“Not even her lover’s embrace could penetrate the chill that founds its way deep into her soul.” - Marie Montine (Arising Son: Part One)

  * * * *

  The moon hung low over Ashenridge’s jagged cliffs like a pale, unblinking eye—silent, impassive, and cold. Waves lapped against the stony shoreline in gentle, rhythmic murmurs, but there was no peace to be found in their whispering tonight.

  Not for Lucie.

  Not after what she’d heard. Not after what had been ripped open.

  The soft crunch of her boots on the gravel faded beneath the weight of her breathing, shallow and trembling, as she walked farther from the flickering lamplight of the village. The air was brisk, heavy with the scent of salt and brine, the wind curling around her like invisible fingers, but she hardly noticed the cold.

  She barely noticed anything. The only thing sharp and real was the gnawing ache in her chest.

  She stopped at the edge of the shoreline, where sand met stone and moonlight scattered across the black surface of the waves like broken glass.

  There was no one here. No one to see her unravel.

  Lucie clenched her fists. Her arms trembled. Her skin prickled with the phantom heat of suppressed fire—of a Gift that responded not to her will but to her emotions, to the rage coiled beneath her skin like a serpent begging to strike.

  And she wanted to burn something. Anything. Her nails dug into her palms so hard they nearly drew blood.

  A target. That was what she needed.

  A fucking target.

  If there was ever a time when Lucie wanted some kind of target to burn down, it is now. But even she knew better than to try to burn something down tonight. With her luck, she’d likely burn Ashenridge down by mistake.

  But as it is, she wanted a punching bag right now. She wanted to beat the shit out of something. Anything.

  The mission to Blackpool is tomorrow. And she is supposed to be teaming up with Kailey for this one. The person she would have called her closest friend until ten minutes ago. The rage and grief still warring in her system needed an outlet before she went insane.

  Lucie stared out at the sea, letting the wind sting her face, hoping the hurt might drown the grief swelling in her chest. But the tears came anyway, hot and merciless. She swiped at them angrily, shoving them back down.

  She didn’t want to cry. She wanted to fight. But there was no one to fight here.

  Until…

  “Hey.”

  A quiet voice broke through the silence behind her.

  Lucie turned sharply, her body tense, but it was only Raul. Just Raul, his coat drawn close around him, the wind tugging at the ends of his blue scarf, his golden eyes soft and knowing under the faint gleam of moonlight.

  She didn’t say anything. She didn’t need to.

  “I’m here,” Raul said simply, like he always did.

  And that was all it took.

  Lucie choked on a sob and took a staggering step toward him, collapsing into his arms. She gripped his coat like a lifeline as the storm inside her finally broke, and they sank together onto the cold sand in silence, the waves whispering their secrets beside them.

  Raul wrapped his arms around her without hesitation—protective, steady, and patient, just like he had done years ago in Aegis’s boathouse when she had first come to Aegis, grieving a father she never had the chance to properly bury.

  Back then, he hadn’t spoken much either. Just sat with her, shoulder to shoulder, letting her grief run its course.

  He did the same now.

  Because some kinds of pain didn’t need fixing. They only needed space.

  Lucie didn’t know how long they stayed like that. Long enough for the sky to shift into a darker hue of indigo. Long enough for her sobs to finally subside. When she pulled back, her face was red and swollen, the ends of her hair clinging to her cheeks.

  Her breathing was uneven, and her body exhausted. Raul didn’t speak. He just reached into his coat pocket and handed her a crumpled tissue and a cool bottle of water.

  Lucie took them with shaking fingers. “…Thanks,” she muttered, wiping her face and then taking a long gulp of water.

  “Feeling better?” Raul asked, his voice low and unhurried.

  Lucie hesitated, then shrugged, pulling her knees to her chest. “…You know, back when I first joined Aegis, it was Kailey and Laura who showed me the ropes,” she murmured, her voice still hoarse. “Mostly Kailey. She was always…kind. Not soft, not gentle, but real. She didn’t pity me. Never treated me like I was fragile, even though I was. I think… I think I liked that about her. I needed it.”

  Raul listened without a word, his eyes on the ocean.

  Lucie’s voice cracked as she continued, “Never in my life did I think this would happen. That she’d choose someone like Jonan. That she’d hide something like this. That she’d…still stand by him after knowing.” She laughed bitterly. It was a hollow sound. “I never had real friends before Aegis. Just online acquaintances. Distant connections. Never someone I could actually touch, cry to, or laugh with. Aegis changed that. Kailey was the first person I really trusted.” She sucked in a shaky breath. “I would’ve done anything for her. Would’ve died for her. And now… I don’t even know what we are anymore.”

  Raul’s brows furrowed faintly as he glanced at her, but she wasn’t looking at him. Her eyes were fixed on the waves, her shoulders drawn inward like she was trying to shrink from the enormity of everything.

  “I get it,” Raul said gently. “I’m not trying to defend her. Or Jonan. But… People do a lot of stupid things when they’re in love.”

  Lucie didn’t respond at first. Then, with a trembling voice, she murmured, “He’s not really a bad guy. I know that. I want to hate him, Raul. I want to hate him so badly, but…” She curled in tighter, her forehead resting on her knees. “He looked just as broken as I feel. And that makes it worse. Because I don’t know what I’m supposed to feel. I don’t know what I want anymore.”

  Raul’s hand gently brushed her shoulder. “You don’t have to decide now,” he said quietly. “Not about him. Not about Kailey. None of it has to be figured out tonight.”

  Lucie lifted her head just enough to look at him.

  Raul’s gaze was steady, the faint light of the moon glinting off the curve of the dragonfly tattoo on his cheek.

