Page 209 of BounBound By Scars

Her voice was quiet but deliberate. “The seventy Ravenrock prisoners are alive and well.” A pause. Then, she looked directly at Kaylan. “Including your Martha, Healer.”

The breath that left Kaylan’s lips was sharp, disbelieving.

Logan reached for her instantly, steadying her.

The Ravenrock prisoners.

The people we thought had vanished.

Gone. Possibly dead.

But Deathmark was standing here, staring at us like we were the biggest fucking idiots on the planet.

Sebastian let out a very controlled breath, his expression unreadable. Then, finally—he let out a low, humorless chuckle.

“Fuck me,” he muttered.

Bee beamed, like… wait… did she want to? Fuck Sebastian?

Bee’s arm was suddenly, gently grabbed.

The fourth Deathmark member.

The one who hadn’t twitched, moved, or uttered a single damn word. Not a scoff, a snort, not even a fucking huff.

Bee immediately sobered, like someone had flipped a switch.

“We will work together. Bring down the Rubicon Network. Or… doom switch, whatever you call it.” Gray ordered.Ordered. He didn’t ask.

The room was silent.

Utterly.

Fucking.

Silent.

Zarek’s voice cut through the silence, sharp as a blade. He turned to Sebastian, his tone low but biting. “Did you know about any of this?”

Sebastian rolled his eyes, arms crossed. “Are you serious?”

Zarek ignored him and shifted his glare to Gray. “You really expect us to believe you’ve been protecting us?” His voice was steady, but something lethal simmered beneath it. “That out of the kindness of your non-existent hearts, you let us live?”

A restrained violence, coiled tight, waiting to snap. I didn’t quite understand Zarek’s reaction.

Gray’s expression was blank, not a twitch in sight. “Will my answer expedite your decision? Soothe your soul, perhaps?”

But Zarek’s jaw twitched, his muscles locking tight. Sebastian exhaled, rubbing his temple.

“Ghost. Isn’t our goal the same?”

Zarek turned to him, voice eerily calm. “What I think is that you’re too comfortable with their presence here, Ranger.”

Sebastian groaned.

“Dylan sent them,” Amelia interjected. “‘Fireflies’ is a code we use. It means something.”

Leora jumped in. “The same Dylan who’s disappeared?That’syour argument?”