Noah's tablet nearly slipped from his hands as he scrambled to his feet, his pulse racing faster than the ether conduits that hummed through the walls. Arik was still at the railing, frozen, golden eyes wide and wild, lips pressed tight as though holding back something sharp enough to cut.
"Arik?" Noah tried again, quieter this time, but there was no answer, only the faint tremor of the boy's shoulders, his knuckles bone-white where they clung to the steel rail.
Panic clenched hard in Noah's chest. He wasn't stupid; Arik wasn't just sulking. Something was wrong, wrong in a way that made his stomach lurch.
And Gabriel and Damian were nowhere near the balcony.
