Behind us, Aran gagged. “Ew. I’m out of here.” He took off at a run and leapt, disappearing into the mist with a wild scream of joy. Laughter slipped out of me before I could stop it. It didn’t feel forced. It didn’t hurt. Something soft stirred inside me, something I hadn’t felt in a long time. I held Will’s hand a little tighter, he met my eyes and nodded, like he felt it too.
We ran.
Our feet pounded against the rock, wind roared past us. And then the ground was gone.
We were flying.
Time stretched, and the world narrowed to air and light and the sound of the water crashing.
For a moment, I forgot everything.
The fire. The guilt. The grief.
And then the water hit.
It slammed into me, cold, wild, unforgiving, and the shock of it lit up every nerve in my body. I broke the surface with a gasp, lungs burning, heart pounding, blinking hard against the spray.
The waterfall didn’t sound like a monster anymore. It didn’t roar like it was trying to tear the world apart. It sounded like music. Mist curled around me in silver ribbons as I spun in the current, the cliffs towering above, green and stone and sky.
Will surfaced nearby, sputtering, laughing, shaking the water from his hair. He looked over at me, grinning like a complete idiot.
“Hey! There’s a cave!” Aran’s voice echoed ahead, bouncing off the rocks and water.
I followed Will’s gaze as he tilted his head toward the shadowy arch carved into the cliffside. It was rough, uneven, barely visible in the fading light, but something about it tugged at me.
Will turned, eyes lit up with mischief. “Bet I get there before you.”
Before I could respond, he surged forward, slicing through the water like it was nothing.
That show-off.
“Wait!” I shouted, kicking after him. My voice bounced off the stone, swallowed by the roar of the falls. The cold gripped my legs, sharp as knives and my arms burned with every stroke, but I didn’t slow down.
The mouth of the cave opened around me like a spell breaking. Darkness took over first. The walls pressed close, damp and glistening. I held my breath, heart thudding as I swam deeper into the black.
Then there was light. Soft at first. Faint glimmers, like stars blinking into life. Color shimmered across the stone, blue, white, violet. Crystals bloomed from the walls in uneven clusters, their edges catching the glow. A slow trickle of water dripped from above, catching thin shafts of sunlight that slipped through the cracks in the roof. The light fractured, scattering into a hundred shifting reflections that danced across the cave walls and rippled over the surface of the pool. It felt like stepping into a secret the world had forgotten.
Will pulled himself out of the water onto a smooth stone ledge, hair plastered to his forehead.
“Looks like I won,” he said, voice smug but softened by the awe in his face.
“Barely,” I said, breathless. “You cheated.” I tried to scowl, but the smile tugging at my mouth betrayed me.
“I call it strategy,” he said, lifting a brow in mock defense.
I reached for the ledge and tried to pull myself up beside him, but my hands slipped on the smooth surface. Will extended his arm without a word, offering me something to grip onto.
“This place is unreal,” I whispered as I finally hauled myself onto the ledge, breath catching as my eyes lifted to the crystals glowing high above.
Will followed my gaze. “Think they’re worth anything?”
“Probably,” I said. “Why? Planning to get into the crystal business now?”
“Honestly? I don’t know. I don’t even know how we’re going to survive, let alone make a living.” He let out a soft breath.
“We could just let Kera kill some rich guy and take all his land,” Aran’s voice rang out, bouncing off the stone. “And his gold.”
“I’m not your personal assassin,” I shot back, hoping my voice would reach him.
