Juliana stood there for a few long seconds, frozen in place, staring at the open doorway. Her eyes flicked between my bedroom and the bloodstained shirt in her hand.
Then, deliberately, she tucked the shirt beneath her good arm and stepped forward. Her footsteps echoed through the abominable chamber, sounding oddly graceful despite her injuries.
As she passed me, she glanced up. Her lips parted slightly, as if to say something — but then pressed shut again with a quiet tsk.
She stepped through the doorway and vanished into my room beyond.
I waited a few moments after she left, then clicked the door shut behind her — and finally let the calm expression slip from my face.
The tension in my shoulders drained out like poison from a wound as I exhaled.
It had gone better than expected. All of it.
I turned back to the lab — the green hue casting everything in a sickly shade — and made my way toward the shelf of Cards.
