Chapter 27 The Princess

• It starts quiet — just Bishop at the table again, laptop open, the last embers of the new payout flickering on his screen like a dying match.
• Ellerei leans half against the fridge, hoodie sleeves swallowed over her fingers, thumb pressed to her lower lip like she can scrub the taste of old ghosts off her tongue if she keeps worrying it raw enough.
• Knox is half-watching Decker patch a tear in his old duffel by the door. He’s not listening — not really — but he’s there. He always is when it matters.