Derrick shifted, and the warmth of his hand touched my skin like a summer breeze. Such an inconsequential thing to bring such joy. His voice broke through my thickest, innermost walls like twigs.
“Your mother loved you, Anna. But she kept you here long enough. It is time,” he said.
I glanced at him, squinting at the odd tone.
“Time for what?” I asked, curiosity taking root.
“For you to learn about Nightfall. It was perhaps the first real home that Adelyna ever knew and one that she forbade me from telling you about.”
Nightfall? My mom’s first real home?
“Why are you doing it now? I thought you were going to honor her secrets,” I asked.
“I intend to. But she was wrong about this—it is time for you to learn more about who you are,” he said. “But you will have to leave your life here behind. Forever.”
Chapter 5
The Gift From Beyond the Grave
ANNA
We walked to the cabin in silence.
“What did you mean about learning who I am?” I asked.
Derrick sat in a chair at the dusty kitchen table and I pulled out the other chair, sitting across from him.
“Your mother and I agreed a long time ago that we would do everything we could to protect you. I am still honoring that agreement, though this is far from the plan we originally laid out.”
“What’re you talking about?” I asked again, all my attention zeroing in on Derrick.
“It is no longer in your best interest to avoid Nightfall,” he said.
“Nightfall? What is that?” I asked.
Derrick sat still in his chair, his mind elsewhere. He wasn’t looking at me when he finally answered.
“Nightfall is many things, but mainly, it is a place for learning,” he said.
“Like a university?” I asked.
“In some ways, yes. But I think you will find its teachings may help you cope. Some things in this world cannot be told,” Derrick said. “If you wish to experience those things, this is your opportunity. It is your choice now, Anna, as it always should have been. I will speak with my contact there about your invitation. It should be here tomorrow.”
My head was pounding from what he was suggesting. The idea that my mom had a life at all was shocking, let alone something this secretive.
“My mom went there?” I asked.
Derrick nodded once.
I sat there, trying to process what he was saying. Why couldn’t they have told me about this place before? And why hadn’t she wanted me to go? Could it be where she met my dad?
“Will you be there?” I asked, fear tightening my chest.
“No, and you must never speak of me by name to anyone,” he said.
Derrick’s presence was so mighty and enveloping that it was hard to think in his presence. Who was he? This man was unlike anyone I’d met before, his gaze alone speaking to me in a way no one else ever had.
“Do you recall the night your mother intended to give you a gift?” he asked.
