The thief stiffened, remaining crouched for a couple of seconds before he slowly rose to his full height. He was not as tall as those other guys had been, but still taller than me. Although he had a slender, almost skinny body, I didn’t need to imagine the strength he was packing to be able to have done those kinds of acrobatics. Like the other guys, he was clad in jeans and leather, all black, with his hood pulled up over his head. His face was shadowed, so I couldn’t make out his features.

My thumb hovered over the alarm button—but I found myself as frozen as he was. My hesitation seemed to have eased the tension in his body. ‘Now that wouldn’t be very nice, would it?’ he drawled, pulling his hood back.

My jaw dropped. I almost recoiled in disgust. The thief brushed some hair out of his face, looking equally shocked to see me. I’d thought those other guys had been bad, but this one really took the cake. He had a surprisingly pale face for being out in this heat, seeming not much older than myself. He sported several tattoos and piercings—even his ear had one of those small loop-hole piercings. His hair was long and black, just like I’d noted earlier, but he had a long fringe hanging down the side of his face, streaked with white. Black kohl shadowed his eyes, making him look like a raccoon, though his eyes practically pierced through me, they were so light—like ice when light shines through it.

I realised I had to say something and fumbled for a coherent sentence. ‘W-what you did wasn’t very nice either. Not to that poor woman.’

The thief cocked his head at me, studying me in silence. Then he shrugged. ‘I need the money,’ was all he said.

I mustered another bout of confidence—I’d been doing that a lot lately—and put my hands on my hips. ‘She looked like she needed it more than you.’

‘I doubt it,’ he retorted, shrugging his rucksack higher up on his back. ‘Don’t let my good looks fool you.’ I grimaced at his words, and he smiled toothily at my reaction. ‘Besides—it was me or her. I’d rather it be me.’

I wanted to contradict him again, but remained silent, noting his grimy hair, his splotchy clothes, his slim body. It really was that bad, I realised. Not just for him—for everyone. This city was deteriorating, forgetting the masses of people grappling in poverty while the rich lived their carefree lives, surrounded by the gleaming promise of their engineered future. A future that wasn’t so available to the people down here.

I decided it wasn’t my battle. I sighed, putting my hands up in defeat. ‘Okay, whatever. You’re off the hook. I’m going.’ With that I turned, hoping to make it out of the grey maze before sunset.

‘Where do you think you’re going?’ In a second he was by my side, matching my stride while he peered around us self-consciously.

‘Home,’ I said evasively. Stealing from a rich person wasn’t beneath a pocket thief. I held onto my device tightly, alarm button flashing protectively. All I had to do was tap it.

‘Where’s home?’ he asked, heedless off my suspicions. ‘It’s not exactly safe around here.’ I stopped at that, surprised by his tone. ‘I’ll escort you,’ he continued, his eyes meeting mine. Yet again, I felt unnerved by that piercing gaze.

But suspicion bloomed in my chest. ‘What do you mean, not safe around here?’

He twisted a strand of tar-black hair, looking a little uneasy. ‘Let’s just say I’m not the baddest thing around.’

I snorted. ‘That figures. Besides my device, there’s not much to steal.’

‘Your device is worth a lot of money—especially down here. Not to mention your clothes, your shoes, your hair…’ His gaze lingered on my hair a little longer than I liked.

I gathered it back self-consciously. ‘My hair?’ I echoed, incredulous. I had a lot of thick, semi-curly hair, and would hate to lose it. I wished I’d brought a hair tie with me.

‘Yes,’ he replied, nonplussed. ‘There’s value in everything—especially on the black market.’

I gulped, my worry radar ramping up. What the hell had I been thinking, leaving Gina and Kim with those guys? My hands started shaking a little.

‘Don’t worry,’ he said, lifting his hand to pat my shoulder, though he reconsidered when his eyes fell on my very white and very clean blouse. ‘I won’t let anything happen to you. I might be a thief…but I’ve never hurt anyone.’ I shot him a look of pure disbelief, and he grinned mischievously. ‘Well, not outside self-defence.’

‘Why are you helping me?’ I asked bluntly, not believing for a second that it was his actual intention. Possibly he wanted to lead me toward an even more secluded place, to rob me—or worse. I wanted to check the map on my device, but I feared minimising the alarm button. This guy was quick; a second was all it took for him to walk off with your possessions.

‘To be honest?’ He flashed me a sly smile. ‘I haven’t seen an Uptown girl in ages. Definitely never met one.’

