Chapter 28
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
We return to the shared bungalow while Niles circles back to the mending facility to check on Joss.
The generous abode is one of the larger structures along the village’s waterside edge.
The exterior glass walls are inlaid with tiny orange, yellow, and blue shards to create a mosaic of the sunrise over the ocean.
A spiral staircase circles up to a raised deck encircling the bungalow’s roof.
Catching Gem’s eye, I nod towards the steps, and we ascend them together.
Neither of us speaks for a while, preferring to relish the view.
Eventually, Gem breaks the silence to confess, “I think you’re going to like it here.”
“Maybe,” I admit, fingers gripping the aged wood railing. “There’s still so much I don’t know.”
“Yeah, but look at this.” She waves a hand at the green-and-gold landscape to our left, then the ocean to our right. “Kalden doesn’t seem so bad, either.”
Warmth blossoms across my face. “He isn’t why I’m staying.”
“No, I know. What I said about you chasing the approval of men was—”
“Right,” I finish for her. “You were right to call it out. I don’t do it consciously.
I think it’s more of a groomed instinct than a deliberate choice, and I’m not sure if I’ll ever shake it fully.
But I think I stand a better chance at shedding those habits here than if I were to return—if going back was an option. ”
My vision blurs as I replay the events that make that impossible.
“I am proud of you, you know,” Gem says quietly. “For being selfish. Adapting. Surviving. Maybe not in the way I would’ve chosen for you, and definitely not one I’d choose for myself. Then again, it led you here, so maybe it was the exact right path. Plus, seeing you fight those Pyres was badass.”
“Badass?” I cringe. “I was concussed and literally fighting on my ass.”
“So? Taking three creatures down by just flailing your arms around is impressive.”
“Okay, hold on. There was a bit more to it than flailing my arms.” I nudge my elbow into Gem’s arm, and she jumps back, eyes wide. “I wasn’t—I’m fully drained of power right now.”
Her parted lips morph into a grin. “I know, but you should see your face right now.”
I groan. “You’re evil.”
“I’ve got to get my revenge while I still can.”
My shoulders sag forward as I fidget with the fraying stitches along the side of my leathers from where I cut myself right before our departure. “Does that mean you’ve decided to head back?”
Gem’s voice falls to a broken whisper. “I have to. T’s gonna need me. I know we’ll be separated once I’m back, but it’ll only be a few levels between us. At least I’ll still be able to see her, even if we aren’t sharing the same cabin.”
“I understand.” I tuck my curls behind my ears while I ask, “Would you . . . Do you think you could see yourself staying here if you didn’t have to go back for Taur?”
She releases a slow breath, leaning her back on the railing.
“I’m not sure I’d be as eager to go back, especially knowing all the trauma and death that’s come from the chancellor’s lies.
But is it horrible to admit there’s a familiarity in the darkness?
I know you’ve always said it’s like a cage, but it’s been my home my entire life.
Most of the halls I can navigate with my eyes closed.
It’s predictable, if not safe, and I don’t think I’m ready to give that up. ”
I get where she’s coming from. The unknown has left me feeling disoriented more than once since we left Caligo behind. Yet unlike Gem, I welcome the jittery rush that fills my chest when I consider how much there is to see and learn.
“I’ll miss you,” I whisper, voice cracking as I rest my head on Gem’s shoulder.
The very fact that she allows me to do so tells me all I need to know, but she says it anyway. “I’ll miss you, too.”
Neither of us is ready to part, so we linger, discussing the hastily made plan that the other Huntresses put together prior to dinner.
This time tomorrow, they’ll request that Gabe is released, so the five of them can begin their return during the cover of night, though they’ll also request to be given back the nightstone missiles, just in case they encounter more Pyres.
“Aruna thinks we’ll be welcomed home as heroes, since we’ve taken out fifteen ‘Sols,’” Gem huffs, using her fingers to put air quotes around the word. “And with our cameras disabled, we should be able to make a case to suggest the conditions of the Hunt have been met.”
“Heroes, huh?
She chews on her lip. “You think it’s a naive plan, don’t you?”
“I think it has a lot of contingencies,” I admit. “Have you considered what might happen if the Sols aren’t ready to release Gabe? I mean, he nearly murdered someone today, Gem. And if they do allow him to leave, there’s no way they’d let him take those missiles.”
