In a quieter tone, he added, “If you ever approach an angry combatant again, or get in the middle of an impending fight, I will... I’ll...”

Ah. That was why. He was tee-icked! Nola arched a brow and replied, “What, there’s no threat bad enough?”

“There is. I’ll tell Bane.”

Ouch. Low blow. “He might not care.” She blew him a kiss with her middle finger, then resettled on the couch.

Vale and Knox openly argued about whether or not to trust Zion.

“Stand down and trust me,” Vale said. “I won’t risk your life, or my sister’s, or our shot at victory. And yes, I realize how contradictory I sound, considering we’re trapped in a murder-everyone situation, but I expect us all to survive this.”

Nola opened her mouth to admit she knew about Vale’s plight as a combatant, but a lie left her unbidden. “Hold up. You’re a soldier in their war? How can that be?” Uh, what the what?

Dark Nola didn’t want to admit what she knew? Or, would an admission somehow invite questions about Bane?

“I’ll explain later,” Vale said, then refocused on Knox. “Please, trust me. I want to be with you. A family, not just surviving, but thriving.”

A family. Vale and Knox. Nola, a friendly outside observer. Suddenly her insides felt like they’d been dropped in an ant hill. First I lost Bane. Now I’m losing Vale.

The petty thoughts shamed her.

Knox flinched. But only seconds later, he softened, his anger completely evaporating, revealing an endless well of pain.

Nola didn’t have to wonder why. She recognized the gleam in his eyes: shattered dreams. He’d just made some kind of realization about his relationship with Vale, and it wasn’t good.

Tone gentle, Knox ended the disagreement with four sentences. “My truce with you stands, Valerina of Earth. Now and always. But I won’t be fighting at your side. Today, we part ways, and I take out combatants from the shadows, where I belong.”

Vale drew into herself, clearly crumbling inside. Nola’s heart broke. Knox was leaving her sister the way Nola had left Bane. He must think he would harm her if he stayed. Did he love her?

Knox looked to Zion and said, “I will ensure Vale reaches the final two. As long as you’re guarding her, I won’t target you. If you try to stop me, or hurt her in any way, I will make your death a cautionary tale, and even Seven will shudder with revulsion.”

Oh, yes. He loved her, and he thought he would harm her if he stayed. He’d decided to put Vale’s well-being over his own happiness, and Nola adored him for it.

“Agreed,” Zion said with a nod, and she wondered if he’d had a dream about Knox, too.