I couldn’t help it; I laughed. ‘Uptown girl? Like the old song?’

The thief’s smile was a little more forced this time. ‘No. That’s what we actually call you.’ He pointed toward the sprawling mass of glass that made up the malls. ‘That’s Uptown.’ He pointed to the ground beneath us. ‘This is downtown.’ He pointed to me. ‘You belong up there, in there. You shouldn’t be down here. Neither should those girls you were with earlier.’

‘You saw them?’ I gasped. Another suspicion nagged at me. ‘Did you follow us?’

He waved away my question. ‘Hell no. If I had followed you, you would be none the wiser.’ His snide smile was back. ‘Instead, you caught me in the act.’

‘Yeah…’ I began, feeling troubled. If this guy really had the little honour he claimed he had, he would respect what I asked for next. ‘I actually don’t feel so comfortable hanging around with a—a criminal. I’d like to make my own way back.’

He looked genuinely disconcerted. ‘What if I promised? Would that make you feel better?’

‘No,’ I blurted.

He sighed deeply, the smile vanishing from his face. He ran a hand through his hair, glancing around us again as if he expected enemies to materialise from the shadows. And I supposed it wasn’t entirely unlikely, either. ‘Okay—sorry,’ he muttered at last, his gaze locking with mine a last time before he tore it away. He ran toward a wall and climbed it quickly, feet seeming to fly over the surface with a smattering of dull thuds. In a matter of seconds he was gone.

I breathed a massive sigh of relief, remaining where I stood for a few seconds, ensuring myself that he had really left. Then I swiped on my device, bringing up the map. I was on the wrong side of the malls, which meant I still had a bit of a trek left to find an entrance to the tunnels. The sun was steadily approaching the horizon, which worried me, but if I made haste I would make it back before nightfall.

I pondered whether to return to the playground to check on the girls, but dismissed the idea. They weren’t idiots. They were probably headed back toward the mall by now. I straightened my clothes, shook off my worries, and set off at a brisk pace.

It took longer than I expected. I made wrong turns several times. Some roads were blocked by construction, and others looked too shady to walk through. Navigating the winding streets was taking far too long. As the sky darkened, my panic increased.

There could be no help for it, I decided. I had to contact the police. They would help me find my way back. They would fine my father for it, but it wasn’t like we were low on money. I swiped back to the alarm button and was just about to press it when the device was suddenly knocked out of my hand. A dark-clad figure pounced on me.

I fell back, pain blasting through me, though I managed to somehow angle my body, taking the brunt of the fall on my arms and knees. It scraped up my pants and palms, but in the heat of the moment I had no room to spare for such minor injuries. My attacker was rolling me onto my back and yanking at my clothes.

Horror seized me like a sudden, freezing cold, like my body had been dropped through a winter lake. This was no ordinary thief, my jumbled mind screamed. This attacker had something far, far worse in mind. And my device was nowhere in sight—either broken or pocketed by the man fumbling above me.

For a moment I was paralysed with fear and did nothing. There was just the sound of his heavy breathing mingled with my terrified gasps, the sight of his struggling features through a tangle of limbs and probing fingers. But as the attacker straddled me, my mind began to work again. I realised I had to hurt him in any way possible, had to do anything to get away. I began to flail with my arms, trying to release my legs from beneath him, but it was no use. He was much heavier and much stronger, and he grabbed my wrists, twisting and pinning them down on the asphalt so I felt my arms might dislocate. What could I do, what could I do? Panic raced through my body, but I couldn’t decide on a course of action. Remain still and minimise damage as much as possible? Or fight for all I was worth? I was just about to make a decision when the attacker produced a knife from his pocket. His arm came crashing down on me and—

Suddenly he wasn’t there anymore. My breath was knocked out of me as another weight landed on top of us, but the momentum carried the load up over and away from me. Momentarily free, I quickly rolled to the side, protecting my head with my arms and curling up into a ball, hoping to escape whatever was going on around me. I couldn’t tell—my eyes were closed.

Seconds passed, yet the attacker wasn’t coming back. Was he gone? I had to find out. I pried my eyes open, fear making me tremble so violently that I felt my teeth shatter. The tattooed face and piercing eyes of the “friendly” thief filled my vision. I recoiled harshly, hitting my head on the ground.

‘Ow!’ I yelped, flailing with my arms again, trying to rake at him with my nails.

