She didn’t respond or look away. Her hands reached out, pressing against the glass staring the wooden box inside. My heart leaped into my throat. Her power, the raw strength I’d witnessed earlier, and that glass would be shattered. We didn’t need to draw that sort of attention to us.
“Don’t,” the word escaped me, sharper than I meant.
Luzia flinched, recoiling slightly. Dammit. I stepped closer, placing a hand carefully on her shoulder. She felt electric beneath my touch, vibrating with contained energy. “Luzia, listen to me,” I urged, lowering my voice. “Taking them now won’t help your sister. It landsusin trouble we can’t afford. Think…” I wasn’t sure the words were penetrating the fog of her desperation.
“Closing time!” The curator’s voice, louder now, echoed slightly in the hall. It finally seemed to reach her. Luzia blinked, drawing a shaky breath, her hands falling away from the glass.The fierce, desperate energy seemed to ebb, leaving her looking suddenly vulnerable and lost.
The dangerous energy finally drained from her, leaving her shoulders slumped. I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding and gently guided her away from the display. “We’ll come back,” I murmured. “Tomorrow. We’ll figure something out.”How, I had no damn clue.
“I need them…” she whispered, the despair raw in her voice, her gaze still fixed on the space where the artifacts lay.
“I know.” My hand tightened instinctively on hers. “And wewillget you access to theSussuron. I promise. I’ll talk to the curator. Maybe the family connection helps. We’ll find a way.” Even if it just meant finding a loophole for her to hold it and connect with it somehow. That much I had to try for.
“Come on,” I urged, pulling her gently toward the exit. “Food first. Then there’s a place down by the river that’s quiet. We can talk properly there.”
She leaned into me slightly as we stepped out into the fading light, a silent acknowledgment of trust that sent a fresh pang of responsibility through me, heavy and cold in my gut. Could I really do this? Navigate this tangled mess she was caught in? The image of her facing that attacker flashed in my mind. Her power was undeniable, but out here, inthisworld of rules she didn’t know? She was terrifyingly vulnerable.
The thought of failing her or leaving her exposed made my stomach clench.
No. Whatever happened next, whatever dangers surfaced from those shadows that seemed to follow her, I wouldn’t let her face them alone.
Ihadto keep her safe.
CHAPTER 14
Luzia
The river whispered secrets in the twilight. I sat on the cool, damp earth while the familiar scent of the water eased my aching heart. So close, yet so far.
The Amazon flowed through this city, a powerful, life-giving force, yet it couldn’t reach my sister, trapped beneath its surface, ensnared by the Encantado. The thought of her, imprisoned in the shimmering depths, tightened my chest, stealing the breath from my lungs.
Is she still alive?
Caio sat beside me, close but not touching. The silence between us was heavy, charged with unspoken words and the echoes of the day’s discoveries.
I closed my eyes, trying to conjure the image of theSussuron, the intricate carvings, and what it might reveal.
Hope flickered within me, fragile but persistent. It had to be enough. Itwasenough. But I needed it now, not sitting here wasting time, even though I was withhim.
Caio shifted beside me, and I opened my eyes. He was looking out at the river, his expression unreadable. The last rays of the setting sun painted the water in hues of gold and rose, casting long shadows that danced and swayed like river spirits. The beauty of it ached within me, stirring the turmoil in my soul.
“It’s peaceful here,” he said, his voice soft, almost hesitant.
I nodded, unable to speak. The riverwaspeaceful, a constant, unwavering presence in a world of chaos.
He turned to me then, his gaze searching mine. “You miss it, don’t you?” he asked, his voice barely a whisper. “The river. It’s your home.”
A lump formed in my throat.How could he understand?He was a creature of the land, bound by concrete and steel. And yet, looking into his eyes, I saw a flicker of understanding, a hint of empathy that surprised me.
I took a shaky breath, the words tumbling out before I could stop them. “I miss… everything. The water, the trees, the silence. The way the moonlight dances on the surface of the river. The way the jungle breathes at night, the way the water sings through the t-trees.” My voice cracked. I trailed off, unable to voice the fear that gnawed at me, the fear that I might be too late to save my sister.
“We will go back first thing in the morning,” he said, his voice a low rumble that resonated through me. “And I promise I will get theSussuronfor you.” He put his arm around my shoulder, his hand warm and comforting through the thin fabric of my shirt. He squeezed gently, a gesture of reassurance that sent a ripple of warmth through my chilled veins.
My heartbeat quickened. He didn’t realize what he was saying, what it truly meant if he succeeded. He’d just promised to give me something my heart desperately desired, something that would bind us together inextricably. And I needed theSussuron, with a fierceness that consumed me. I wouldn’t refuse him. Icouldn’trefuse him.
“How… how is theSussurona map?” he asked, his voice laced with curiosity.
“The patterns on the outside, I can read them,” I explained, the words feeling inadequate, unable to fully capture the complex interplay of symbols and energies.
