Chapter 19 · Untitled Chapter

"Help me move her."

Leon doesn't move. He's staring at the sigil on Selina's forehead like it's got teeth.

"Leon." I snap my fingers in front of his face. "Now. Unless you'd rather explain to Karl why we left his battery on the floor."

That gets him moving. He grabs Selina's other arm, and together we drag her into the corner. Her boots scrape over the stone. We prop her against the wall just as her head rolls sideways.

The glow on her skin thins to a hairline scar of light. Then it almost disappears.

"She's bound to the loop," Leon says. His voice is flat, like he's forcing each word past a locked jaw. "Karl did that."

"Yeah. And if he bound her, he's been draining her every reset. Same as the others."

His grip tightens around Selina's arm. "The bodies."

"The bodies."

I dig the ash vial out of my pocket. The glass is warm against my fingers.

Glass shouldn't be warm.

"What's that?" Leon asks.

"A shortcut."

"To what?"

"The truth. Hold her still."

"She's unconscious."

"Then this should be easy."

I uncork the vial.