The air felt like knives as Elissa observed their group with her piercing grey eyes.

  Finally she released a slow breath, filling the space with a single blessed sound, “So…” The single word was wound tighter than halyard, though it was unclear if she was expecting a response.

  Thankfully it was Sterling who dared to tread the waters first, “ We aren’t sorry, if that’s what you’re expecting.

  Everyn’s heart stopped. What's he doing?

  “No,” Elissa glided down into her chair, seemingly relaxing against the worn material. “I didn’t suspect as much. You wouldn’t have done it if you thought you were in the wrong. I trust you that much, Sterling. My only question is what should be done about this.”

  “I expect punishment,” Sterling replied as though he were talking about the weather.

  Elissa nodded, “Certianly, but what? It’s a bit of a conundrum. That creature does seem like she may be as useful as you insisted, but we can’t know for certain if she’s honest.”

  “I believe her,” If Sterling was lying, he was doing a remarkable job hiding it.

  Elissa rubbed her brow in exasperation, though her voice remained cool, “Alright. LEt us assume for a moment it is telling us the truth about everything. That still doesn’t change the fact that you disobeyed a direct order to bring her here, an action that quite frankly could have gotten every single human being in this camp killed or worse.” HEr eyes locked with his in a shared knowledge.

  Everyn knew what that look meant, they all did, but they also knew that look held far more weight for Sterling even if he never shared exactly what happened to him.

  Sterling shifted slightly, almost imperceptibly. She’d gotten under his skin.

  Though his voice remained neutral when he spoke again, “I’m aware and you know me well enough to know I wouldn’t have brought her here if I wasn’t sure.”

  Elissa sighed, “Fine. Here’s what I'm going to do.” She stood up, crossing to the other side of the table. “For now, we’re going to keep quiet exactly how the Faedemon got here. As far as the refugees know. She was captured on a nearby patrol and was brought here in a moment of panic. If they learn that bringing her here was premeditated, I can’t know for certain what will happen to you,” She turned to face her desk, grabbing a handful of worn papers to look through. “And until I have a better understanding of this Demon and her motivations, I’m going to assign you all new work details to keep you from doing anything so reckless again in the meantime. “

  She looked up at them as though she was expecting some kind of protest.

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  Everyone stayed silent, knowing better than to tread on the already thin ice.

  After a moment she looked back down at her papers, “Uldin needs excavators to help make new space for the latest batch of refugees, The strange tension lifted as her voice turned bored with work assignments. “And Alfrey needs workers to process parchment. Everyn and Valan will be working with Uldin and Ryala and Sterling will be with Alfrey. I think that arrangement will best suit your capabilities?” She posed it as a question, though there was only one response.

  “That sounds like a reasonable assessment,” Sterling replied for them.

  Elissa nodded once, “ You may go get started then.”

  A collective breath released from the group as they left Elissa’s chambers. They were lucky, unfathomably lucky.

  For committing treason, they got little more than a slap on the wrist. How they accomplished this, was baffling. Perhaps Elissa really did have that much faith in Sterling, or maybe the Faedemon had said something to make her doubt her own hatred.

  Though it didn’t matter how it happened, their plan succeeded, as much as Everyn wished it hadn’t.

  -----

  Their next days were mind numbing. The sound of rusty pickaxes tediously picking apart stone echoed in Everyn’s ears even as she tried to sleep. Ryala came back with instead hands spelling of solvent and soap.

  They never talked, barely seeing each other in the moments before sleep. Everyn was gone before Ryala awakened, and Ryala usually only appeared a shadow in the dim light of a candle as sleep claimed Everyn’s exhausted body.

  Her relationship with Valan fizzled. Outside of work they were too tired to see each other, only making lukewarm conversation in their brief meal breaks, too sore and tired to spend any time together in their off hours.

  Everyn never even saw Sterling.

  More painful than all of this was the lack of information.

  Rumours spread about the Faedemon in their camp, but nothing substantial. People speculated that perhaps she was malfunctioning in some way. Maybe their mental connection had been damaged in the skirmish that brought her here, which is why the Fae never bothered to try to claim her.

  But it wasn’t long before the rumours became far more malicious. Maybe she was sent here to be a spy. Maybe she was to bide her time until more arrived to slaughter all of them in one attack.

  People lived in fear. Every strange echo off the walls, every brush against their skin, every time the door opened allowing teams back in from the outside world, left them all on edge.

  No news was given, not to Everyn, not the people.

  The Demon was sealed away in the segment of bunker reserved for criminals, but those of them who knew anything about a Demon capabilities, know that wouldn’t hold her long if she really tried to escape.

  Maybe Eveyn should have warned them, given them more time to prepare something more suited to hold it.

  More likely, they never should have brought it here at all. They should have listened to Elissa. This was insane!

  As her pickaxe collided with stone, thoughts cycled through her head.

  Force another Dewsilver injection and take it away from here? Find a way to kill the Demon? Convince Elissa to kill it?

  No. She could never get close enough to try anything herself. Any guards who weren’t dealing with the skirmishes of tense civilians were guarding that gods-forsaken Faedemon.

  Elissa clearly thought there was some use to it or it’d already be dead.

  So, no, this horrible mistake would be one she’d have to live with.