Chapter 31 · The Ledger Always Collects

Cassian set the Ledger on the table between them like it was a loaded gun.

Noah didn't move. His ribs still ached from the blade he'd taken for Mira, and his head felt stuffed with cotton, but the moment that cracked bone tablet hit the wood, everything sharpened. The air went cold. The candlelight dimmed. He could feel the thing pulling at him, the same way it always did, like a fishhook lodged under his sternum.

Mira stood across from him, arms crossed, her jaw tight. She hadn't stopped looking at him since Cassian walked in with that chain wrapped around his wrist—his sister's chain, glowing faint and sickly green. Now the chain sat coiled next to the Ledger, and Cassian leaned against the doorframe like he'd just delivered takeout.

"So," Cassian said, flicking ash from his fingernails. "You want the short version or the one where I explain why you're screwed?"

Noah's throat was dry. "Short."

"Your sister's dying. Real world, subway ward, about six hours left before her body gives up." Cassian tapped the Ledger with one knuckle. "This thing? It's been feeding on her since you got here.