Chapter 95

CASSANDRA’S POV

I couldn’t stop pacing. Back and forth. Back and forth.

My bare feet moved across the cold concrete floor, the chill biting up my legs with every step, but I welcomed it. It grounded me. Reminded me that I was still here, still breathing, still fighting, still… waiting.

God, I hated waiting.

The room felt more like a dungeon than a place a human being was meant to sleep. The stone walls were damp. The ceiling low. No windows. No clocks. Just four decaying walls and the hum of the single overhead light, flickering every few minutes like it, too, was on the verge of giving up.

It had been days.

Days since Nico had reached out.

Days since I’d heard anything from the outside world.

Days since I felt like a person.

What if something happened to him? What if he’d given up? What if I was actually alone in this hell?

My chest ached with dread, and my nails bit into my palms as I turned on my heel again. Pacing.

I froze when I heard footsteps.

They were distant but approaching.