‘Stop—stop!’ He tried to still my arms at first, but then abandoned the project. He distanced himself, which effectively calmed me down. ‘Stop. He’s gone. We’ve got to hurry.’

My eyes flew open. I tried to sit up, taking note of the torn knees of my pants, the blood on my hands. ‘Get away from me.’

‘No,’ he insisted, his voice urgent. ‘I think it’s best if I stay with you this time—’

‘You attacked me,’ I whispered, still in shock.

‘What? No!’ He looked stricken. ‘It wasn’t me! I was following you. I didn’t see him in time. I tried to get to you but wasn’t fast enough….’ His Adam’s apple bobbed when he swallowed, and he crouched, coming forward again. ‘Here—let me help you.’ He stretched his hand toward me.

His face was still as horrifying as ever, but I saw something genuine in his eyes. Did he really want to help? I glanced around, looking for my device.

‘Where is it?’ I asked aloud, feeling panic rise again.

The friendly thief shot me a pained look. ‘I’m afraid he must have taken it.’

‘But…why?’ I managed, my voice growing hollow with delayed reaction. ‘He can’t access it….’

‘He can disassemble it and sell the parts.’

‘Oh god,’ I whispered, a hand going to my mouth. ‘Without it…without it I can’t access the tunnels.’

‘Come here.’ He slid his arms around me and helped me stand. I felt too drowsy to resist. The shock was starting to wear off, and my body was growing rapidly exhausted after the ordeal I’d been put through. My ankle hurt, and my knees and palms burned. I closed my eyes, trying to breathe steadily. Then it dawned on me that I was still being embraced by a stranger. I jerked away, stumbling over his foot and nearly losing my balance. His arm shot out to steady me before I could fall.

‘Thanks,’ I muttered, trying to move my tangled hair out of my face.

His finger slid under a stray lock. ‘Allow me.’

‘No,’ I snapped, stepping away again.

He stilled, arm falling to his side. He remained like that while I groomed myself and tried to organise my jumbled thoughts. I assessed the state of my clothes.

‘I look like a mess,’ I groaned, tugging at my pants.

‘No,’ the thief said in a strange voice, crystal eyes travelling over me. ‘You still look….’ He swallowed, jaw hardening. ‘You look fine,’ he finished. ‘Your pants are torn and your blouse is zinged but…you still look like a rich person. In fact, I’m sure that’s what the guards will think. You won’t be able to get close to the tunnels without your device at this hour, but we can try again tomorrow. They’ll let you in.’

‘We?’

His playful smile was back, if a little tentative. ‘I figure I should stick around until you’re safely tucked back inside the mall. It’s the least I can do…you know, repenting for my crimes.’

He sounded so confident that it actually convinced me. If he had really wanted to hurt me in some way he would have done it by now. I breathed normally again, rubbing my hands together at the sudden chill, grimacing at the stinging in my cuts. My blouse was long-sleeved but thin. I could feel the cold now that the sun was gone.

‘Want my jacket?’ the thief offered, having noticed the shiver pass through me.

I eyed his skinny frame. ‘I think I have thicker skin than you have,’ I said, realising too late that I’d just invited him to comment on my body.

He must have read the mortification on my face because he smiled wolfishly, eyes roving over me. I didn’t particularly like that, especially not after what I’d just been through, so my body stiffened with offence. It was strange, really. Before coming here, I’d never been particularly conscious of my appearance. I wasn’t notably beautiful in comparison to Gina or even Kim. I was average in height and plump. My features didn’t really stand out. Maybe the fact that I was clean was enough to make me an attractive specimen around here. I decided to find out. ‘Why are you looking at me like that?’

I expected him to become surprised or embarrassed, but his smile only grew.

‘I told you, I haven’t seen an Uptown girl in a long time—probably not since I was a kid. Even now…it’s impossible not to look at you. Your skin is so clear…your teeth are so white. Your hair is fluffy and lush. You smell like flowers. It’s like you’ve come from a dream. Hell, it’s like you belong to a different planet.’

I nodded, relieved at having my suspicions confirmed. I decided to change the subject. ‘By the way….’ My hesitation was brief. ‘Thank you for helping me. You were right, you really are the lesser of two evils.’

‘That really warms my heart,’ he jested, holding a hand to his chest. ‘Will you do something in return for me?’

I was immediately on my guard. ‘Depends….’

He chuckled. ‘So suspicious—though I suppose it’s for the better.’ He shrugged off his leather jacket and draped it over my shoulders before I could protest—and as soon as I felt its enveloping warmth, I didn’t want to. Satisfied, he said, ‘Will you deign to tell me your name?’

