Chapter 22

• “You think you’re safe with them?” The voice from the shadows was low, smooth, like velvet brushing against skin, but it sent a sharp jolt of unease through me. I froze, heart hammering in my chest. There was no mistaking it. Valen.
• I glanced over my shoulder. The room was still. Too still. No sign of Crown or Rogan. They had left earlier, presumably to track down more information about Valen, but it felt like hours since they’d gone.
• “You can’t hide from what’s coming, Ava,” he continued, his tone almost mocking. “They won’t be able to protect you. Not when it counts.”