Chapter 28 · Eliza's Last Card

The glass shattered before I could stop Lucas.

Not the coffin—the window behind us. Someone dropped through from the hall above, boots hitting stone, and the air pressure changed so fast my ears popped. Lucas shoved me sideways. I hit the floor hard, tasted copper, and when I looked up Eliza Vaughn was standing between us and the coffin with a silver blade pressed to Evan's throat.

She wasn't supposed to be here. She wasn't council. She wasn't—

"Move and I open his neck," Eliza said. Her voice was flat. Professional. Like she'd done this a hundred times. "Cyrus, darling, you can let go now. I've got her."

Evan's eyes flickered. The black faded just enough for me to see my brother underneath, his mouth moving, trying to form words. Then Cyrus's presence pulled back like a tide going out, and Evan slumped forward against the glass, gasping.

"Eliza." Lucas's voice was low. Dangerous. "You're making a mistake."

"Am I?" She didn't look at him. Her eyes were on me, and they were empty. No smirk, no calculation, just nothing. That scared me more than the knife.