I didn’t go back to the clinic.
I didn’t go to Lena.
I went deeper into the trees, to the one place that had always made sense to me: the stream beyond the eastern ridge.
The water was low this time of year. The rocks slick and cold.
I dropped to my knees at the edge and stared at my reflection.
I looked the same. Same dark hair. Same pale skin. Same wide eyes.
But something inside me… buzzed.
Like static beneath the surface. A hum that wouldn’t go away.
Nyra was too quiet.
That scared me more than anything.
“Say something,” I whispered.
You are not what they think you are.
“What does that mean?”
I don’t know. Not fully. But I’ve felt it. In the bond. In the earth. In the moon. Something in you was locked away. And now… it’s leaking through the cracks.
I touched my palm. The
