Chapter 4

The hunger started as a dull ache in my stomach, a constant, gnawing reminder of my new reality, but it was the silence that truly hurt. For three days, no one had spoken to me. Not a guard, not an Omega, not even Luna.

I sat on the edge of my narrow cot in the laundry quarters, listening to the drip of a leaky pipe somewhere in the darkness. My world had shrunk to this: the smell of mildew, the rough texture of the wool blanket beneath my fingers, and the terrifying quiet.

"Elyse."

The voice came from the doorway,…