What's at Stake

Chapter Forty

I carefully kneeled down to find the key Kaz had hidden for me. My fingers touched the metal, and I unlocked the door, opening it quietly. I motioned for Felix and Sura to wait a moment, and then walked in.

Again, there was no sign of disruption. The lights were off, the fire was out. Claude was probably sleeping soundly in his bed. Or maybe not he wasn't even in his room. Would he have tried looking for me once he realized I was missing? Would Kaz have made him move somewhere else? Somewhere safer?

That made the most sense. I headed to Claude's bedroom just to reassure myself more. The bathroom also showed no signs of anyone breaking in. Everything in place, both Claude's door and mine shut tight.

I lifted my hand to knock and then stopped, deciding to go for the handle instead.

A loud crash came from behind the door the second my hand touched the handle. My body acted on instinct. I yanked the door open and rushed in, my hand going for the light switch on the wall as I noticed the room was cloaked in darkness, the downside to having no windows.

And as light flooded it, my breath caught in my throat.

A figure kneeled above Claude on his bed, dressed in all black, long black hair cascading down their back, going still as the light caught them.

My knees went weak. "A-Adora? What...?"

Before I could even take a step toward them, the figure brought their hands down hard, and it was only then I realized they held a weapon.

"No!" I shouted, but it was too late.

Claude's body jolted, and a strangled gasp left his lips. Adora pulled another dagger out from a holster on her thigh and threw it straight at me as she climbed off Claude. I deflected it with the dagger Felix had given me, sending it clattering to the ground, trying to close the space between us. She produced another, launching herself at me, red eyes visible through the only part of her face not wrapped up by black fabric.

The sight made me hesitate a second too long. As I brought my dagger up to parry her attack, I didn't get enough force, the weapon slipping from my hand, already at a disadvantage from being my less dominant one. She brought the handle of her blade straight into my neck, making me cough and fall to the side.

A kick to my injured side had me sprawling on the ground. My cheek hit the wood floor with a loud slap!, the dagger I'd deflected moments entering my new line of vision. I reached out for it, gritting my teeth as Adora stomped down on my wrist.

"You should have stayed out of it, Cleo."

My hand halted, my eyes still on the dagger. I recognized it now. It was the same style as the one the intruder had thrown at me the time I'd chased them down in the forest. The same as the one Felix found in the car. The one in the cell. How had I not realized it sooner?

I threw my hands in front of me in defense. "Kieran, don't—"

Before Kieran could strike me, the weight of the world shifted. My arms fell back to my sides with such pressure I thought they broke. Kieran lurched forward, her head snapping down, eyes screwed shut, a muffled grunt coming from behind the mask.

I lay pinned to the floor from the pressure of the Sway, unable to even lift a finger, barely able to breathe. How was Kieran able to stand?

A second later, the Sway was gone. Kieran straightened out, eyes darting to the door. Before could make a break for it, I hoisted myself up, grabbing her legs. "Stop!"