Elara didn’t feel triumph. She felt the weight of the second law: Do not lie to the reid. She hadn’t lied. But she hadn’t asked permission either. Edmund’s terror had burned a path through her nervous system that still flared up when it rained.
It was quiet work. Lonely. But safe.
She saw a basement. Filing cabinets. A list of workers, 147 names. Then men in hats. A single gunshot. Then nothing from Edmund—no, not nothing. A void. The reid had a hole in it. learning how to reid
Elara tried to pull back. The reid wouldn’t release her. Elara didn’t feel triumph