As we made our way toward the safehouse, the oppressive silence was punctuated only by the crunch of boots against the debris-strewn ground. My mind swirled with questions, the figure’s chilling words looping over and over again. The Nexus calls to you… The key cannot… You cannot lock away what has always been free.
Each fragment added to the weight pressing against my chest, but my exhaustion didn’t dull my sense of unease. Something was off. I wasn’t sure what it was at first-a prickling sensation at the back of my neck or an intuition warning me of something not yet seen-but the sense of wrongness refused to dissipate.
“You’re unusually quiet, Liam,” Logan said abruptly, his tone sharper than usual. His hand flexed around my waist, as if his protective instincts were on high alert.
Liam didn’t stop walking, but his head turned slightly, just enough to cast Logan a sidelong glance. “Just thinking,” he replied, his voice even. “Unlike you, I like to process before speaking.”
“Oh? What’s on your mind, then?” Logan pressed, and though his tone was conversational, I recognized the undercurrent of suspicion.
Liam hesitated just a second too long, his face shadowed as we moved beneath the towering remnants of a burned-out building. “The Nexus,” he said finally. “The orb, the figure… this whole thing.”
Mal, who was a few paces ahead, glanced over her shoulder. “You don’t sound very surprised,” she said, her voice neutral but probing.
“I’m not surprised,” Liam admitted, his tone clipped. “None of this is new. Not to me.” He sighed heavily, his hand trailing over the hilt of one of his knives. “I’ve read accounts of things like this-stories about the Nexus, the void, ancient relics capable of-”
“Capable of summoning homicidal void-touched with a flair for dramatic warnings?” Logan cut in. “Convenient you’ve heard of it before, Liam.”
“Enough!” I said, my voice carrying more authority than I intended. I didn’t know if it was the orb’s lingering presence or my frustration boiling over, but it was enough to make Logan and Mal exchange cautious glances. “We don’t have time to turn on each other. Focus on the task at hand.”
But even as I said the words, doubts seeped into my mind. Liam did know too much, and his knowledge always seemed to appear at just the right time-never too early to help avoid danger, but enough to explain it after the fact. And there was something in his stance now, an edge of defensiveness that set my teeth on edge.
The group pressed forward, but tension hung thick between us like a storm cloud ready to break.
“I find it interesting,” Logan murmured softly enough for only me to hear, “that Liam knew about the orb acting like a key, but he didn’t mention it until after the fight. Almost like he was waiting to see what would happen first.”
I looked up at Logan, his expression taut with anger. “Do you really think…?”
“I think we shouldn’t trust someone who only gives us the pieces they think we need,” Logan replied grimly.
I chewed on his words as we approached the safehouse, an old, fortified manor on the outskirts of the abandoned district. Once inside, Mal shut the door behind us and bolted it with deliberate precision. “Liam, go check the windows,” she said curtly, her eyes glinting as she handed him the task. It was an order but also a test. Everyone knew the windows were magically sealed, unyielding to physical touch.
Liam hesitated for a moment before nodding. He strode to the far side of the room, his boots echoing heavily on the floor, and leaned against the frame of the window instead of inspecting it. “Secure,” he said lazily, folding his arms as though he weren’t the subject of quiet scrutiny.
Mal shot Logan a subtle look, the two of them forming an unspoken pact without exchanging words. “While we’re at it,” Logan said, leaning casually against the wall, “maybe you should tell us a bit more about what you’ve read on all this.”
Liam narrowed his eyes. “You think now’s the time for twenty questions?”
“Why not? It’s not like the thing that tried to kill us is lurking in the living room,” Logan retorted. “Humor us.”
Liam scowled but didn’t object. He pushed off the window frame, his movements fluid and oddly calculated. “Fine,” he said, spreading his hands in mock surrender. “What do you want to know?”
“For starters,” Mal interjected, “how you know so much about the Nexus. You always seemed more like a runes guy.”
“And why,” Logan added, stepping closer, “you’ve conveniently failed to bring this knowledge up when it might’ve stopped us from walking into an ambush.”
Liam’s expression tightened, but he held his ground. “I didn’t know this was the Nexus until the figure mentioned it. My knowledge is secondhand-old texts, half-lost myths. Believe me, if I’d had anything useful, you would’ve known before it came to this.”
Logan took another step forward, his presence unmistakably intimidating. “Is that why you made sure to keep your distance during the fight? Hanging back while we did all the heavy lifting?”
Liam’s nostrils flared as he glared at Logan. “I don’t have an orb full of godlike energy to throw around,” he shot back. “And you of all people should know how draining rune magic is. Don’t mistake caution for cowardice.”
“You sure you were being cautious?” Logan pressed. “Because to me, it looked like you were watching. Waiting.”
“For what?” Liam snapped, his anger flashing for the first time. “You think I’m working with that thing? Are you listening to yourself?”
“I think you’re not telling us everything,” Logan said, his golden eyes sharp and unrelenting.
“That makes two of you,” Liam countered, his gaze cutting between me and Logan. “What’s your connection to the orb, Audrey? Or are you keeping secrets too?”
His words struck like a blow, and the room fell silent. The orb in my grasp pulsed faintly as if reacting to the tension. Everyone’s eyes were on me now, and suddenly, I wasn’t sure who I could trust. Not even myself.