"The best lies are the ones that are almost true. The second best are the ones that make people feel sorry for you." — Phantom's Echo, Deception Manual (Chapter 3)
***
Damn it.
Damn her stupid [Vital Sight] skill.
Damn me for not factoring in that a healer would be able to literally see through my performance.
I let silence stretch between us. Let my face crumple into something that looked like shame. Let my shoulders slump.
Marcus and Thomlin were watching us now. They'd sensed the tension that had suddenly filled the cramped tunnel. I could see doubt creeping into their expressions. Questions forming behind their eyes that I couldn't afford to let them voice.
Time to pull out the big guns.
"I am terrified," I admitted. Let my voice tremble with vulnerability that I hoped would register on whatever internal monitor she was using. "More terrified than I've ever been in my life. But you know what terrifies me more than dying in these tunnels?"
