CHAPTER 60

Maxine's P.O.V

I sat on the edge of my bed, my mind moving around in circles, focused intently on the clock on the wall. Each tick seemed to drag by time tortoise-slow, minutes elongating into hours. My mother's voice echoed within my head - "Stay in your room, Maxine. Don't come out till we say."

But now an hour, two hours had passed with no one coming to see or say anything. My anxiety was gnawing inside, twisting my stomach into knots. What on earth was going on? Why wasn't I allowed to be there?

The room, however, was broken by the door slowly creaking open. Alph walked into the room, his face serious, his expression tense. My heart leaped in my chest as I stood up and ran towards him.

"What's going on? Are you finished?" I asked, trying to sound even as my voice began to shake.

"Yes, we are," he replied coolly and analytically, sounding like a robot instead of a man.

I frowled my brow in time and frustration. "What's the matter with Alph? What was this about? Why wasn't I allowed