“It’s a good thing, I’m right-handed.” Bay examined his bandaged wrist, no humor touching his voice or expression.
Skye sat on his shoulder, mimicking the tone that had consumed all of Skyla. “Didn’t look enough like your father before, I guess?”
“He looks nothing like his father.” I crushed Whisper’s hand in mine. “Not even a little bit.”
Skye glanced at me, then lowered his gaze. “You’re right. Sorry.”
“I can’t believe that bastard got away.” Whisper released a pent-up breath. “He can’t just get away with this.”
“He won’t.” Bile stung in the back of my throat, making it impossible to swallow yet another lump forming there. “I still have to find my siblings and fix that.”
Worry tinted Tiger Lily’s gaze. “Great power like this can consume you; it is no different than how the Fountain’s power fed on Peter all these years. If you let it take control, it will destroy who you are. You must be careful.”
I knew that. I had already nearly fallen into the heady rush of this ability. I had nearly sucked a man’s life from him, one cell at a time. No matter what Hook had done, that was cruel. That wasn’t who I was, and I would never do it again, not like that.
“If you notice any complications, let me know.” Tiger Lily smiled weakly, resting a hand on Bay’s shoulder. “I wish we could have met again under brighter times, Bay.”
“So do I.” He dropped his gaze.
“Thank you for helping him,” Skye murmured.
She nodded. “Of course.”
My eyes widened briefly, but I wasn’t even surprised she could understand the pixies. She had once been Neverland’s princess. My heart twisted, and guilt soured the taste in my mouth. Tiger Lily had lived through so much worse than this. Her whole world had crumbled numerous times. And yet, she still found the strength to smile, to raise a child like Whisper, to foster a child like me.
Emotion choked me again, so I released Whisper’s hand and stood. “Bay, can we go home? Please?”
His brows lowered with confusion.
“It’s still there. In the sky even. I’m tired. I just want to go home, please.” My lips trembled, and I couldn’t hold back the tears that found their way down my cheeks.
Bay looked at Tiger Lily, standing beside me when she nodded. “Yeah, of course.”
I hugged Whisper, who confirmed that she’d be with Adam in his fairytale house in the woods if I needed her. Then I flew beside Bay back up to the Skyla I knew, away from the Skyla that had water to lap its shores instead of air. We tucked ourselves into the woods, silently making our way to his treehouse, where this horrible adventure seemed to have begun in blissful moments of peace.
I held my arms around my waist, walking beside him and watching him float along like he hadn’t just lost a hand. Skye dipped in and out of the trees. And for that moment, save for the bandage around his wrist, things were okay.
“Does it hurt?” I asked.
“Like a bitch.” He smiled.
I found no strength to return the gesture.
Slowly but surely, his treehouse came into view, still nestled high in the bows of pixie oaks. My heart pinched when I saw it, and I stopped short in the miniature clearing. Bay darted for the balcony, landing at the rail and peering down at me. “Hello,” he said. My stomach heated at the look in his eye. “To whom do I owe the pleasure of such a late and unexpected visit?”
My skin tingled, and my lips parted. Mouth dry, I answered, “The Daughter of Pan.”
His hair glimmered gold in the afternoon light. Loose, it rested around his shoulders, kissing his cheeks in the sweet breeze. My wings took me to him, but I stopped in the air on the other side of his balcony and hovered there, unmoving.
He ran his gaze over me. “I suppose those are just decoration, huh, Wind Song?”
I squeezed my arm, where the feathers he’d tattooed lingered. “These had to come from somewhere.”
“Guess they did.” He pinned a stray strand of my orange hair behind my ear, brushing my cheek with his fingers. “I’m not sure why you’re here. You know all my secrets now.”
My head shook. “Not all of them.”
“Really?” He searched the canopy. “Which one are you missing?”
It took me a second to remember. “What did the Fountain promise you if you drank from it?”
Surprise widened his hazel eyes. He rubbed his jaw. “Well, an eternity with you.” His voice softened. “But I wasn’t sure if you’d want that, and I wasn’t willing to risk my rocky present with you on it. I’m…really sorry about what I did.”
The world stilled around us. My heart ached to hold him; my mind ached to forget the entire day. What if we could just be, for this moment, and ignore the ones that had led to it? “Stupid…” I whispered, fighting more tears. Moving forward, I kissed him, melting into the heat of his touch, the softness of his lips, and the warmth of the instant where nothing was wrong. If I could, I would have stayed there forever. But I couldn’t. Tomorrow, I had to leave. Tomorrow, I’d set out on an adventure alone, an adventure I knew wouldn’t be like the magical stories Peter had told me. Tomorrow, I’d remember adventures weren’t always about meeting new friends and seeing new places.
But tonight… Tonight, Bay drew me into his home and called it mine. He curled up with me in his arms and talked like adventures were still wonderful. He murmured about pixies and flying and sirens with golden eyes. He pet my wings, a stupid smile on his face every time my breath held at his touch. He reminded me love hadn’t vanished from my life.
We talked.
He helped me laugh, just enough.
And I, maybe a little bit right before falling asleep, believed I’d like to be a part of a future with him.
1st December
“I thought I might find you here.” Bay’s voice startled me, and I looked over my shoulder, parting my wings to see him past the dark feathers. He landed in the rubble, peering at the collapsed trees and neglected pixies’ homes. Before me, almost intact, was the large pixie oak with the flattened space at the top. Memories lived in that space, and they hurt. So much.
