The morning of the trial came with a dreadful stillness. No birds chirped. No wind stirred the trees.
It was like the very earth was holding its breath. I barely touched the stale bread Luca had found the night before, my appetite swallowed whole by anxiety.
Luca stood across from me, his arms crossed tightly over his chest. The shadows under his eyes looked darker than ever, and for the first time since I’d known him, I saw fear flicker in them.
I clutched the edge of the wooden table.
"The serum," I whispered.
"Where is it?"
Luca blinked as if he'd forgotten all about it in the weight of everything else. He rushed to the satchel he’d tucked in the corner of the room.
I watched him dig, then dig deeper, the frantic movements growing harsher by the second.
"No, no, no," he mutter
