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“No!” He caught her before she could take off for the castle. “He’s…Thirvar is already upset. I don’t think he’s a threat to us anymore.” He took her chin in his hand and guided her face toward him, gazing into her glittering green eyes. “We’re more important. Now, please, where can we go to be safe?”
Bolts of lightning crackled from the direction of the castle. A faint chorus of screams—some frightened, some joyous—blew toward them with the swirling wind. Thoughts of Tirani and Kai flashed through his mind. He hoped they would use their liberation to their advantage and escape from the oppression of their rapidly decaying home.
Liora pressed her lips against his shivering mouth and stroked his cheek before lacing her fingers through his. She led him back into the woods from which she’d emerged, guiding him at the pace he set. The sky streaked with black, as if a giant hand had poured a bottle of ink across a detailed illustration, erasing all the finer points and artful touches. Stephen thought he smelled something burning, and he tried to move faster as the clouds of obliteration encroached upon the falling trees.
He stumbled again. She caught him just in time to save both of them from crashing down. “Liora,” he whispered, panting for air. “I can’t…I don’t think I—”
“Shh.” Her radiant smile urged him onward. “We’ve already come this far. I’m not leaving you here.”
The air around him shifted, and he could no longer feel the ground beneath his feet. When he glanced down, he realized he hovered several inches above the dirt and gnarled undergrowth. Before he could say anything, she resumed her original spirited pace, toting him along as if he were no heavier than a falling leaf. As he trailed behind her, he couldn’t shake the feeling of being chased by a force threatening to rip the last bit of air from his lungs. A small sigh of relief left his lips as the prickly brush gave way to a dirt path which was easier for her to traverse.
He lifted his gaze from the changing ground, unable to believe the sight before him. “It can’t be,” he murmured in awe at the familiar scene. Liora turned around, and as soon he saw her face, he knew she’d experienced the same recognition. Hand in hand, they pressed on, rushing forth to what they knew lay in store for them.
The enticing pond sat in a clearing, encircled by flat, slate gray stones. Frothy bubbles formed at the base of the waterfall, the particles of mist giving off a strange luminosity. They climbed atop their favorite rock, and Stephen was startled by the appearance of the water.
The pool was an unnatural shade of bluish green. Rays of gold twisted beneath the surface, obscuring any possible view of the water’s depth. “The sphere,” Liora whispered.
She looked up at him, bathed in the surreal brilliance shining from below. His fingers remained clamped firmly in hers, and she took a step closer so their bodies touched. “I don’t know where this is going to take us,” she said, hints of remorse tingeing her voice.
Whatever lay at the bottom of the pond, whatever portal would open to send them anywhere in the universe, none of it was important. Life without her would be mundane and insignificant. As much as he would miss the home he once knew, he wanted to stay by her side for as long as fate would allow. “It doesn’t matter.”
He draped his arms around her shoulders, pulling her close. She returned the embrace, squeezing him around the waist. Her hair tickled his nose, and he closed his eyes, breathing in its earthy scent. His love for her was the most powerful emotion he’d ever felt, the force that pumped blood through his veins. Any and all apprehension vanished, and he was ready to embark on whatever journey waited for them. “Wherever we go—”
“We’ll be together,” she finished for him.
He allowed her to inch them closer to the precipice, holding his breath. Entwined in each other’s arms, they moved as one as they fell over into the gleaming chasm.
Part Five:
A Path Through the Forest
Chapter Thirty-Two
Wide-tipped blades of grass tickled the edge of Stephen’s nostrils. His nose twitched, and he rolled onto his back with a loud grunt. Opening one eye, he jerked his head to avoid a thin beam of sunlight penetrating the branches above him.
The sun.
He bolted upright into a sitting position and picked bits of leaves and dirt out of his hair and off his skin. A songbird tweeted above him, and he craned his neck to follow its flight. He sat beneath a group of tall trees, shaded by their flourishing greenery. There were no signs of a recent storm. The air was still. Beyond the dark, ridged trunks, he thought he could make out the edge of a cleared trail.
It looked like home. It felt like home. It even smelled like home. As the haze of confusion lifted, he wondered if the familiar forest was another illusion to be added to the list of all he had seen. If it was real, the possibility of him having dreamed everything else since he’d left loomed overhead. The likelihood that he had come full circle and gained nothing along the way gnawed at his stomach and had him on the cusp of a full-fledged depression.
A noise behind him snapped him out of his reverie. He turned around, expecting to see a squirrel rustling through the leaves. The sight before him sent a shiver shooting straight down his spine. A figure faced away from him, curled up on its side, yet there was no mistaking the golden curls spilling into the tangle of weeds.
He scrambled toward her on his hands and knees, grimacing as his leg scraped against a jagged rock. “Liora!”
She didn’t move.
When he reached her, he grabbed her shoulders to pull her onto her back. He repeated her name in a panicked scream and gave her a far less gentle shake.
Her eyelids fluttered, and a hint of emerald appeared beneath the dark fringe of lashes. A sleepy smile spread across her face. “Stephen,” she whispered. “Where are we?”
“I don’t know for sure. Are you okay?”
“I think so.”
Stephen helped her to her feet, only letting go of her waist when he was sure she could walk on her own. He led her through the trees and stopped in the center of the dirt path. Though it had been so long since he’d last seen it, he knew every bump, curve, and incline between them and the border of his property. His relief at having made it there safely was tainted with the disappointing knowledge that Liora was not experiencing the same joyful homecoming.
“My house is less than a mile in this direction,” he said, pointing. “I’m sorry. I know you were hoping for something different. I wanted you to find the answers you were looking for as much as you did.”