“Maybe they’d entrust them to us? Heading back without Gabe wouldn’t be ideal, but if we’re adequately armed, we should make it,” Gem says, though her strained pitch gives away her doubt.
I sigh, picking at a splinter in the wooden railing while counting each potential fallacy.
“If they give you the missiles, who’s to say you’ll have enough if you run into another horde of Pyres?
And if you have enough or manage to avoid them, do you truly believe the chancellor would be quick to accept the word of four Tier Threes as evidence that you’ve fulfilled the terms of return, without Gabe there to vouch for you? ”
Gem hangs her head, a response in and of itself.
“I figured you’d be gone by now,” I say while spotting Kalden waiting at the bottom of the stairs.
Dark circles streak beneath his closed lids as he leans against the bungalow’s mosaic wall. “Gone where?” he asks, eyes remaining shut.
“To check in with the mender,” I say, like it’s the obvious answer.
“Niles circled back a few minutes ago. Joss is stable. The transfusions were successful at removing the nightstone from her veins. The menders intend to finish regenerating her hands tomorrow.”
“They can do that?” Gem asks, following behind me on the stairs.
Kalden dips his chin. “She woke up long enough to tell Niles that she saw an older man wearing a navy suit with a silver moon emblem in the Pyre’s memories.”
Gem’s brows pull taut. “The chancellor?”
I shake my head. “When would he have interacted with a Pyre? I’ve never heard of him going aboveground, even at night.”
“Also could’ve been Commander Guffian or one of the gate guards.” Kalden shrugs. “I plan on swinging by to ask Joss for more details tomorrow, if she’s feeling up to it.”
I nod, treading closer as I descend the final step. “Will you be feeling up to it?”
“Why do you ask?”
“You look like sh—”
“Exhausted,” I say, cutting Gem off.
Kalden’s lips twitch in a half-smile, but it falls quickly. “The sun’s gifts aren’t without cost. The more we harness, the closer we’re tied to our circadian rhythm. As night falls, we’ll be in a near comatose state. Very little can wake us until the sun itself decides it’s time to rise.”
“Why does that feel like a challenge?”
His hooded eyes finally peek open at that. “We can make it one.”
“Uck.” Gem groans. “I’m out.”
I grin. “See you in the morning.”
“Mm-hm.” She waves a hand over her shoulder before disappearing into the bungalow.
A gleam of renewed energy dances in Kalden’s irises as he holds out an arm. “I’d like to show you something.”
I feign a grimace. “Please tell me that isn’t an innuendo. I swear, if you pull your pants down right now, I’ll follow Gem inside.”
Kalden chuckles. The sound is just like everything else about him—edged in a warmth that leaves me craving more.
He leads me around the winding pathway past a few more sizable bungalows, then stops at a more modest structure, the slightest bit bigger than our cabin back in Caligo.
Unlike most of the neighboring homes, its exterior glass walls are fully opaque.
As if the owner prioritizes privacy over vibrant transparency.
“Awfully bold of you to take me to your home on the brink of sunset.”
He lifts a dark brow. “What gave it away?”
I point to the solid glass. “You and your walls. Always hesitant to let people in.”
He blows out a breath. “I’ve always been like this.
Ignorant of most social cues and decorum.
Content with being alone. But after losing Aurick and nearly burning through my own humanity, it got worse.
I think a part of my soul never fully recovered from that.
Emotions that used to come easily just .
. . don’t. I’m not sure I realized how numb I’ve felt until I saw you in that tunnel. ”
The memory of our meeting flashes to mind. “You looked angry.”
“Not at you.” He shakes his head, forehead creasing.
“I caused that earthquake. I needed a way into Caligo to see if the Shades had any more info on the missing Sols, without barging in through the front door. And I remembered what my mother had told me about the transport tunnels, so I waited until the city was asleep before sending a blast of power into the ground. I hadn’t expected anyone to be there.
When I saw you, I was terrified that I’d hurt an innocent.
And maybe a bit frustrated. I’d wanted to get in and out without drawing notice. But there you were, noticing me.”
I hold up a finger. “You’re the one who came up to me with that boulder. I wouldn’t have noticed you at all if you’d stayed hidden.”
