16: New tactic

Alora’s POV

I forced down a piece of stale bread. Each bite felt like sawdust in my mouth, sticking to my throat.

The water I used to wash it down was lukewarm and metallic-tasting, but I swallowed it anyway, forcing myself to eat for the strength I needed to survive another day in this hellhole.

Every fiber of my being was on edge, my senses heightened to every sound, every shift in the air. I need to eat this meal to survive no matter what. I must survive. If not for myself, then for Sienna.

It was quiet, save for the distant echo of dripping water and the soft, shallow breaths coming from Sienna, who was still asleep beside me.

The door to the dungeon had creaked open earlier this morning, but nothing had come of it. No guards, no food, just the slow, torturous reminder that we were still prisoners, still at the mercy of Rune’s whims.

But this time… something felt different.

I paused mid-bite, the dry bread suddenly impossible to swallow as my stomach twisted in