Page 8

Forget about Nik.

But despite the numb sensation that pervaded my body, I knew none of it was true. That reality would come back to swallow me whole. It would drown me if I let it. That maybe Donika had finally broken me, and I had nothing left.

When I peeled my eyes open, I was met with the ceiling above me, made of driftwood that had to have been pulled from the shores. An insect net surrounded my bed and when I sat up, I could see the Myrene Sea off in the distance. Itcrashed softly against the small cliff that separated us from the salty waves. My eyes searched the shore to the right, where I could make out two figures sitting, huddled together against the sand.

There was a home to the left with a thatched roof and worn wooden siding. It appeared spacious for a home built by the sea with nothing else around it. One that had seen many years and was well loved. To be this close to the sea, we had to be in the furthest reaches of Prins, the unscalable mountains between us and Akra.

This was the safest place from Donika for the time being.

We would need to regroup and forge a new plan, but the only thing I wanted to do was sleep. I wasn’t sure how much time had passed since the darkness claimed me, but I was still tired despite hours of rest. The fever I had spiked on the way here had broken, but my legs were still sore and exhausted.

And most importantly, I still couldn’t sense my magic.

That would mean that only a day or so had passed. I groaned as I swung my legs over the side of the bed and moved to stand.

“She wakes,” a feminine voice sounded from my left and I startled, my hand moving to my chest in surprise.

“I didn’t see you there,” I told her, swallowing back the stale taste in my mouth.

“I didn’t mean to frighten you,” Annelise replied, a smile playing on her lips.

As if there was anything to be happy about right now.

“The others?” I asked, my gaze drifting out towards the two figures resting in thesand.

Annelise nodded towards them. “Kenna and Saanvi have joined us. Puck and Zion are hunting. There isn’t exactly a market in these reaches of Prins, and there are more mouths to feed now.”

“And Tess?” I asked, turning towards her with a raised eyebrow.

“I had to practically bribe her to give me a moment alone with you, she has been steadfastly by your bedside since we arrived. She is in the house”—She nodded behind us towards the driftwood cabin—“to give us some privacy.”

“And whose house is this?” I asked, leaning against the cot I had been resting on.

“An old friend,” Annelise replied, that same smile playing on her lips once more.

I squinted my eyes at her in confusion. “A lover?”

“God, no,” she all but barked, rousing to stand from her chair. “An old friend. You will meet her soon enough.”

I bristled.

Everything was smoke and mirrors with Annelise, and I was sick of her secrets.

“Care to join me for a short walk to stretch your legs?” she asked, brushing her pants off and walking towards the shore, expecting me to follow.

We never did get a chance to talk after everything had happened. I wasn’t sure I had even had a moment to process the fact that my mother wasalivelet alone the events that had unfolded after that. I was drowning in my own emotions. Anger, sadness, bitterness, all tangled up into one tornado that threatened to sweep me away.

But I had lost my vengeance. My fight.

I was hollow without Nik here. Empty at the thought that he was a blood-sucking Noctani and there wasnothingI could do about it.

I pushed off the cot to follow Annelise, her strawberry blonde hair whipping behind her in the salty breeze. Siraleth was by the sea as well, but it wasn’t nearly as drenched in the seaside air as it was here. Everything was touched in a layer of salt, even the wind itself. I could taste it with every breath I took.

I wasn’t ready to speak with Annelise, but I didn’t have much of a choice. It was only the small group of us here, and there was no avoiding one another. We walked towards the shore, Saanvi and Kenna raising their heads as we approached, their gazes trailing after us as we ambled down the coastline.

It wasn’t long before sand was filling my boots and the feeling of it against my toes—inside my sock—was beginning to drive me crazy. I paused to ditch the boots, rolling up my socks to stuff them inside, tying the laces together so I could hang them across my shoulders.

Annelise laughed softly and my gaze met hers. “Just like your father.”