"WE LEAVE IN AN HOUR," Lucson said, bypassing the pleasantries. He poured her a cup of coffee, the steam rising in a delicate swirl. "But before we go, we need to speak plainly, Mailah."
Mailah took a sip of the coffee, the caffeine hitting her system like a jolt. "I'm ready."
Lucson didn't sit. He stood by the window, his silhouette framed by the morning sun. "You need to understand something before we face them."
He turned to her, and for the first time, Mailah saw a flicker of genuine hesitation in his expression.
"You are going there to find Grayson," Lucson continued, his voice dropping to a low, somber frequency. "But you have to be ready to see something unexpected. Grayson has been in Seryn's custody for days. She is a catalyst for the darkest parts of our nature. To survive her, to escape her, it is highly possible that Grayson has already... changed."
Mailah's hand paused with the croissant halfway to her mouth. "Changed? You mean he's hurt?"
