Essie brought me to a row of similar rectangular homes. Each had large windows that exposed the living quarters. They reminded me of the vacation homes in the old movies we would watch.
“Welcome.” A Curuxatyni woman opened a door to the center house. “Come this way and you"ll find there is a variety of more festive clothing to choose from in your room.”
My stepmother led me deeper into the house. I stopped at one of the floor-to-ceiling windows. My breath caught as I took in the view of the roaring waves along the beach. “Essie, you"ve been here before with our family, right?” I asked, recalling the images I had been shown of them while I was playing the ice queen in Snowstrum.
“Why yes,” Essie said, sounding genuinely surprised. “How would you know?”
“Danu showed me that you were all
