He’d been doing the same thing, on and off, for over an hour.

They were locked in a small room with two iron bunk beds bolted to the floor, outfitted with nothing more than thin mattresses. On the far end was a closet barely large enough to house a toilet and sink.

Sitting beside her, Roar looked like he was seconds away from attacking Soren. A purple welt had risen over his eye, where he’d struck the wall earlier.

Finally, Soren turned to face them. “No one’s listening,” he said.

“He’s only figuring that out now?” Roar muttered.

“Who are you to talk, Outsider? You’re the one who—”

“Shut your mouth,” Roar said through clenched teeth.

“Me? We’re in here because of you.”

“Soren, just drop it,” Aria said.

“You’re defending him?

“We need to stay focused on getting out of here,” she said. “Your father will talk to you. He’ll come. When he does, you need to negotiate with him. Find out where Cinder and Perry are—”

Her voice broke on Perry’s name, so she stopped and pretended she’d finished her thought.

Soren plopped down on the opposite bunk, letting out a frustrated sigh. Guardians had confiscated his Smarteye, and his clothes were caked with dirt from their muddy skirmish with the Dragonwing pilots.

Aria stretched out her legs, staring at her own filthy pants. The rainwater had dried from the lightweight material, but she still felt uncomfortably chilled and out of sorts. Hours had passed since Perry had been dragged away unconscious. She felt his absence everywhere, in her skin and deeper, in her muscles and bones.

“You want me to negotiate with my father.” Soren gave an exaggerated nod. “Right. That’ll work. Remember your little meetings with him? Coffee in Venice? Tea in Japan? You’ve seen him way more than I have. And he isn’t exactly rushing to see me, is he, Aria?”

“He’s your father. He wanted you to leave Reverie with him.”

He snorted. “He also left my friends to die. What do you want me to say to him, anyway? ‘Sorry we hacked your security system, impersonated you, took your Hovercraft, and killed a few of your soldiers, but can you please let us go?’”

“One more word, Dweller, and I will hurt you.” Roar’s voice was low and full of deadly warning.

Soren went still, the smirk fading from his face. He shook his head and lay back with a thump on the cot.

“Miraculous,” Roar said under his breath. He drew his knees up and cradled his head in his hands, tugging at his hair.