Her mind raced. This could be freedom. This could be an escape. Or this could be a test, let her think she's free, then drag her back when she tries to run, break her spirit even more thoroughly.
She took a third step, now fully outside the cage. Her feet were on the marble floor of the penthouse for the first time in eight days. The space felt enormous after being confined, disorienting.
Thessian watched her, standing perfectly still about ten feet away. Giving her space. His hands at his sides, non-threatening. His expression was unreadable.
That's when Liora saw it, the letter opener on the desk behind her, half-hidden under scattered papers. The same desk where she'd been working on the investigation. The same letter opener she'd slipped into her pocket days ago during one of their conversations, then hidden in the seam of the cage's mattress. She'd retrieved it when gathering her things, palmed it while Thessian was unlocking the cage.
