I squeezed his hand, clinging to its warmth. “I will come back for you.” The words were a raw whisper, torn from my throat. “I swear it.”
He gave me a weak smile, a heartbreaking mixture of gratitude and resignation. “Go,” he whispered, his voice fading. “Save your sister.”
I leaned down and kissed his forehead, a silent farewell, a promise of return. Then, with a heart heavy with grief and a soul torn in two, I turned and ran, the preciousFlor da Luaclutched tightly in my hand. The first rays of dawn kissed my face as I fled, the rising sun a cruel reminder of the choice I had made, the sacrifice we both had to endure.
I ran toward the river, toward Inaiá, leaving a piece of my heart behind in the shadowed clearing with Caio. Our worlds, so briefly intertwined, were now diverging, our paths splitting likethe branches of a river, flowing in different directions toward uncertain futures.
And as I ran, the only sound I could hear above the pounding of my feet and the rushing of the river was the silent echo of my promise.I’ll come back for you.
CHAPTER 30
Luzia
The river roared in my ears, a symphony of fury and welcome. Every heartbeat echoed the pounding current as I surged through the churning water, no longer fully human, but partly a creature of the depths, transformed to a mix of both of my forms so I could go back to my sister.
My dolphin skin shimmered, rippling beneath the moonlight, my legs a powerful, iridescent tail propelling me toward Inaiá. TheFlor da Lua, nestled securely in my palm, pulsed with a life of its own, an inspiration guiding me through the treacherous rapids.
I clawed my way onto the riverbank, the transformation receding, leaving me raw and human. My newly formed legs trembled, but I forced them onward. Exiled, yes, but that no longer mattered. Only she mattered. The grotto loomed, its air thick with the scent of decay. I didn't slow.
I burst inside, my gaze locking onto Inaiá. She lay still, her breath a whisper, her skin the color of ash. Elder Nahla didn't look up from her kneeling vigil, her voice a low drone of ancientincantations. She looked up, her eyes widening at my sudden appearance.
“Luzia? By the river’s heart… youswamthe rapids?—”
“There was no time for paths of currents,” I rasped, my voice raw with desperation. I unfurled my fingers, revealing theFlor da Lua. Its ethereal glow pushed away the encroaching shadows. “I have it.”
“It might work.” Elder Nahla’s eyes, ancient and weary, ignited with a flicker of hope. “Quickly, give it here!”
I placed the precious root in her outstretched hand, my own trembling with a desperate prayer. With speed, she crushed the petals, their intoxicating fragrance filling the air with a potent blend of life and magic.
“The river’s kiss has marked you, Luzia,” Elder Nahla murmured, her gaze piercing. “Its power flows within you now.”
I nodded, the river’s energy still thrumming beneath my skin, a potent reminder of the price of my passage. I was different. Forever bound to the depths that had saved my sister’s life, and perhaps, claimed a piece of my own.
“Give this to your sister. May the river’s grace and the flower’s magic mend what is broken.”
My hands, still trembling, lifted the flower to Inaiá’s lips, and placed the crushed petals there. Her tongue moved, and she swallowed weakly, a faint flush returning to her ashen cheeks. Hope, fragile as a newborn butterfly, fluttered in my chest. I cradled her close, whispering promises of life and light, willing her back from the edge of the abyss.
The air in the grotto crackled with unspoken words, thick with the scent of herbs and the lingering magic of theFlor da Lua. Inaiá’s breath, though still shallow, now carried the steady rhythm of life, a melody that soothed the raw edges of my fear. But the tension remained, a taut string stretched between Elder Nahla and me.
“You’d better report back to the queen,” Elder Nahla said, her voice low but edged with steel. Her gaze, sharp and unwavering, held mine. “You shouldn’t be here, you know?”
“I’d rather stay by Inaiá’s side,” I replied, my voice hoarse, my body screaming for rest—relief warred with exhaustion, a dizzying wave that threatened to pull me under. I gripped the edge of Inaiá’s mat, my knuckles white.
Nahla’s eyes flicked to the ornate wooden box I had placed on the floor beside me, its intricate carvings hinting at the secrets it held. “You seem to have brought other things back with you.”
My hand instinctively went to theSussuronprotectively. “I found it with the humans. Someone of our kind gave it to them.” Shame burned in my throat. A betrayal of our people.
Nahla’s lips thinned. “They shouldn’t have done that. The queen has her own history with those artifacts. A history she would rather see buried. Be careful, Luzia.”
“What do you mean? She wanted these?” Then why would my great-aunt give them to a human?
A soft sigh broke the tense silence. Inaiá stirred, her eyelids fluttering open, revealing eyes clouded with confusion. “Luzia…” she whispered, her voice weak but clear.
A wave of pure, unadulterated joy washed over me. “Welcome back,” I breathed, my voice thick with emotion.
Inaiá’s gaze, though hazy, sharpened as she looked at me. A flicker of something unreadable crossed her features. “You’ve changed.”
I forced a smile, trying to mask the truth in her words. “Course not.”
