Chapter 44

Declan

Dane didn’t answer right away, and the silence stretched, pressing against my skull.

I swallowed hard, my throat dry. “After a while I couldn’t hear anything anymore,” I continued, my tone sharper, brittle. “Not the screams. Not the crying. Not…” My voice cracked, and I cut myself off before it could shatter completely. I forced the words back out, quieter but colder than before. “What happ