Zara
The bell rang, sharp and final, to remind everyone that freedom was only a doorway away. Chairs scraped back in a wave, voices lifted in low chatter, books snapped shut. I slid my notebook into my bag with deliberate slowness, pretending not to notice the eyes that flicked toward me from across the room.
Seraphine’s mouth was twisted into that cruel little half-smile of hers, Nova leaned closer as if whispering a secret, Alex’s gaze burned like a blade trying to pierce my skin, and Talia tapped her pen with the rhythm of suspicion. They all looked… unsettled. Uneasy, even.
I stood, smoothing the strap of my bag over my shoulder as if they were nothing more than shadows passing in the corner of my vision. Zarek was at my side in seconds, tall, steady, his presence a wall between me
