Chapter 13 #2
The storms ending right after we learned about emergency transmissions. The perfect timing of it all. The way Zelana had been meditating right before it happened, like she’d known something was coming.
And the biggest question of all: if the storms were gone, if the valley was no longer isolated from the outside world, what did that mean for us?
It meant that if these people believed we were the reason the storms ended—and we probably were, as in, Zara likely had something to do with it—they were going to prevent us from leaving. At all costs. They put too much credence in the words of their seers.
I looked at Rezor, and saw my own tension reflected in his expression. His jaw was tight, his eyes scanning the celebrating crowd with something that looked a lot like worry.
“I don’t like this,” I said quietly, just loud enough for him to hear. “We’re not mystical deities.”
“I know.” His thumb brushed across my knuckles, a gesture of comfort that did nothing to ease the knot in my stomach. “But right now, let them celebrate. They’ve lived under the shadow of those storms for their entire lives. Let them have this moment.”
The celebrations were already spreading. Someone had started playing music. Others were sweeping away debris and bringing out food and drink. The plaza was transforming from a scene of terror to a scene of joy in the span of heartbeats.
And all I could think about was that my crew was out there. Somewhere in the storm zones that were apparently no longer storm zones. Close enough to send emergency transmissions. Close enough that maybe, finally, we could reach them.
Close enough that I could leave.
The thought rolled through me with all the conflict of a win I didn’t deserve. I could leave. The valley was no longer isolated. If the storms were truly gone, there would be nothing keeping me here. Nothing except…well, we were not lacking for other issues. Like a ship.
I looked at Rezor again. At his strong profile silhouetted against that impossible blue sky. At the marks glowing faintly beneath his shirt, the marks that claimed me as his mate, whether I was ready for that or not.
“Cleo,” he said, turning to face me fully. “Whatever happens next—”
“Don’t.” I pulled my hand from his, taking a step back. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep. Don’t ask me for commitments I can’t make.”
Pain flashed across his face. “I’m not asking for anything.”
“Aren’t you?” I gestured at the celebrating crowd, at Zelana, who was still holding court, declaring me the lord’s mate to anyone who would listen. “This. All of this. It’s asking for something. Asking me to accept a role I never agreed to.”
“You accepted me into your body,” he said, his voice low and rough. “Six cycles of accepting me. Of sharing my bed. Of letting me touch you, taste you, claim you. That wasn’t asking for anything?”
“That was sex.” Even as I said it, I knew it was a lie. Knew it had been more than that from the very first time. But I needed the distance, needed the walls back up before everything came crashing down. “Good sex. Amazing sex, even. But just sex.”
“Liar.” The word came out soft, almost gentle. “You know it was more than that. Your body knows it. Your heart knows it, even if your mind won’t admit it.”
“My heart doesn’t get a vote.” I wrapped my arms around myself, suddenly cold despite the afternoon sun. “I need to find my crew. I need to get back to my life. That was always the plan.”
“And what if your life is here now?” He moved closer, and I forced myself not to step back. “What if the universe brought you here for a reason?”
“I don’t believe in destiny.”
“It believes in you.” His hand came up to rest on the glowing marks of his chest. The physical proof of a bond I hadn’t asked for and didn’t want.
Except I did want it. That was the problem.
“Cleo! Rezor!” Baleck pushed through the crowd, Mierva right behind him. “Did you see? The storms are gone. Actually gone. We could—” He stopped, looking between us, reading the tension. “Is everything okay?”
“Fine,” I said, too quickly. “Everything’s fine.”
“It’s incredible,” Mierva said, her eyes shining. “If the storms are truly gone, we could search for the others. We could try to find Captain Korvath and the crew.”
“That’s what I was thinking,” Baleck agreed. “If Vikkat’s people picked up transmissions, and the weather is clear, we might actually be able to reach whoever’s out there.”
The hope in their voices was painful to hear. Because I wanted the same thing. Wanted it so desperately I could taste it. But looking at Rezor’s expression, I knew what reaching my crew would mean.
It would mean choosing.
Stay or go. Rezor or Zara. This impossible valley with its impossible pull, or the stars I’d always called home.
“We should discuss this with the council,” Rezor said, his voice carefully neutral. “Make plans. But first…” He looked at the celebrating crowd, at the way people kept glancing in our direction with joy and curiosity. “First we deal with this.”
“Deal with what?” I asked.
“The fact that you’ve been declared my mate in front of the entire clan.” He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Whether you like it or not, Cleo, you’re part of this community. They’re not going to let you leave easily.”
The words settled over me like a weight.
Not going to let me leave easily.
As if I were property. As if I didn’t get a choice.
The crowd pressed closer, people wanting to touch the three people who fell from the sky to cure the blight on their world, to congratulate Rezor, to celebrate this new era of peace and renewal.
I stood in the center of it all, nodding and saying the right things, while inside I felt like I was drowning.
The sun beat down on the valley, warm and golden and beautiful. The sky stretched overhead, impossibly blue and clear. And all I could think about was how that clear sky meant freedom.
It meant I could leave. It meant I had to choose, and if my choice went against the seer’s words, I could possibly have that choice taken from me. Would Rezor back me, or placate his people?
I looked at Rezor one more time, saw the way he watched me with those fuchsia eyes full of understanding and pain and stubborn hope. Saw the marks glowing on his chest.
And felt the foundations of my world beginning to crack.
The celebration went on around us, joyful and loud and full of hope for a future I wasn’t sure I wanted to be part of.