Lyra
It’s been half a month since I made the decision to stay.
Half a month since Caine offered Xavier and me freedom, and I refused.
Was I selfish? No.
Had I made a choice little Xavier would be happy about? Maybe.
Would it have done me any good if we left? No.
Maybe I was selfish, putting my own interests first by making that decision. But I was allowed to be selfish once, maybe twice in my life right?
I remembered the evening. Caine’s offer, the boat he said was waiting and ready to carry Xavier and me away from this island, away from the strange pack that had slowly, and unexpectedly, begun to feel like home.
I hadn’t even hesitated.
“No,” I had blurted out before logic could intervene, before my mind could make any sense of it. “We are not leaving.”
Caine’s brow had li