‘Oh.’ I grimaced. ‘Irma.’

‘Irma…’ he echoed, eyes locked on me again. I fidgeted under his scrutiny. ‘Well, Irma,’ he continued, ‘I’m Elias.’ His name surprised me. In the Metropolis people usually had such futuristic names, names that seldom held any meaning.

‘It’s a nice name,’ I admitted.

His lip nudged up in a crooked smile. ‘So is yours.’ He turned to go, and I fell into step beside him, puzzling over his behaviour. He had followed me—maybe not the first time, but I’d asked him to leave and despite that, he had followed me. And if he hadn’t, I would have been terribly violated.

I noticed I had been following him, not knowing where we were headed. ‘What happens now?’ I inquired, wishing I could check my location on a map. ‘Where are you taking me?’

‘Someplace safe.’

‘Great,’ I snapped. ‘That’s perfectly vague. “Someplace safe.” Where?’ Elias only chuckled at my snappy remarks, and I raised an eyebrow at him. ‘This isn’t funny.’

His eyes glittered. ‘It isn’t?’

‘I was almost raped!’ I exclaimed hotly, feeling my cheeks flush with indignation. ‘How is that funny?’

‘Oh, that wasn’t.’

‘Then why are you laughing?’ I demanded.

He gestured between us. ‘This is funny. I mean, me hanging out with an Uptown girl.’

I groaned. ‘I wouldn’t call it “hanging out.”’

‘You know,’ he said, his expression managing to be rueful and sardonic at the same time, ‘I used to hate the Uptown folk. I thought you were elitist, pompous, selfish bastards. I used to fantasise about stumbling into one of you and robbing you clean. Maybe giving a few punches and kicks for good measure. And yet—look at me now.’ He grinned broadly, like this was all said in good fun. ‘I almost killed a guy to save one of you. Granted, he was my competition, but still one of my own people, in a way.’

I shook my head. ‘I still don’t think this is funny,’ I grumbled. ‘I’ve never been through anything like that before. It was horrible.’

Elias suddenly came to a stop. He grabbed my arm to still me, gazing earnestly into my eyes. ‘For some of us—this is reality,’ he said, expression grave and unforgiving. ‘Either you learn not to take life so seriously, seeking whatever enjoyment you can from it, or you go insane and kill yourself. Those are our options.’

His sudden serious tone and manner coupled with his hard grip on my wrist had me shocked into silence. ‘S-sorry,’ I stammered, wishing he’d let me go. He held me for a moment longer, his eyes searching mine before he finally released me. I rubbed my wrist.

‘You’re lucky I’m able to restrain myself, or your fate tonight could have been far worse.’ His voice was dark, though he kept looking ahead.

Aghast at this sudden admission, I came to a standstill, staring at him with my mouth hanging open. ‘What the hell?’ I exclaimed, too stunned to feel appropriately angry—yet. ‘“Lucky you’re able to restrain yourself!” What’s that supposed to mean?’

He turned to me again, his eyes travelling over my body and face, suggestive and…sinister. ‘What do you think it means?’ he challenged, but he went on before I could even think of an answer. ‘It means that just because I’m able to restrain myself doesn’t mean I don’t want…that.’ He nodded almost imperceptibly down at my body.

Realisation dawned, and I glared at him, feeling fury fill me now. ‘Get away from me,’ I growled. I had been wrong to forget what he was, even for a moment. ‘You—you monster,’ I spat. And just as suddenly as it had come, his seriousness was gone, replaced by another one of his tell-tale smiles. I couldn’t tell if he was kidding or not, but I was too angry to care.

‘Look—I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. I mean, I can’t really help my reaction…or I guess I can, since I haven’t done anything…’

‘Leave me alone.’ I walked ahead, hoping to get as far away from him as possible.

He caught up to me easily. ‘And what’s your plan?’ he asked. ‘You’re gonna fend off your next attacker by yourself? Because there will be a next one.’

‘I’ll go back to Gina and Kim,’ I said, voice flat. It wasn’t ideal, but I considered what Elias had said. If those guys had wanted to hurt the girls, there wouldn’t have been a point in playing nice. Maybe like Elias, they too were the lesser of two evils. I had to take my chances.

‘I wouldn’t recommend it,’ he went on. ‘They looked like junkies. I think you should stay with me.’

