Chapter 346:Back home

Chapter 346: 346:Back home

By nine in the evening, Ravenna had discovered that there were few things more irritating than having absolutely nothing useful left to do.

She had spent most of the journey back from the Academy staring through the car window while Antony drove, replaying her conversation with Shawn again and again despite knowing there was nothing more she could have said or done.

That should have made her feel better, it did, slightly. The problem was that she had become used to moving.

From the moment Antony had carried her out of Death Row Valley, everything had been movement. Every hour had contained something she could do, even when none of it directly brought Silver back.

Now there was nothing.

They had eaten dinner nearly an hour ago, and Ravenna had been sitting on the living-room floor ever since.

The house Mallory had rented was comfortable enough that under normal circumstances she probably would have appreciated it considerably more.

The living room was spacious, the furniture was far better than anything they’d used while travelling between sanctuaries, and the enormous television mounted opposite the couches currently displayed some ridiculous action drama Antony had found while searching through the available channels.

Ravenna wasn’t watching it. She was sitting on the rug with her back against the front of the sofa, legs stretched out beneath the low table, completely focused on a game she’d downloaded earlier in the day, or at least she was trying to focus.

Her character died... again. She stared at the screen at bright message in disbelief.

MISSION FAILED.

Her eyebrow twitched.

"This game is cheating."

From the sofa behind her, Antony looked away from the television. "You’ve said that six times."

"Because it has cheated six times."

Mallory was curled up on the other end of the sofa with a cushion against her stomach. She glanced down at Ravenna’s phone. "I don’t think games can deliberately cheat against one specific person."

Ravenna restarted the level. "Then whoever designed it is incompetent."

Antony snorted. "Or you’re bad at it, just accept that already"

She slowly looked over her shoulder.

Antony immediately pointed toward the television. "I didn’t say anything."

"You very clearly did, you just said I’m incompetent."

"I think you imagined it."

Mallory smiled despite herself. "You definitely said it."

Antony stared at her in betrayal. "Whose side are you on?"

"Mine."

She turned back toward her phone before the conversation could continue.

The game loaded and started again. She moved her character through the first section easily since it was a jump, then attack, dodge and collect something. She reached the same boss she’d been losing against for the last fifteen minutes.

Ravenna narrowed her eyes.

"You’re dying this time."

Antony heard her. "Are you threatening a fictional creature?"

"Be quite you’re going to distract me."

The boss immediately killed her. Ravenna stared at the screen in disbelief. Antony made a strangled noise behind her.

She turned, glaring at him. He had both hands covering his mouth but his shoulders were shaking.

Her eyes narrowed. "Laugh."

Antony shook his head rapidly.

"Go ahead. I dare you."

Mallory was already laughing quietly. Ravenna looked between them.

"You’re both horrible people."

That only made Mallory laugh harder.

For a few seconds, Ravenna almost forgot why she was trying so hard to distract herself, then her eyes dropped toward the time at the top of her phone.

9:07 p.m.

The smile disappeared gradually.

Silver had been trapped for days. She wondered what time meant underground.

Did he know whether it was morning or night?

Was he awake?

Sleeping?

Injured?

Walking?

Was he even able to move?

Ravenna hated those questions because none had answers. Her fingers tightened slightly around the phone.

Mallory noticed the change immediately but she didn’t say anything, neither did Antony.

They had learned that there were moments when Ravenna wanted reassurance and moments when repeating that Silver could still be alive only made her think harder about the possibility that he wasn’t.

She looked back at the game but didn’t restart it; instead, she opened her messages.

Silver’s contact remained near the top. She stared at his name but there was nothing new, of course there wasn’t.

His tracker wasn’t working and his phone hadn’t connected since the collapse. Ravenna had checked more times than she wanted to admit.

She closed the messages and opened the game again, then sighed.

"I need the bathroom."

Antony looked at her. "Thank you for informing us."

Ravenna stood and placed her phone on the floor beside the low table. "I wasn’t informing you. I was talking to Mallory."

Mallory blinked. "I didn’t ask either."

Ravenna looked between them.

"Neither of you deserves me, I’m too good for all of you."

She walked away before Antony could answer. Mallory watched her disappear down the hallway.

Only after the bathroom door closed did Antony’s expression change. The amusement faded. He looked toward Mallory.

"She’s doing better."

"A little."

Mallory nodded. Antony sighed to himself.

"She was really down in the morning."

Mallory sighed and turned her attention toward the television again. "Finding Shawn helped. She needed someone who could actually do something or give her the illusion that something was being done."

Antony nodded.

He understood that. He had spent enough time with Ravenna to know that waiting was probably the worst thing anyone could ask her to do.

Neither of them noticed Ravenna’s phone light up. It happened quietly; one vibration against the rug which the television drowned out the sound.

The screen illuminated and a message notification appeared. The sender’s name remained visible for several seconds.

My Silver ❤️

Then the screen dimmed again.

Antony continued watching television and Mallory adjusted the cushion against her stomach.

A few minutes later, the bathroom door opened and Ravenna returned. She was drying her hands against the sides of her trousers when she entered the living room.

"Did I miss anything?"

Antony gestured toward the television. "The woman finally discovered her husband has secretly been working for the enemy."

Ravenna stared at the screen. "Didn’t you say she already suspected that?"

"Apparently suspicion doesn’t count until you walk into a room and hear the entire evil plan."

"That sounds stupid."

"It is. That’s why I’m watching. Trash TV is the best."

Ravenna shook her head and returned to her place on the floor. She picked up her phone and activated the screen.

Ravenna froze.

Her entire body became completely still. Mallory didn’t notice immediately but Antony did.

He glanced down. She wasn’t blinking, her face had lost all expression.

"Ravenna?"

She didn’t answer, her eyes remained fixed on the screen.

Antony sat forward.

"Ravenna, what happened?"

Mallory immediately turned. Ravenna’s fingers began trembling as she looked at the notification that was staring at her.

She read the name again.

My Silver ❤️

For one impossible second, her mind refused to understand what she was seeing. The only thing about it is that it had to be old; some delayed notification, something she’d accidentally opened or maybe a system error.

Maybe...

Ravenna tapped it and the message opened. There was only one new message.

She read it.

Ravenna, I’m alive. Still underground but climbing out. Don’t come back. I’ll find you.

Everything seemed to have stopped. The television continued playing behind her.

Antony said something but she couldn’t hear anything. Mallory moved closer to her but she heard none of it. She read the message again, then again.

The words didn’t change.

I’m alive.

Her breath caught. Ravenna covered her mouth but a sound escaped anyway.

Mallory was off the sofa immediately. "Ravenna?"

Tears filled her eyes so quickly that the screen blurred. She aggressively wiped them but they wouldn’t stop coming. She read the message again, it was still there.

"I’m alive."

No, that wasn’t what she’d meant to say.

Ravenna tried again.

"He..." her voice broke completely.

Antony stood.

"What happened? Did someone message you?"