ISABELLA
Livia didn't respond to my question and just smirked, that slow, smug curl of her lips that always meant trouble, and turned on her heel like she hadn't just stepped on a landmine.
The door swung shut behind her, its echo hollow and cruel, sealing in the panic twisting tight in my gut.
Camilla and I locked eyes. No words were needed. We both knew we were teetering on a cliff's edge, and the ground beneath us had just cracked wide open.
"She heard us," we shouted in unison, already rushing toward the door. I shoved it open with enough force to rattle the hinges. "LIVIA!" We both called out.
She didn't stop, not even a flinch, she just kept walking.
Her heels clicked against the polished floor like gunshots in the silence, picking up speed with every step. But I was faster. My fingers wrapped around her wrist, halting her escape.
She turned slowly, her face cool, her eyes unreadable. That blank expression she wore when she was hiding knives behind her back.
