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"Ma runs it. We can trust her." The words caught in my throat. "She's... she took me in when no one else would. Gave me work when others saw nothing but my branding. She's family." I paused at the mouth of another alley, checking for passersby. "She never saw me as anything but Fia. Never wanted me to be anything else."

"Until now?" Something in his tone made me turn to him.

"What do you mean?"

"When she learns what you are. Who you are." His golden eyes found mine through the darkness. "Will she still see you the same way?"

The question hit harder than I expected. "I don't know what's happened since I've been gone," I admitted. "But I need to find out."

A group of nobles passed by, their silk robes rustling against stone. We waited, pressed into the shadows of a doorway.

"And if she alerts the Guard?" Aether's question was barely a breath against my ear.

"She won't." But even as I said it, a sliver of doubt crept in. She had been mass-producing the breathing tonics for the Western strongholds. Just as I had asked her to. Guilt churned through me as my eyes found the cobblestones. "Ma's different. She sees past what others can't. Or won't."

We emerged into another alley, this one achingly familiar. The Apothecary's worn sign creaked in the morning breeze, herbs painted in fading gold across weathered wood. My pulse began to race as we approached.

Not so long ago, I'd stood in this very spot, desperate to warn Ma about the Wraiths devouring the Western border. Now I was back with one of those supposed monsters, trying to undoeverything I'd once believed. The girl I'd been then wouldn't recognize me now—wouldn't understand how I'd become this.

"No one's inside," I whispered, reaching out with my focus to confirm what I already suspected. "Just Ma, in the back room."

Aether's form shifted beside me. "I'll stay in the shadows."

I nodded, my hand already reaching for the handle. The familiar bell chimed as I stepped inside, and for a moment, everything felt wrong. The usual herbs and spices that had once perfumed the air were gone, replaced by the sharp tang of brine. Dust coated the shelves where dried flowers once bloomed, and bottles sat askew, their contents looking dull and far past their expiration date.

"I'll be right with you!" Ma's voice called from the back, and my throat tightened at the sound. I turned the lock on the door with trembling fingers.

My boots scraped against the floor as I moved toward the back room, each step feeling heavier than the last. Ma stood at her workbench, her silver-streaked hair falling loose from its bun and the sight alone tugged at my heart in a ferocious way. Somehow, there were hibiscus stains dotting the back of her work robe in places that seemed impossible to reach. I took a step closer as she stirred something in a cauldron, the motion seeming mechanical and strained.

"Just a moment," she said, still not turning.

"Ma."

The glass vial slipped from her fingers, shattering against the floor. She spun around, her face draining of color as our eyes met.

"Fia?" Her voice cracked on my name, and suddenly I was moving, crossing the space between us as tears blurred my vision.

Ma's arms wrapped around me with crushing force, and I buried my face in her shoulder, breathing in the familiar scent of burning rosemary. Her whole body trembled as she held me, or maybe I was the one shaking. I couldn't tell anymore.

"I thought—" Her voice broke. She pulled back, her hands moving to cup my face, eyes searching mine as if she couldn't quite believe what she was seeing. "I thought..." Fresh tears spilled down her cheeks. "How is this possible? How are you here?"

"I'm so sorry," I whispered, the words feeling inadequate. "I wanted to tell you I was alive, but I couldn't?—"

"Where have you been?" Her voice cracked again, hands still trembling against my face. "All this time, I thought those monsters had—" She stopped, unable to finish the thought.

I caught her hands in mine. "Ma, there's so much you need to know. Everything we thought... it's not what we believed. None of it is."

Her eyes searched mine, confusion creasing her brow. "What do you mean?"

"I just came from Riftdremar." The words fell between us, and Ma's eyes went wild.

"What?"

"There are tears between realms—rips, we call them." My voice shook despite my efforts to keep it steady. "When I was in the Guard, we only knew about the one in the West. But there's another. In Riftdremar."

"You've been in another realm—this whole time?" Her hands trembled as she removed her hand from mine and pushed her hair back from her face.

"The Wraiths I told you about last time..." I swallowed hard. "That's just how they hide themselves—they're not monsters, Ma. They're people, just like us. A race called Kalfar." The words tumbled out faster now. "They've been attacking the Western border because they're desperate. The Isle has been stealing essence from them for a decade. Their entire realm is dying because of Sídhe."