Chapter 116

• Zara
• The bell rang, sharp and final, to remind everyone that freedom was only a doorway away. Chairs scraped back in a wave, voices lifted in low chatter, books snapped shut. I slid my notebook into my bag with deliberate slowness, pretending not to notice the eyes that flicked toward me from across the room.
• Seraphine’s mouth was twisted into that cruel little half-smile of hers, Nova leaned closer as if whispering a secret, Alex’s gaze burned like a blade trying to pierce my skin, and Talia tapped her pen with the rhythm of suspicion. They all looked… unsettled. Uneasy, even.