The air in the room was electric.
Not with light.
With doubt.
I stared at Felix like I was seeing him for the first time. Mira stood calmly to the side, unbothered by the storm she'd just helped cause.
"You've known each other for six months?" I repeated, voice low. "And you kept it from us?"
Felix looked at me, guilt and frustration shadowing his face. "It wasn't about lying. It was about safety."
"Whose safety?" James snapped. "Because we've been crawling through tunnels, dodging collapsing floors, and unlocking family secrets with zero information—while you were already in on it?"
"I wasn't in on anything!" Felix said, louder now. "Mira came to me with pieces—just pieces. She didn't even know the whole picture. I told her I'd help her if she helped me figure out what my dad was working on."
"And you didn't think maybe the rest of us deserved to know?" I asked.
Felix's jaw clenched. "I didn't know who I could trust."
That hit like a slap.
I stepped back, blinking. "You didn't trust us."
The silence that followed was louder than any shout.
James walked away, arms crossed tight over his chest. He looked like he wanted to punch something.
Mira finally spoke. "This is exactly why they separated us. Our parents. The Circle. They knew emotions would get in the way."
I turned to her. "Don't talk like you know us."
"I don't," she said simply. "That's why I watched first. And that's why I'm still here. Because even with the cracks—you're still the ones who can do this."
I hated that she was calm. That she didn't flinch.
"Why now?" I asked. "Why show up now, not six months ago when you met Felix?"
Mira finally hesitated.
And that hesitation told me the truth mattered.
The air in the room cracked like ice under pressure.
I stepped forward, my voice shaking—not from fear, but fury.
"You also knew me and James?" I demanded, eyes locked on Mira. "And Felix—don't even pretend this is new. You came here months ago, didn't you? Not just today."
Felix didn't answer.
So I turned to James.
"He lied to you too. All that time pretending like he just showed up? Like he was discovering this with us?"
James looked at Felix, face unreadable—but his fists were clenched.
"I shouldn't have trusted you today," I said bitterly, my throat tight. "We were better off as enemies."
That one hit.
Felix's face fell like I'd cut the ground out from under him.
Felix stepped toward me, his voice shaky. "Rosa, please—just let me explain—"
But I cut him off, my words sharp as glass. "You made your choice the moment you decided we weren't worth the truth."
He looked like I'd slapped him.
James stepped in, jaw clenched. "How could you do this to us, Felix? After everything? You stood there and acted like we were in this together."
Felix opened his mouth, but no sound came out.
I shook my head, stepping away from both of them.
"James," I said, quieter now but just as firm, "you're the only person who's actually been honest with me. From the start. And now? We're trapped in a mission surrounded by secrets—and people who lie like it's part of the plan."
Mira still hadn't moved. She watched me with a strange calm, arms crossed like none of this surprised her.
"You can walk away, Rosa," she said coldly. "But the mission doesn't stop because your feelings are hurt. It goes on—with or without you."
I stared at her like I could burn holes through her skull.
"You don't get to decide who belongs here."
"Then earn your place," she said, eyes like stone. "Or leave it behind."
The room went still.
James looked between us, torn. Felix looked like the weight of the world had finally landed on him.
And me?
I felt like something inside me was splintering.
"I need air," I muttered.
No one followed me as I stepped out and slammed the door behind me.
Not a single one of them.
The door slammed behind me, the echo sharp in the hollow hallway.
I didn't know where I was going. I just needed distance—from them, from their secrets, from the room where trust had died.
The hallway stretched ahead like a tunnel with no end. The same walls I'd grown up with now felt foreign, warped by everything I'd just learned. Six months. They'd known each other for six months. Mira, Felix—planning, deciding, withholding. And me? Just a piece they didn't even bother to consult. A variable. A pawn.
I walked faster.
My heart thudded against my ribs like a warning drum. I felt it all closing in: the lies, the half-truths, the pressure of being "chosen" for a mission I never asked for.
The floor creaked beneath my steps. The shadows along the wall twisted with the flickering light from the old chandelier overhead.
I ended up in the conservatory—glass panes covered in vines, moonlight seeping through like silver breath. It was silent here. The only place in the house that didn't feel like it was watching me.
I sank onto the old bench by the window, pulled my knees to my chest, and stared at the stars.
Why me?
That question had followed me since the beginning. Since I'd found the pendant. Since the letters appeared. Since the attic.
Was I here because of who my father was?
Or because of who I was?
The door creaked behind me, slow and quiet.
I didn't look back.
"If it's Felix," I said, "you might want to turn around now."
But it wasn't Felix.
It was James.
He sat on the edge of the fountain, facing me, not saying anything right away. Just watching me like he was trying to read something off my face.
"You okay?" he finally asked.
I gave a hollow laugh. "I'm sitting in the dark, running away from my so-called team, wondering if everything I've ever believed about my family is a lie. So no. I'm not okay."
James nodded slowly. "Yeah. Me neither."
We sat there for a moment, quiet, the fountain trickling behind him.
Then I asked, "You really didn't know about Mira?"
He shook his head. "Not until today. I knew about Elias because our dads worked together. I remember the name. I remember a boy who used to stare too long and speak too little. But Mira? Nothing."
