Late at night, Bryce tells Hunt that Danika seemed convinced she had discovered something important about “Dusk’s Truth,” even though Bryce has not found any new answers in Danika’s papers. Bryce says she intends to help Cormac mainly to protect Emile, gain leverage over her own situation, and learn more about Danika. Hunt admits he is frightened for Bryce but agrees to help, comparing her determination to his own past actions for Shahar. Together they decide they will need an exit strategy, but postpone planning until morning.

The conversation turns flirtatious, then more vulnerable, as Bryce and Hunt discuss how long it has been since either of them has slept with anyone else. Their teasing reveals mutual jealousy and desire, but it also leads to an explicit exchange of consent. Bryce takes control of the encounter and sexually pleasures Hunt while they try to stay quiet because Ithan is elsewhere in the apartment.

After Hunt climaxes, Ithan yells from the other side of the apartment that he heard them, breaking the mood. Bryce laughs, suggests they get a motel room the next day, and promptly falls asleep. Hunt is left stunned by the intensity of the moment and unsure whether it even happened.

In his sleep, Hunt finds himself trapped in a dark, empty place and realizes he is speaking with Apollion, the Prince of the Pit. Apollion calls Hunt “Orion,” says the meeting is not a dream but a pocket-realm between worlds, and claims Hunt is wasting the power in his blood. He says both Hunt and Bryce are conduits who need training, hints that there are others like them, and warns that the Northern Rift is stirring toward war again. Hunt wakes shaken, distrustful of Apollion’s motives but deeply unsettled by the warning, and pulls Bryce close as he thinks about the dangers gathering around them.