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This had to be the afterlife and I was dead, or I was dreaming the most wonderful dream.
With my luck, it wasn’t a dream.
Even knowing I was likely bleeding out somewhere in the real world, I swung my feet to the floor and raced across my sparse room to the open window overlooking the street. That same sugary breeze teased my unbraided hair, which whipped about my face, the strands vibrant in this unreal glow.
Just beyond the thin pane of glass, I beheld a world of vivid color. I might’ve stopped breathing altogether.
It was the most heavenly place I’d ever seen. And it was the village I’d known for all of my eighteen years. The same ashen stones and pale brick buildings lined a neatly paved street, but now, they shone like crushed diamonds.
Villagers passed by my window, smiles adorning their faces, their pearly teeth almost too white and brilliant. My mouth gaped as the light touched their hair—glossy raven tresses shimmered, and blond hair turned to gold. And their eyes…they twinkled with gems of varying tints and intensities.
Magic.
That was the only reasonable explanation. That, and I reminded myself I was most certainly dead.
Realistically, my luck had to run out at some point.
I lifted my eyes to the clearest blue sky, not a single star visible among all that color. A few fluffy clouds littered its canvas, moving leisurely across the great expanse of space.
And then I saw it—as the clouds sailed ahead, they revealed the most exquisite of sights yet.
Blinding. Stunning. Unreal.
The all-consuming globe in the sky emptied my head of all thoughts. I saw and thought and breathed only the shimmering rays stemming from the impossible orb, which both excited and terrified me all at once.
The sun. It had to be the sun.
“Magnificent, isn’t it?”
I spun around, stumbling as I did so. I would recognize that melodic sound anywhere.
“Grandmother?” I whispered, my voice coming out all airy and breathless.
She was just as I remembered her—long red hair streaked in gray, bright amber eyes, and a curving mouth that hinted at a joke that only she knew.
“I’ve missed you, child.” She tilted her chin, carefully assessing me from head to toe. It had only been a year since she’d passed, but it seemed a tragic eternity.
My legs carried me until I was enveloped in her frail arms, my cheek resting on her shoulder. Bits of her wispy straight hair tickled my nose, the color identical to mine.
“Gods, I wish you were still here.” I inhaled her scent of Midnight Blooms and dulcet sugar. Of freshly baked pies. That was what I’d smelled on that otherworldly breeze.
My grandmother.
An alarming thought struck me. “Am I truly dead?” I rasped, pulling away to read her eyes. Ones filled with the kind of wisdom I doubted I’d ever attain.
“No, you’re not dead, silly girl.” Grandmother tutted, shaking her head. Her hands settled at my back, rubbing soothing circles there.
“Then why am I here?” I motioned to the window. To what could only be the lost sun. Nothing made sense.
The last thing I remembered was…
Jude. The Mist. The masked men attacking us.
The shadows and the stinging electricity in the air.
Grandmother gave me a strained smile, one that didn’t reach her eyes. “You’re a smart girl.” Her weathered hand cupped my cheek. “You know I can’t justtellyou the reason. Where’s the fun in that?”
Therewas the grandmother I knew and loved. “I’m kind of on a time limit here.” Especially if this was a dream after all. “Can’t you help out your favorite grandchild?” My mouth gave a slight pout as I widened my eyes. It was a look that always won her over. I never messed with the tried and true.
