Sing, Canary - Ashley Amy Page 0,45

around the cabin that once held her prisoner.

This rundown shack looked like it belonged in a horror movie. The greyed wood was stripped of the life it once had. Parts of the walls and floor were broken. Some of the boards creaked below our feet as we moved around the small cabin from the rot setting in.

Besides the visual displeasure, I knew Simone had to battle the mental onslaught of this place. PTSD was a strong enemy. Keeping everything about business, I wanted to help her as much as I could.

"I don't think Lyra was wrong with her assumption. I just need to figure out how they combine." Scrubbing my face, I had grown exhausted from working so much.

"Well, Gideon liked to make a show of everything." Her hand waved in the direction of where her cage still sat. The cabin was abandoned when the people who bought it after the arrest were murdered. None of us were surprised.

It told us Barcel had more secrets here, but we could never find whatever he was hiding. Simone's cage had been bolted into the floor and never moved.

Even though she was a petite woman, I knew she must've been uncomfortable being stuck on all fours all the time. I observed her as she walked toward the first prison she knew.

Her hands slid over the cold surface of the metal. She didn't speak for a long period of time.

I knew coming here would be hard on her, but I knew she'd be the only thing that could break the cycle of us finding nothing. If Roan could be a free man, I needed to do everything I could to see to it.

Of course, Simone was fine with it. We both feared leaving her unprotected with Barcel still having endless power on the outside of his cell.

I could see why Lyra liked her. I wasn't physically attracted to the woman with black hair, but I knew my heart had belonged to the girl I saved all those years ago.

Though, in the few days Simone had been my roommate, we had gotten along quite well. She was a silent hard ass that also beat me in some video games. I enjoyed seeing the corner of her mouth kick up when she won.

If anything, our small friendship would make it easier on Lyra. Working together now, helped us know we could make a future work. We were both in love with the same woman, so we needed to work well if we wanted to keep her.

Lyra would never choose one over the other. She'd leave both of us before picking one of us.

"The most important thing is in that cage..." Simone whispered to herself. Her hand halted its caress over the metal. She looked up to me, drawing her thoughts to some kind of conclusion. "I thought they were talking about me, but what if it was something else?"

I moved to her side, inspecting the cage. "What are you thinking?"

"We both know there's something here that Barcel's hiding." Her eyes were fierce while meeting my gaze. "This was the one spot everyone saw first when they came through the door. I thought it was to humiliate me, but what if I was just a distraction?"

Following along with her jumbled idea, I nodded my head. "You think they used you as their showpiece. They were so open with how they treated you, that they hid their secrets within your cage."

"It makes sense. Gideon always talked about the most important thing being in this cage. Like I said, I thought he meant me, but I think there might be something else."

Joining her in the search, we both fell silent as we worked to find anything. Simone climbed inside, fighting her anxiety that came from being in the position she was.

I wanted to tell her how proud I was of her for overcoming it, but I didn't want to ruin the mission she was on now. Like a hound, she wouldn't stop searching with whatever held her attention. I stood back, letting her figure it out.

In the corner of the cage, she pulled out a tray from below. I knew this is where she was probably forced to go to the bathroom.

My gut churned, hating how much some people suffered. Life could be cruel to those who least deserved it.

Simone threw the tray behind her as her hands reached deeper into the hole the tray covered. Fascinated, I watched her arm disappear under the whole floor.

No one thought about