‘Why?’ I demanded. ‘What if your fragile restraint snaps while I’m conveniently asleep? At least those guys weren’t interested in that thing,’ I lied.

‘Sure they weren’t,’ he replied, voice dripping with sarcasm. Then it turned placating. ‘Look, I really am sorry. Just because I want…well, whatever, I wouldn’t force myself on anyone.’ I spun around to look into his eyes, trying to read any truth in his words. They met mine unwaveringly, earnest and honest. Or so they appeared.

‘Fine!’ I yelled, feeling some of the frustration pour out of me. ‘Just get me out of here. I’m tired. I want to sleep.’

Elias remained unfazed by my outburst, his zinged eyebrow raised at my petulant tone. ‘Alright. Just follow me.’

I did, feeling increasingly apprehensive as we neared downtown. The market was still in full motion, though strings of colourful lights now illuminated the narrow pathways. It was still crowded, people pushing past each other, probably pickpocketing one another. Elias grabbed a hold of my hand while he manoeuvred his way through the masses, elbowing people aside to let me through. I reminded myself that this guy could have abandoned me and easily parkoured his way over here, and felt a wave of gratitude overcome me. Yes, what he’d said before had been insensitive and cruel, but it reflected his way of life. These people stole everything—why not steal sex too?

I stopped this train of thought, not wanting to relive the near-rape experience, and refocused on my surroundings instead. Elias was a force of nature, ploughing through the crowds with a strength belonging to someone twice his size. I was jostled out of his grip a couple of times, but each time he doubled back, rising on his toes to scan for me like a meerkat, and came to get me again. Steadily I moved closer and closer to his body, until I was practically holding him around the waist.

After walking for what felt like eons, we finally escaped the worst of it. The heat and stench of crowding bodies, the cacophony of spitting shouts and murmured conversations, curses and protestations as elbows jammed into ribs, or black-rimmed nails yanked at the torn edges of clothes. It had been like a jungle, and now we were finally past it. I released Elias, stepping far away, content to keep some distance from him no matter his protective role. This earned me another toothy grin. He urged us on to our destination, arms swinging casually by his sides.

I wasn’t sure what I expected from Elias’ living space, but if possible it was worse. We reached another concrete building, emblazoned with graffiti and sentences like “eat the rich”. It sported several long and jagged cracks along its tan walls, and was crowned by a partially collapsed roof. The first floor of the house was clearly inhabited. Its few iron-barred windows were lit and shouted conversation drifted out from the cracks, where ants crawled in a line. Elias guided me toward a tree—the first tree I had glimpsed of yet, a tall and gnarled and very dry oak tree—leaning toward the side of the building. He looked at me expectantly.

‘Now we climb.’

‘We—climb?’ I eyed the oak critically. The branches were a bleached brown, sparsely covered with scrawny yellow-green leaves. It didn’t look very sturdy, not at all good for climbing. Sure, Elias would make it with that light, wiry frame of his, but I was undoubtedly heavier. ‘I can’t climb that,’ I declared, almost happy to be spared the activity.

Elias shrugged, a knowing glint in his eye. ‘Fine. You can sleep out here on the street. See you tomorrow.’ He reached for the first branch.

I glanced around at the wonky, empty street, checking for a hiding place and finding none. ‘Wait.’

He looked back down at me, that infuriating, smug grin stretching his grotesque features. ‘Yes?’

‘I’ll climb,’ I muttered. ‘But I go first.’

‘So that if you slip, I’m here to hamper your fall?’

‘Yes,’ I admitted.

‘Ruthless,’ he commented, though he sounded impressed. ‘Up you go then.’

I eyed the nearest branch. I could reach it, but I could by no means haul myself up on arm strength alone. Elias noticed the problem and laced his fingers together.

‘Grab my shoulders and hoist yourself up.’

I did, swaying a little bit before gathering my wits about me, using the little strength I had to drag myself up and over the branch. The scaled wood of the tree-trunk scraped painfully against my soft skin and ribs, but I bit down on the pain, too focused on not falling. I remained on the first branch for a moment, catching my breath, feeling almost embarrassed over how loud my panting was. Thankfully the next few branches were easy to climb, and once I reached the canopy I peered through the thickets, trying to understand where the hell I was supposed to go. I moved a branch aside, and then I got it.

