Chapter 113 Hollow Performances

• Five weeks of silence stretch between Efrem and me like an open wound, making the empty space of the leather seat between us feel both too close and not close enough. Nausea churns in my stomach as Alek guides the SUV down familiar roads, Ivan sitting rigid in the passenger seat—the seat that used to be Tavin’s.
• The news from Matvey last night still rings in my ears: Diallo. After everything, after five weeks of not even looking at me, Efrem’s taking me to the next Ringleader call. Sleep never came, my mind racing with fear and the crushing weight of what this means. I spent hours staring at my ceiling, remembering the call at the Wen sector and what I managed to escape.
• Things are different there. Like back home, there, Efrem and I are married. There, I am his wife.