Evaline:
Marcus opened his mouth.
Then closed it again.
He stared at the candle as if it might whisper the right words to him, his fingers twitching faintly against the chains. For someone who had been so eager moments ago, he now looked utterly lost... like a man standing at the edge of a cliff, suddenly unsure whether he wanted to jump.
I watched him for a few seconds.
Then I decided to help.
"Start from the beginning," I said calmly. "The night you sneaked out of the Academy with Carson."
His gaze snapped to mine.
"I need every detail," I added. "Don't decide what's important and what's not. Tell me exactly what happened."
He nodded, swallowing hard.
"After dinner," he began, his voice rough but steadying as he spoke, "Carson and I sneaked out through Academy's back gate. It was nothing unusual. We had done it several times before."
"For what purpose?" I asked even though I already knew the answer.
