Page 59 of Thunder's Reckoning

“There are two bedrooms,” she said, pointing to a door on the left. “It’ll give you and the kids some space.”

I looked around. Two twin beds lined one wall, a dresser against the other. The quilts didn’t match, the curtains were faded, and the lamp flickered once before steadying, but it was a room. Not a cell. Not a gilded cage. Just… a room.

I set Zara down first, easing her onto one of the beds. She stirred but didn’t wake, her little fist still wrapped tight in my shirt until I gently freed it. Malik climbed onto the other bed without a word, his eyes still suspicious, waiting for the trick to reveal itself.

Brenda lingered in the doorway, arms folded, her presence somehow both solid and soft. “Doors lock from the inside,” she said, nodding toward the knob. “Key’s already there. You’ll find no one here comes through without your say-so. Not even Thunder.”

My throat tightened. I reached for the lock, turned it once just to hear the click. The sound was small, but it landed heavy in my chest.

Brenda gave me a knowing look. “Takes time to believe a lock actually works. But it does.”

I nodded, unable to find words.

She let me have the silence for a moment, then added, “Kitchen’s at the end of the hall. Josie does three meals a day, feeds an army like it’s nothin’. If you need somethin’ different for the little ones, just ask him. He likes being useful. And if he’s busy, Fiona can handle it, she likes cookin’ too.”

Her voice was matter-of-fact, no judgment, no pity. Just… practical kindness.

I glanced back at Zara, then Malik, then back to Brenda. “Thank you,” I said, the words quiet but real.

Brenda gave a small smile. “You don’t gotta thank me. You just gotta rest. You’ve earned it.”

I sat on the edge of Zara’s bed, fingers brushing the worn quilt.

“Is it really safe here?” Malik’s small voice broke in, thin and wary. He hadn’t looked at Brenda when he asked, he’d looked at me.

Brenda’s eyes softened, but she didn’t jump in with easy promises. She just said, “As safe as it gets, kid. And safer than where you’ve been.”

Malik’s mouth pressed into a hard line, but he nodded once, like he was filing the words away even if he wasn’t sure he believed them.

Brenda stepped back into the hall, giving us space. “You need anything, holler. Otherwise, make yourself at home.”

She closed the door most of the way, not tight, not final—just polite.

Malik shifted on the bed, and I heard his whisper, barely louder than breath. “We can never outrun the prophet.”

The words crawled through the dark and rooted deep in me. I couldn’t tell if he was speaking to me… or remembering.

CHAPTER THIRTY

CHURCH FELT HEAVIERtoday. Not just smokeand leather and the usual tension, but the kind that crawled under your skin and sat there like a weight.

We were all at the table. Devil at the head, Mystic at his right, Chain leaned lazy in his seat, the point of his blade tappin’ the wood in a rhythm that sounded like trouble. Gearhead and the rest of the council leaned forward, elbows dug in, watchin’ me like I might fall on my own knife. Hunter stood against the wall, shoulders stiff, face pale. Prospect. On trial whether he knew it or not.

Devil let the silence drag. He was good at that, makin’ a man sweat his own guilt before the words even came. Finally, his gaze cut to me.

“Tell it straight.”

I nodded once. “Zara went missin’ this afternoon. Sable called me. Said she’d been playin’ out front with a ball. Hunter was supposed to be watchin’. He wasn’t.”

Every head turned. Hunter flinched.

“I was there,” Hunter stammered, his voice too quick, too desperate. “I swear it. Went inside for maybe five minutes, tops. Kid was right there when I left.”

“Five minutes,” Chain repeated, drawlin’ it out. “Might as well been a fuckin’ hour.”

Devil didn’t raise his voice, didn’t slam his hand. He didn’t have to. Just looked at Hunter until the kid damn near shrank outta his cut. “Your only job was keepin’ eyes on her. You failed.”

“She heard somethin’,” I said, cuttin’ in before Hunter dug his own grave deeper. “When we found her, Zara swore she heard a voice callin’ her name. Said it sounded nice. Friendly. That’s why she followed it.”