39 • LARICE

The air in the underground dungeon was far worse than she thought. The stench and foul smell of the cells made her stomach turn. Larice wondered what her life would be like behind those bars. But she couldn’t imagine herself spending the rest of her days in this wretched place. It would never happen, she thought.

The prisoners went wild, calling and begging for her to set them free. But she just ignored them, because there’s only one person she planned to take out of this dungeon.

Larice held the cold, metal bars as she found Estevan, asleep inside his cell, and lying on the dirty stone floor. She squeezed her grip, feeling so bad for him. He didn’t deserve this. He never did.

She inserted the key in the lock hole and twisted it. After hearing the heavy click, she opened the bars and stepped inside.

The cell was grim. It was a lot harder to breathe when one’s underground—and much worse here on the lower