?Chapter 1136:


    She rarely stepped outside unless there was no other choice. Something unseen seemed to tug at her relentlessly, pulling her back each time, like a bird forever drawn to its cage.


    A sudden voice pulled Maia out of her drifting thoughts.


    “What’s going on in your head, Maia?” Zoey asked. “You don’t think I’m the sort of person who enjoys being locked in here, spending my days watching criminals as if it were some twisted pastime, do you?”


    A yful smile lingered in Zoey’s eyes as she tilted her head.


    “Of course not,” Maia answered firmly, giving a sincere shake of her head. “It’s just… I didn’t realize that was the reason you asked me to send Rnd away. If he’s working to overturn your case, then it proves something went terribly wrong back then. You should never have been trapped here in the first ce.”


    Once, Zoey had been known for her brilliance and versatility, and Maia could only imagine how much greater her influence would have been had she lived outside these walls.


    By now, the name Zoey Cooper might have been celebrated far beyond this prison.


    “You’ve started to see things more clearly, Maia,” Zoey said gently. “It reminds me of myself twenty years ago. I’m proud of you.”


    She lifted her hand, pale and delicate, palm open. “Take it. There’s something I want to show you.”


    Maia slipped her hand into Zoey’s and followed her as they ascended to the second floor.


    A heavy stillness hung over the study, carrying only the faint fragrance of polished wood and aged paper.


    In front of the towering shelves, Zoey pressed a finger against a single book, and the case shifted with a low groan, sliding aside to reveal a narrow staircase spiraling upward.


    “I was going to wait before showing you this,” Zoey said with a gentleugh, her tone as calm as a breeze on an autumn afternoon. “I nned to let Siena lead you here someday—maybe when I was nearing the end of my life, or after I was already gone. By then, I imagined you and Chris might even have a child or perhaps two…”


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    Her words drifted easily, yet Maia felt a sudden weight settle in her chest.


    Her gaze lingered on Zoey, who had already ced a foot on the steps, and she opened her mouth to speak but could not bring herself to voice the thought.


    Zoey had always been strong in health; Maia could not ept the idea of her fading away. She firmly believed that Zoey could live a long life.


    With a silent plea echoing in her heart, Maia tightened her grip on Zoey’s hand and followed her upward into the hidden passage.


    The staircase pressed tightly between the walls, its steps so small that they barely allowed room for half a foot.


    On either side, dim goldenmps flickered gently, casting soft shadows along the stone.


    From somewhere above, a cool current of air drifted down, keeping the passage breathable.


    Zoey moved upward without hesitation, her pace steady, as though she had traveled this way countless times before. By contrast, Maia struggled despite Zoey’s hand steadying her, each step feeling heavier than thest.


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