“Probably, but I couldn’t do that.”
“Why?”
“When I first heard someone shuffling around, I wanted to make sure they weren’t gravely hurt.
Then I saw you reach into that beam of sunlight, and I was curious to see how you’d react.
After months of apathy, there you were, making me feel too many things.
Curiosity. Frustration.” Kalden’s chest rises and falls as he leans in. “Anticipation.”
A heady shiver skirts down my spine.
“Hold on.” I press a palm into his chest, ignoring how the heated contact pulses through me. “How did you make yourself look so normal?”
When we’d met, there’d been no trace of the sun’s golden light in his veins or eyes.
“This,” Kalden says, reaching up to take off the nightstone pendant resting below his collarbone, then he snaps it open like a locket. “The outer shell is painted with a matte onyx that’s meant to imitate nightstone, but the inside is sunstone.”
He places the open pendant in my palm. The orange-and-yellow stone glimmers as I lift it for a closer look.
“It allows us to stow away our power when needed,” Kalden explains.
“Like nightstone?”
“Nightstone depletes. Sunstone stores. It acts as a vessel, either temporarily or indefinitely. A Sol can reabsorb whatever they channeled into the vessel at any given time without the presence of the sun.”
My eyes flick back up to his. “Even at night?”
He nods. “Only until the Sol uses up the amount of power that was put into the stone.”
“Wow,” I breathe, marveling at the unassuming stone for several more seconds before handing it back to Kalden.
“Keep it.”
My brows pull together. “I can’t.”
“Why not?”
I shrug. “You might need it.”
Kalden’s mouth quirks up a bit. “I have more of those inside.”
“So, you’re not gifting me some rare, special necklace?” I tease while pulling the golden chain around my head and settling the sunstone pendant atop my ragged bodysuit.
“I like seeing you wear my things.” His irises glint for a moment before he shifts on his feet, kicking a loose pebble free from the wooden planks of the suspended bridge.
“Technically, I could’ve drawn from it to heal Gem’s head injury from the falling debris, but I wasn’t sure how you’d react, and I didn’t want to chance it. I’m sorry.”
I dip my head to acknowledge his apology. “I probably would’ve freaked.”
“Maybe, maybe not. You’re handling all of this better than most who are forced to confront the fact that their entire belief system is built on a lie.”
“Give it a few days. Once the shock wears off, I might just go ballistic,” I tease with a breathy chuckle.
Kalden’s head tilts to the side. “That would be a valid response, you know.”
“To be honest, I think part of me isn’t all that surprised.
After Gabe and I divorced, I had to face a lot of ugly truths about Caligo—truths that I’m ashamed to say I didn’t really grasp until they had a direct negative impact on me.
The Hunt’s eligibility system is an obvious issue, but it’s just another symptom of the discriminatory tiers.
They bleed into everything. If you aren’t an able-bodied male, you get little say in what jobs you’re allowed to work, where you’re allowed to live, who you’re allowed to love.
Little boys are sent to organized learning programs, while the girls stay home with their mothers to learn how to cook, clean, sew, speak, not speak, and any other domestic duty deemed necessary for fulfilling our primary purpose in life: supporting our future husband.
It’s a system that does more than foster our codependency.
It rewards it, which doesn’t make for a functional relationship for any of us. ”
I press my palm onto my forehead and lean against the cool glass of Kalden’s home before continuing, “All that to say, I already knew how much Chancellor Bren and his purists loved to twist a narrative for their gain. It’s shitty, recognizing how deep the brainwashing goes, but is it weird if I also feel relief?
The truth equips me to choose possibilities I didn’t know existed.
And for the first time in a while, I feel .
. . empowered. Like the future is truly mine to choose. ”
“It is.” Kalden smiles, and holy shadows, I forgot how breathtaking happiness looks on him. “So, what would you like to do next?”
I turn, taking a few steps away as I pretend to mull it over. Finally, I spin on my heel, stopping right in front of the arched glass door set within a gilded frame.
“I’d like you to let me in.” I rush to tack on, “If you’d like.”
Kalden’s grin brightens, sending a wave of heat through my veins more potent than the sun itself. He steps towards me, close enough for me to see each individual fleck of gold in his irises and the gleaming umber strands that fall against his temples.
“I’d like nothing more.”