to her full height and stepped out from behind the crates. Amelia walked forwards with the air of purposefulness, like she belonged there, one of them.
She breathed heavily behind the mask, moistening the fabric, taking the left tunnel on instinct.
Her hands open and closed as she walked, footsteps echoing off the narrow walls.
A murmur of a voice, and then someone stepped out from a doorway ahead. Her heart leapt into her throat, and she forced her feet to keep moving, rather than turning to flee like her body demanded.
The figure, dressed in black as Amelia was, walked towards her.
Her breaths quickened, hands curling into fists, waiting for the shout of discovery, to be taken by hands, to be thrown to the ground.
The figure reached her, gave a swift nod, and walked by.
Amelia released a slow breath, striding forwards on shaky legs. She glanced into the doorway the figure had emerged from. It was a small room, holding two wooden beds with thin mattresses.
She continued down the hall, peering into doorways she passed. It seemed to be the sleeping quarters, finding nothing but beds and small containers stuffed with woollen blankets and warm clothing meant to stave off the cold.
Amelia spotted a narrow sliver in the wall to her right. She moved over to it quietly, looking inside. It led downwards, a small stairwell carved into the dirt.
Amelia ducked into the gap, jogging quickly down the steps.
Reaching the bottom, she turned a corner, before coming to a sudden stop. The stairwell opened into a large chamberwith an arched ceiling. A long, narrow table stretched along the centre.
Sat at the table, were at least twenty people.
Some had their faces covered, while others didn’t bother, their faces clear and free, hoods laying across their shoulders. They chatted and moved about the chamber with the ease of being at home, some eating, while others read from books.
Amelia stood frozen in the doorway for a beat too long, wondering how she hadn’t heard the gentle murmuring of voices.
She considered ducking back into the stairwell, but as she shifted her foot, a face lifted, spotting her standing there.
Shit.
Amelia forced herself to walk, trying to adopt a carefree posture, moving with purpose. She belonged. She was one of them.
Nothing to see here.
She spotted a door ahead across the chamber, and she fixed her eyes there, not looking at anyone else as she strode at a controlled pace.
“…it could happen tonight.”
“I’ve never seen it before, the vessel exchange.”
Amelia paused, turning her head. A man and a woman sat near the head of the table, speaking in quiet tones that just reached her ears.
“No, none of us have.”
“He’s here now. I can’t believe the vessel is actually here.”
Amelia turned quickly, walking for the door, and not breathing until she was through it and out of sight.
