The break cracked like thunder against the beach, bellowing off the smooth stone walls.
I turned to face the opening. From here, the coast was invisible, and all I could make out were the midnight waves and the star-dotted sky.
Foamy water trickled over my toes. The tide was rising—it had already filled most of the grottos, and would fill this entire chamber, soon.
I lightly swept my fingertips over my tattoo. The vision was clear: the Pearl of Truth was in a crevice, but there were a million of those. And they all looked the same.
Legs still adjusting to the soft ground, I took an unsteady step forward, tiny pebbles and fragments of shells sticking to the soles of my bare feet. Wait a minute. Where the hell were my shoes? Turning back towards the waterline, I eyed my drenched pair of high-top sneakers that’d somehow slipped off me, flopping against the small beach with the swash.
I snagged them, thrust them onto my sandy feet, and trudged deeper into the cave, dipping my arm into the small pools, peering into the many nooks and holes.
Droplets of condensation plinked in a steady rhythm, keeping time with my heart.
A shale outcrop jutted into my path. Light flickered behind it, pulsing like a fire. I swallowed hard. I thought no one else had access?
Dwarves, goblins, and trolls hadn’t been able to cross the boundary… but I had. Was that who this cave was for—people like me? People descended from angels?
Outside of Ryder and Leif, I’d never met another Nephilim. And after dealing with them, I wasn’t sure I wanted to.
Creeping closer, I eased my dagger back out of its scabbard. I was probably holding it wrong, but whatever—it was better than nothing.
Air locked in my lungs; I stilled, waiting for a sign of who or what I might be facing.
Brandishing my weapon in front of me, I rounded the corner.
No one was there.
Blinking, my hand dropped to my side. But there was…
An altar?
The warm light from burning, half-melted candles danced across my face. Wilted orange and white petals littered the floor and an oval tabletop.
What was this place?
Lowering to a crouch, I ran my fingers along the curved stone, my skin scraping over the blue gems studding its surface. Lapis. Just like my missing necklace.
Realization barreled through me, tightening my lungs until my breath hitched.
This wasn’t just a cave. This was a shrine dedicated to the Angel of Water. My mom.
The starfish statuettes, the dried sand dollars, the winged figurines placed in the center of the slab… offerings, to a guardian who would never come.
A draft swept through the chamber, but it came from the wrong direction. From the back, where there should have been… nothing.
Slowly, I stood. Grabbing a votive, I followed the rustle into the dimming light, into the heart of the cavern.
“Hello?” I said, my voice disappearing into the shadows.
I wasn’t ready for what might answer back. A ghost? A Nephilim? My mom? She’d died ten years ago, condemned for leaving Empyrea and choosing to live and love amongst mortals, but something was in this chamber. I could feel it, a curious, cautious essence, hovering in the unlit corners.
Soft light glowed from within the darkness. Hues of red, green, and yellow radiated from a wall, reflecting in a small, stagnant pool. I peered across, but the shapes were fuzzy this far out.
I slipped into the pool, my leggings, hoodie, everything, already sopping, and held my candle aloft. The silt was velvety against my skin, the water cool but not as frigid as the ocean.
It was the depth and the darkness that had my heart racing.
Halfway across, I was up to my waist. Then quickly after, to my chest. And even faster, to my neck.
