I slowed my pace, glancing at her out of the corner of my eye. "You think I do?"
Her lips pressed thin. "Then why give them ground?" Her voice was low, sharp, but beneath it was something else. Not anger. Frustration.
"Because we can't win without numbers," I said. "Nadia's intel matches what we've seen. Marcus gives us strength; she gives us information. They're not trusted, but they are useful."
Nicole's jaw clenched. She looked away, eyes tracing the empty corridor. "Useful doesn't stop them from cutting your throat the second it benefits them. Especially her."
I caught the flicker in her tone, the raw edge beneath her calm. I reached, brushing my hand against hers briefly, grounding her. "Hey. I'm not letting anyone in but you. This is survival, not trust. I won't forget what she is."
She finally met my eyes then, tension softening just a fraction. "You'd better not. Because if she tries anything, I won't hesitate. Even if you tell me to."
I gave her the faintest smile. "That's why I want you beside me, and even if she did do something I will kill her myself. I will work hard to make everyone safe, especially you and Sol."
The silence that followed wasn't empty. It was steady, tethered. The kind that made the weight feel just a little easier to carry.
We walked the rest of the way back in step, together.
The camp was louder than I'd left it. Gear clinked, voices carried low and restless, and there were more bodies than before. New faces.
Wei Shen's people.
I spotted them near the barricaded storefront entrance—men checking weapons, a couple of women setting out bedrolls, and one younger girl with a steel spine in her posture. Their presence made the space feel smaller, tighter, like the air itself was holding its breath.
Wei Shen stood at the center of it, hands clasped behind his back, posture military-straight even in scavenged clothes. He was talking quietly with Logan until his gaze cut across the room and landed on me and Nicole.
He stopped mid-sentence, then nodded his head towards us. Logan turns in the direction he indicated before tapping Wei Shin's arm, then walking off.
Wei Shen stepped forward first, his people throwing glances our way, and I could tell we had the whole group's attention. His eyes narrowed on me, not hostile but sharp, measuring.
"You said there was a plan," he said. "What do you need from us?"
I unrolled the map on the table, tapping the spot Nadia had marked for the hostage pen. "Nicole and I went to another group for a temporary alliance, and we ultimately decided to attack the goblin's den."
Wei Shen's brow furrowed, and I saw the protest forming before he spoke. "You're asking me to send my men to attack the very place that Marco and his men died at. I don't know if you know this, but my group is severely lacking in levels. If Marco couldn't do it, what makes you think we can? We should never have come here; this is suicide."
A younger girl around the same age as my oldest daughter, Robin, walked over laying a hand on Wei Shin's back trying to calm him down.
"Dad, you haven't even listened to the plan. We are already here, so might as well listen to the whole thing before just saying no. Sorry about my dad, my name is Lian, and I have heard so much about you too." Lian said with her eyes sparkling.
I look toward Nicole, who is smiling at me in amusement before gesturing to me to continue.
I walked towards a table and waved for people to crowd around. I unrolled the map on the table, tapping the spot Nadia had marked for the hostage pen. "I would like your group to mainly focus on extraction. The missing women are being held here. When the fighting starts, they'll be caught in the middle unless someone pulls them out. That's where you come in. While the goblins are focused on the strike and the diversion teams, you slip in, get them out, and move them through cleared corridors. It's not an easy job, but it's important."
Wei Shen's mouth pulled tight, his voice lower, heavier. "I don't like it. Those women… they deserve saving, yes. But pulling them out in the middle of a battle? With goblins swarming and blades swinging? That's a death sentence. Chaos swallows people whole, and I won't throw my team into it blind."
Before I could answer, Lian straightened, hand still on his back, but her words cut sharper than his doubt. "If no one steps up, those women die in cages while we hide behind excuses. I'd rather die fighting than live knowing I stayed safe while they didn't."
She held his gaze, daring him to refuse her.
Wei Shen exhaled slowly, shoulders sagging. The fight wasn't gone from his eyes, but something in him bent under hers. He gave a stiff, reluctant nod. "Fine. If you're that set on it… We'll do it."
I gave Lian a small, grateful nod. "Good. Then it's settled. Extraction falls to you."
I turned, raising my voice so the rest of the camp could hear. "Nicole and I met with Nadia and Marcus. They've agreed to fight with us. It's temporary, but we need their numbers and their intel. With them, we have a real shot at ending this dungeon."
The reaction was immediate, murmurs spreading, sharp words sparking like flint. Eli shot to his feet, pale and trembling but loud. "You can't! Nadia's the one who led my group into the goblins. You can't trust her!"
From the back, Giselle's voice cut in, cool but edged with disdain. "He's not wrong. Nadia's poison. If we stand beside her, we'd better be ready for her knife in our backs."
The noise grew, grumbles of agreement, whispers of doubt, a few faces lit with the thrill of action, but more shadowed with unease.
"She's poison." Giselle hissed with Laney nodding in agreement.
"But if they've got intel, we need it. It's just like any other mission; we may not like the people we work with, but we get the job done." Devan said
I let them stir for a moment before I cut it off, clapping my hands once, hard. The sound cracked through the storefront like a whip.
"Enough."
All eyes came back to me.
"They are not friends. They are not family. They are allies because it gets us out of here faster. That's all. Keep your guard up and never get comfortable with them. And don't ever let yourself be alone with her."
The room stilled, the tension settling into something quieter, heavier. No cheers. No celebration. But no one walked away, either. This is good as long as they don't leave and are willing to listen to the plan; then everything is good.