His expression softened, and he crouched down to his daughter’s level. “It’s not bad at all, little one. But we have to be careful. You know that.”
“I’m tired of being careful. I’m tired of hiding. I’m tired of it just being us all the time.”
“I know.” He pulled the little girl into his arms, and she buried her face against his chest. Over her head, his eyes met Ariella’s, and she saw something in them that made her breath catch—a loneliness that matched her own, vast and aching and desperately hungry for connection. “I know you are.”
She turned away, giving them privacy, and found herself staring out at the sea. The water was calm today, its surface a deep, inviting emerald that called to her. She could dive in and swim away. She could leave this cave and these people behind, return to the life she knew, and pretend this morning had never happened.
But she didn’t want to.
I don’t want to leave,she realized, and the thought was terrifying.I want to stay. I want to belong here. I want…
She didn’t let herself finish the thought.
CHAPTER 8
When Ariella turned back, Lilani had calmed down and was wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. Valrek straightened, his gaze finding hers.
“I need to ask you something,” he said. “About the echo-pipe.”
“Of course.”
He glanced at Lilani, who was already distracted by a small beetle that had appeared on a nearby rock, then moved closer to Ariella. Close enough that she could feel the heat radiating from his massive body, close enough that his wild, musky scent filled her lungs.
“You said the echo-pipe called to you. That it responded to your Song.”
“Yes. When I touched it in the trench, it was like… like it recognized me. Like it had been waiting.”
“That should be impossible. They are Vultor instruments and a human shouldn’t be able to activate one, let alone feel a connection to it.”
“I’m not exactly human.”
The words slipped out before she could stop them, and she felt her skin flush with embarrassment. But he just nodded, his expression thoughtful.
“No, you’re not. And perhaps that’s why…” He trailed off, seeming to wrestle with something. “My grandfather used to tell me stories when I was young, stories about the echo-pipes choosing their own players.”
“Choosing?”
“They were said to respond to certain individuals, resonating with their spirits in a way that couldn’t be explained by science or magic.”
She thought about the moment she’d first touched the pipe, the way it had seemed to welcome her. The way the music had felt like coming home. “It does feel like mine. Like it belongs to me, even though I know it’s not. Even though I know it’s a Vultor artifact and I have no right to?—”
“It’s not about rights. If the old stories are true, the pipe chose you. That’s not something you can earn or deserve. It simply is.”
“But why would it choose me?”
“I don’t know.” He turned to look at her, and his golden eyes were soft in a way that made her heart stutter. “But I think we need to find out.”
“How?”
“I need to contact someone. Someone who might know more about the echo-pipes than I do.” His jaw tightened, and she saw a flash of pain cross his features. “I haven’t spoken to him in years. Not since… not since Lilani was rejected.”
“Your pack rejected her? But she’s just a child.”
“She’s a half-human child. To some of my people, that makes her an abomination.” The word was bitter, edged with old fury. “When her mother died giving birth to her, I tried to take her back home. I should have known it wouldn’t work. I’d already disgraced myself by running away to the city. They told me they’d take me back, but only if I abandoned her.”
Horror washed through her. “That’s barbaric.”
“That’s tradition.” His lip curled. “I chose my daughter over my pack. They chose their prejudice over their blood. We’ve been alone ever since.”
