I didn't answer Thania's question. I turned away from her voice, my heart still pounding from anxiety and fear. The warmth of Dassy's presence had vanished, leaving me alone with the weight of her words.
I had 24 hours to get the emerald of Messudy and my reward would be my sight. It seemed like a fair deal but how would I navigate this large building till I find wherever mother Olga may have hidden the emerald.
"Marcella," Thania called as she shook me violently.
I remained still.
I felt the hesitation in Thania's breath before she spoke again. "Marcella, who were you talking to?"
I did not respond.
I couldn't. I could not risk exposing myself to people I had barely known and I sure wasn't certain that they liked me as much as to keep my identity a secret.
I curled into myself, pulling the thin blanket tighter around my body as if that could shield me from the storm raging inside my head and around me.
