I could feel it, sense it, like someone had tied a string between us and emptied power through it. I couldn’t help but let my head fall forward at the rush of power. My body went limp.
Atlas caught me in his arms. He held me, looked into my eyes, and for a second I saw something there. Something hopeful and bright and wonderful. Then he blinked as I stirred, gathering himself quickly and placing me on my feet.
“There,” Atlas said softly. “All better.”
Like that, I realized I was healed everywhere. Not so much as a scratch from being thrown into Wisteria Cottage’s stone wall. No blood anywhere in sight. Not even an ache. I stretched my neck from one side to theother. I felt better than I had in days. Years. My whole life, maybe.
“What are you?” I asked him.
“I’m complicated.” Atlas winked. “Now, shall we find Silas?”
The three of us headed inside Wisteria Cottage. Millie went straight to the stove and, like it was a comforting routine, she put on a teapot and gathered some dried leaves from her garden stash.
“Tell me exactly what happened,” Atlas said. “Don’t leave anything out.”
“Well, Silas took me back to—”
Before I could explain, a knock sounded on the door. Millie’s brow furrowed, and she rushed to answer it. As she pulled it open, I could hear an audible breath of relief.
“Ranger X, it’s good to see you, sir. But how did you know—” Millie hesitated. “I was just preparing to send you an alert. How did you know Silas is gone?”
“He’s gone?” Ranger X’s voice was gruff as he strode into the room. “Damn. That must’ve been what set the signals off.”
Ranger X stopped abruptly as he reached the kitchen. He nodded to me with a single bow of his head, then stopped, his back straightening as he turned to face our guest.
“Atlas.” Ranger X was dressed in all black, cargo pants and a T-shirt that stretched across his chest. His face wasno-nonsense. It was clear something had happened, and it wasn’t a good something. “When did you arrive?”
Atlas grinned, lounging back on his chair with the confidence of a cat sunning itself. “Just in time, apparently.”
“Did you have anything to do with the gates closing?” Ranger X’s voice was on the verge of a threat. “You were the last visitor to arrive before outside communication was terminated.”
A muscle in Atlas’s jaw ticced. “I did not close your precious portals.”
“What portals?” I asked. “What are you talking about?”
Ranger X turned to me. “Nine minutes ago, we lost all communication with the outside world. The Isle is now, essentially, completely on its own.”
“All communication?” I asked. “How?”
“That’s what we’re looking into. I came here hoping to find Silas. Instead I found...” Ranger X looked at Atlas and frowned. “You.”
“Most people would consider that a good trade.” Atlas studied his nails, unbothered by the tension.
There was obviously some history between Atlas and Silas. Of all people, I understood complex family dynamics, and I lived with mere humans. I could only imagine how hostile things could get when families had to co-exist for centuries.
“Do you think it’s something I did?” I ventured. “Nine minutes ago is probably when Silas and I were traveling back.”
“What happened?” X asked briskly.
I explained the short version of the story, leaving out the part about my parents trying to have me committed. When I got to the part about being torn from Silas’s side during travel, Ranger X winced.
I finished by sharing how I’d landed against the stone wall and found Atlas approaching moments later. Then the four of us sat in silence and ruminated.
“Do you know what could have happened?” I asked.
Ranger X ignored my question and turned to Atlas. “How did you know your brother was in trouble?”
“Those brotherly bonds,” Atlas said lazily. “I felt a little tug and figured I’d pop on over to see what’s up on Silas’s precious island.”