I studied his face, the shadows under his eyes, the stress pulling at the corners of his mouth.
"But you're still in," I said.
He didn't hesitate. "Yeah. I am."
I looked down. "Even if Felix and Mira are hiding things?"
James exhaled. "I don't trust them. Not fully. But I trust you. And if you're in this… then so am I."
My throat tightened. "I wish I was sure I should be."
James leaned forward. "Rosa, you've been the only one asking the right questions. The only one willing to walk away when it got messy. That's exactly why you should be in this."
I didn't respond. I couldn't.
Because something behind the vines on the far wall had caught my eye.
Movement.
I stood slowly, narrowing my eyes.
There was a small iron hook buried in the wall, half-concealed by the ivy.
I pulled the vines aside—and felt my heart stutter.
There, hidden behind the green, was a wooden panel I had never seen before.
James joined me, peering over my shoulder. "What is that?"
"I don't know," I whispered, reaching out.
The wood was cool to the touch, worn smooth by time. There was a faint carving etched into it—barely visible unless you were inches away.
A triangle. Inside it, a circle.
The same symbol on the charm.
I pulled the pendant from around my neck and held it close.
The carving matched perfectly.
James stepped back. "Try it."
My hands were shaking as I pressed the charm into the panel.
Click.
The wall hissed softly—and then swung open an inch.
James and I exchanged a look.
Without a word, I pushed it open.
Behind it, a narrow staircase spiraled downward into darkness.
A hidden path.
Another one.
"Should we tell the others?" James asked quietly.
I hesitated.
And then, slowly, I shook my head. "Not yet. This one… feels different."
James nodded, not questioning me.
We stepped inside, one at a time. The air was damp, filled with the scent of old stone and secrets.
At the base of the stairs, the tunnel split in two directions. One led into total darkness. The other flickered faintly with light—like a candle burning somewhere deep inside.
I turned to James.
"You with me?"
He smiled faintly. "Always."
We followed the light.
The tunnel walls were lined with markings—symbols, some familiar, some not. There were names carved in too. One of them made me stop cold.
ELIAS H.
He'd been here.
Not just in theory.
Here.
Present.
James touched the carving too. "He left this."
I nodded, heart racing. "Which means we're getting closer."
To Elias.
To the truth.
And maybe—to something we weren't supposed to find.
I stared at the carved name on the wall.
Elias H.
Not a rumor. Not a mystery. He had been here.
The air around us felt heavier now, like the tunnel was holding its breath.
James spoke first. "If he left that here, it's recent. This carving isn't worn. The stone's still chipped around the edges."
I nodded slowly. My fingers hovered over the grooves in the stone like I could feel the energy he left behind.
"Do you think he's… here?" I asked, voice barely a whisper. "Like, now?"
James didn't answer right away. His eyes flicked toward the dim light ahead, then back toward the stairs we came down from.
"If he is," he said carefully, "he's either hiding… or waiting."
That thought sent a shiver down my spine.
Waiting for what?
Or worse—for who?
I stepped back, my mind racing. "We should tell the others. Mira might know more. Felix too."
James hesitated. "Do you really trust them right now?"
I bit my lip, heart torn.
"I don't know," I admitted. "I want to. But… if they knew this tunnel existed, why didn't they bring us here?"
James crossed his arms, thinking. "Maybe they didn't know. Or maybe they thought we weren't ready."
I looked back at the path ahead.
The flickering light had changed—warmer now. Closer.
"We could go a little further," I said. "Just to see."
James arched a brow. "You sure?"
I nodded, but something inside me whispered no.
Still, I moved forward.
And the tunnel answered with silence.
I stopped walking.
James turned back to me, confused. "What's wrong?"
I stared at the flame ahead. "We shouldn't go further. Not yet."
He looked hesitant. "You sure?"
I nodded, the conflict settling in my chest like a stone. "Yeah. If Elias is here—really here—we can't do this alone. Not if there's danger. Not if there are answers we don't even know we need yet."
James glanced toward the carved name on the wall, then back at me. "You trust them now?"
"No," I admitted, "but I trust the mission. And if Mira's right—if this whole thing is bigger than us—then we need each other. Even if I don't want to need them."
He gave a small smile. "You're getting wiser."
I rolled my eyes. "Don't ruin the moment."
We climbed the steps quickly, heartbeats rising with every step. When we reached the conservatory, the cool night air hit me like a wave.
The house was quiet.
Too quiet.
James and I moved quickly through the halls, back toward the study where I'd left them. The door was still half-open.
I pushed it gently—and found Felix pacing, Mira sitting by the window, arms folded, eyes distant.
They both looked up the second we walked in.
"You're back," Felix said, cautiously.
I ignored his tone and went straight to the point. "We found something."
Mira's eyes sharpened. "Where?"
"In the conservatory," James said. "Behind the vines. There's a hidden staircase. Leads into another tunnel. A deep one."
Felix stepped closer, alert now. "Another tunnel?"
"And Elias was there," I added. "His name—carved into the wall. Fresh. He's close."
Mira stood. "Show us."
I hesitated for only a second—and then nodded.
"We'll go together."