There was a hole in the collapsed roof, obscured by the thicker canopy of the tree, just large enough for a person to slip through. It took more panting and wriggling to manoeuvre my soft-boned self from the tree to the hole, but luckily a protruding rock in the wall gave me a foothold to step on. I held my breath and climbed inside. I landed with a light smack on the hard floor, seeing as there was a slight drop from the hole in the roof to the bottom of what appeared to be a small, unused attic space. The darkness made it impossible to discern where the ceiling was, so I remained on my knees, stumbling forward, trying to find anything else but harsh concrete to sit on.

A minute later the sounds of another body smacking against the floor could be heard. Elias’ voice whispered in the dark. ‘Please don’t trample all over my stuff.’

Miffed at his mocking tone, I stilled, trying to peer through the dark and make out his features. A light chuckle reached me. I should have known the bastard was harbouring the same, infuriating grin.

‘Now that we know it can hold your weight, you will ascend the tree after me next time. Alright?’

His words didn’t make any sense. ‘Huh?’

‘I don’t want you coming in here first to discover that some enemy of mine has crawled in while I was gone, waiting for me with a knife.’ I blanched, feeling around in the dark. ‘Don’t worry—it’s empty. If it hadn’t been, you’d have been dead by now.’

I sighed, wishing desperately to be out of this hell hole. At least we weren’t underground, but these smothering confines were bad enough. There was the stench of unwashed clothes mingled with the fragrance of kohl and something else…ink? I couldn’t place it. It could have been worse, but the cement kept the space relatively cool, protected from the glare and steaming heat of the sun. ‘Luckily I won’t have to spend more than one night here,’ I muttered, recalling his words about returning me home in the morning.

For once Elias had no comment to make, and there was utter silence for a second, until a light suddenly clicked on. I’d expected an oil lamp or even a lantern, but no. A white spotlight illuminated the cement floor, casting scary, almost skeletal shadows across Elias’ face. I avoided his gaze, searching through his pile of things. I snagged a blanket out of the mess, wrapping it around me. I noticed a rolled-up bundle that had to be Elias’ sleeping bag—and wondered where I would sleep. I was about to pass it toward him when he stopped me. ‘No—you’ll be sleeping in there.’

I frowned. ‘What about you?’ Was he hoping we’d sleep together?

He made an amused noise. ‘I’ve slept in far worse conditions. I’ll take the blanket.’

‘Oh.’ I was suddenly at a loss for words. ‘Um…that’s very nice of you.’

‘Yeah, well….’ He yawned hugely. ‘I’m just hoping you won’t tell anyone about my hiding spot once you’re back inside the mall.’

‘Of course I won’t,’ I said without hesitation. ‘I’m not like that.’ I realised there was a truth to my words—I really wasn’t like that. No matter how law-abiding a citizen I had been throughout my life, I felt like busting people for no reason was…unnecessarily cruel.

Elias didn’t reply, though I thought I glimpsed approval on his features. ‘Pass me that,’ he said then, eyes on the blanket. I handed it toward him before unrolling the sleeping bag. I snuggled inside, noticing a pillow by the remaining stuff in the corner. My sleeping bag luckily had some padding by the head area, so I passed it over to Elias, who looked beyond grateful. I wasn’t completely unreasonable. If there hadn’t been a pillow around, I would have asked him to rest his head on my bundled legs. But there was no reason to let him know that now.

Without further comment we relaxed into our makeshift beds. Both of us were tired after the struggle with the attacker. I might have gotten some scraped up knees and palms, but otherwise my pain was pretty superficial. Elias, on the other hand, had fought with a guy armed with a knife and come out unscathed. That had to be just as emotionally exhausting, if not more.

It dawned on me once again that without him, my fate would have had a very different outcome today. A part of me was too sleepy to feel like talking anymore, but I had to let him know.

‘Elias?’ I whispered, secretly hoping he was asleep already.

Silence met me, but I kept listening. There was something attentive in the stillness. Finally, his voice rumbled, ‘Yeah?’

‘I wanted to thank you for…saving my skin today. You didn’t have to do it…but you still did. I’m glad. I’m grateful. So thank you.’

Soft chuckles travelled to me through the dark. ‘I’m not so sure I did anything in the way of saving your skin,’ he pointed out. ‘But I’m glad you’re safe. Like I said…there’s a lot of shit one has to do to survive around here. That doesn’t mean I like doing it.’

And that was as much of an apology as I would get about the “criminal” stuff he’d done, I realised. I wasn’t sure he even owed me that…but I guess deep down, even Elias was a good person.

With that last thought, I drifted off to sleep.