I grow stronger by making my wife happy.

"Ha..."

Shawn muttered something under his breath. Ravenna didn’t hear it.

She continued.

"The moment everything started going wrong, Larry and his people abandoned us."

Shawn’s eyes narrowed.

"Explain."

"They used us as bait."

The words were easier to say now. Perhaps because anger had begun replacing some of the fear.

"They knew the queen was focused on us. Instead of helping, they retreated. They deliberately left Silver, Antony, and me behind so the queen would chase us while they escaped."

Shawn’s expression became cold.

"You’re certain?"

Antony answered from behind her.

"I watched them leave."

Shawn looked toward him. Antony pushed away from the tree.

"Silver tried to hold the queen off while we searched for another route. The tunnels were already collapsing by then. Larry and the others had an opportunity to help. They chose not to."

Shawn looked back at Ravenna.

"What happened after that?"

Ravenna’s fingers tightened around the tracker. This was the part she hated.

"The cave started coming down." Her voice became quieter. "Silver used his ability to search for another exit. There was one route that hadn’t completely collapsed yet, but we didn’t have enough time."

Shawn listened silently.

"He told Antony to take me."

Ravenna swallowed.

"I refused."

Mallory lowered her eyes. Ravenna looked at the tracker.

"I told him we could find another way. I told him we should stay together. I wouldn’t leave."

Her jaw tightened.

"So Antony knocked me unconscious," she said that through gritted teeth.

Shawn looked toward Antony. Antony didn’t look particularly proud of it.

"He wasn’t giving me a choice."

Shawn remained silent.

Antony continued.

"Silver told me to get her out. She would’ve stayed there until the entire mountain came down on top of us."

Ravenna closed her eyes briefly. She could still remember it, him telling her to go.

She opened her eyes.

"When I woke up, I was outside." Her voice trembled slightly. "The entrance had collapsed."

Shawn’s face had gone completely serious now.

"What about Silver?"

"He never came out."

The words hung between them. Shawn stared at Ravenna. She forced herself to continue.

"Antony said Silver stayed behind to distract the queen."

Shawn looked toward him.

Antony nodded.

"He pulled it away from us."

"Did you see him die?"

"No."

Shawn’s eyes immediately sharpened.

"You didn’t see him die?"

Antony shook his head.

"The cave collapsed between us."

Shawn looked at Ravenna.

"Then why isn’t he here?"

"We don’t know."

Ravenna raised the tracker.

"This was connected to him."

Shawn looked at the blank screen.

"It stopped working after the collapse."

"Could the cave interfere with it?"

"Possibly." Ravenna’s voice became quieter. "That’s what I’m hoping."

Shawn stared at the tracker.

"Did you go back?"

Ravenna laughed bitterly.

"I tried."

She told him about digging through the rocks. About refusing to leave and about Antony eventually convincing her they needed help.

Then she explained what happened at the observation center.

"The subjugation team had already returned."

Shawn frowned.

"And they refused?"

"They were exhausted and operating under orders." Ravenna’s eyes hardened. "They told me Silver was probably dead."

Shawn’s expression immediately darkened.

"I offered money." Ravenna continued. "I begged them, and they still wouldn’t go."

"Why?"

"Because it isn’t just a collapsed cave anymore. There’s a Rank Six queen underground, the tunnel system is unstable, and they said a rescue would require planning."

Shawn said nothing.

"The administrators said it could take weeks."

Shawn’s head snapped toward her.

"Weeks?"

"Maybe longer."

"That’s unacceptable."

"I know."

For the first time since beginning the explanation, Ravenna’s composure cracked.

"I know."

Shawn stared at her.

Ravenna looked away.

"That’s why I’m here."

Her grip tightened around the tracker until her knuckles whitened.

"Silver told me before we entered the cave that if anything happened and we were separated, I should continue to the academy. I thought he was being paranoid. I actually got angry with him for saying it."

She laughed softly, but there was nothing happy about it.

"He was right."

Mallory stepped closer but didn’t interrupt.

Ravenna continued.

"I didn’t know who else to ask."

She looked back at Shawn.

"Silver talks about you."

Shawn’s expression shifted.

"He thinks you’re incredibly talented and respects you." Ravenna hesitated. "And I know your family has influence."

Shawn understood.

"You want me to get people into that cave."

"I want someone to try." Her voice cracked. "I don’t expect you to run into Death Row Valley yourself or somehow fight a Rank Six beast. I just need someone who can make the Association move faster."

Shawn stared at her for a long time, then he asked the question Ravenna had expected eventually.

"How do I know you’re actually his fiancée?"

Ravenna froze.

Shawn immediately raised a hand.

"I’m not saying you’re lying about the cave."

Ravenna’s eyes narrowed.

"But?"

"But you’ve just walked up to me and told me that my cousin, who hasn’t mentioned an engagement to me at all, travelled halfway across the region with you, entered Death Row Valley, was betrayed by a group of Rank Four Contractors, and is currently trapped beneath a mountain with a Rank Six queen."

He exhaled.

"That’s a lot to accept in ten minutes."

Ravenna stared at him, then she sighed.

"That’s fair."

She pulled out her phone, unlock it and opened her photographs. There were more than she realized.

The first she showed him was simple. Silver and Ravenna standing beside their vehicle during one of their earlier stops.

Shawn’s eyes widened slightly.

Ravenna swiped.

Another.

Silver sitting beside a campfire.

Another.

Silver eating while looking irritated because Ravenna had apparently photographed him halfway through chewing.

Another.

Silver sleeping against the side of their vehicle.

Shawn stared his eyes widening.

Ravenna suddenly realized what she was showing him. She quickly swiped past that one.

Shawn looked at her.

"Was he asleep?"

"No."

"He was clearly asleep."

"That’s irrelevant."

Antony started laughing behind them.

Ravenna ignored him.

She found another picture. This one showed both of them. Silver had one arm around Ravenna while she leaned against him, neither of them looking particularly prepared for the photograph.

Shawn stared at it.

Ravenna swiped again.

Another photograph.

Another.

Some were ordinary, some were embarrassing, some Silver clearly knew about while others he definitely didn’t.

By the fifth photograph, Shawn no longer looked skeptical. By the tenth, his expression had become strange.

He looked from the phone to Ravenna.

"You have a lot of pictures of him."

Ravenna immediately locked the phone.

"That’s not important."

Antony laughed louder. Mallory smiled.

Shawn stared at Ravenna, then, despite everything, a small laugh escaped him.

"You’re actually his fiancée."