  “If Jonan wants to make up for what he did,” Raul murmured, “that’s his responsibility. Not yours. He shouldn’t be trying to earn your forgiveness. He should be trying to make things right because it’s the right thing to do. You don’t owe him a damn thing.”

  Lucie blinked quickly, more tears threatening. She bit her lip and nodded, just barely. “And Kailey?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

  Raul was silent for a moment. His eyes shifted to the horizon, where dark clouds were gathering far off in the distance. Ominous, but not yet upon them.

  “That’s also between you and her,” he said at last. “I don’t know exactly how you feel, but… I know what betrayal feels like.”

  Lucie’s breath caught. She remembered then—how Raul had once belonged to a different gang before joining Aegis. How his old gang had betrayed him to the hunters.

  If Sera hadn’t found him first…

  Lucie winced. “I forgot,” she whispered. “I forgot what happened to you.”

  Raul shrugged softly, a humourless smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “It’s not something I like talking about. But I’m still here. And I wouldn’t be if not for Aegis.” His eyes met hers. “You don’t have to forgive Kailey. Not now. Not ever. But I don’t think she meant to hurt you. I think she just…got caught up in something she couldn’t see clearly. People do a lot of stupid things when they’re in love,” he repeated.

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  Lucie’s eyes dropped to the sand, then to the water. She watched it move in silver ripples. She watched the way Raul sat beside her—close, but never imposing.

  And for the first time tonight, she let herself breathe.

  “You’ve always been here,” she said quietly.

  Raul tilted his head. “That a bad thing?”

  “No,” Lucie said. “It’s not.”

  They sat in silence again, but this time, it wasn’t suffocating. It was peaceful. Not complete, not perfect, but enough to hold her together.

  And maybe… In another time, in another place… Maybe this would be the beginning of something different.

  * * * *

  The night over Ashenridge was a deep ocean of silence, pierced only by the sighing wind and the distant rustle of pine. Stars clung to the velvet sky like splinters of shattered hope, their cold, indifferent glimmer doing little to offer comfort to the girl curled on the wooden floor of the old watchtower.

  Kailey sat cross-legged near the edge of the tower’s open frame, her lavender jacket drawn tight around her frame, though the wind still bit through the seams.

  She kept her head low, her raven-black hair shielding her face like a curtain, as her fingers twisted and fidgeted with the frayed edge of her sleeve. She had pulled her knees up to her chest hours ago, or what felt like hours, and hadn’t moved much since.

  It was supposed to be a lookout post. A vantage point to monitor the borders of Ashenridge for patrols, drones, boats, or signs of approaching hunters. But tonight, the tower had become something else.

  A place to hide.

  Not from enemies. But from herself.

  Kailey’s heart hadn’t stopped aching since the confrontation. Her ears still rang with Lucie’s voice—raw, grief-stricken, and laced with betrayal, and the steely coldness in Laura’s tone. The disappointment in Zest’s expression. The sheer anger that Sera had made no attempt to hide.

  Sera never lost her temper easily. But tonight, her fury had burned with the same quiet heat as Lucie’s flames—controlled, precise, and devastating. This had to be one of the few rare times when Kailey saw Sera so angry, and it is with her.

  Kailey closed her eyes and pressed her forehead to her knees.

  She hadn’t meant for any of this to happen. She hadn’t meant to hurt Lucie.

  But intent meant nothing when the damage had already been done. And now, for the first time in what felt like years, she felt truly, achingly alone.

  Her mind kept replaying everything in a vicious loop—every word, every look, and every accusation. A part of her wished she could go back and undo it all. Another part knew that she couldn’t. That the choices she made, every single one, had led to this moment.

  And worse, Kailey wasn’t even sure anymore if she could explain why.

  The creak of wood snapped her out of her spiral. Light footsteps echoed faintly from the ladder, cautious but unhurried.

  Instinct kicked in before she could think. Kailey’s hand moved to her side, drawing her handgun from her holster in one fluid motion. She had it pointed toward the entrance before the familiar shape of her older twin brother emerged from the trapdoor.

  Neil’s pearl-white eyes blinked at the weapon, unimpressed. His long raven hair was tied back neatly, and his white tunic rippled slightly in the breeze. “You going to shoot me?” he asked, one brow arched, his tone dry as dust.

  Kailey let out a breath and immediately lowered the gun. “Quit it with the sarcasm,” she muttered, replacing the weapon beside her.

  Neil climbed the rest of the way up and sat down beside her, leaving a small but comfortable distance between them. For a few moments, neither of them spoke. The wind continued to whisper through below, and somewhere far off in the valley, a bird gave a single mournful cry.

  “…You heard what happened?” Kailey asked quietly, her voice brittle.

  “Everyone did,” Neil replied with a sigh, and Kailey winced. She can already imagine the looks she’s going to receive from the others tomorrow. Neil’s gaze lingered on the horizon, but his voice was steady. “News travels fast in Ashenridge. Especially when people start shouting.”

  Kailey winced. “Great,” she muttered. “So now everyone thinks I’m a traitor.”

  Neil didn’t argue. He didn’t comfort her either.

  And somehow, that was worse.

  “I don’t want to say you don’t deserve what Laura, Sera, and Zest said to you,” Neil said carefully, “but you should’ve known this was going to happen the moment you got involved with Jonan. The moment you knew he was ESA.”

  Kailey turned away, her jaw tightening. “I didn’t plan to fall for him,” she whispered.

  “No one ever plans to fall,” Neil replied. “But once you did, you had a choice. You made that choice. You kept it secret. You stayed with him even after you knew.”

  Kailey closed her eyes. Her throat burned. “…Was I wrong?” Her voice cracked with the question. “Was it really that selfish of me?”

  Neil didn’t answer immediately. When he did, it was quiet, but firm. “I don’t know if ‘selfish’ is the right word. But yeah, Kailey. You really fucked up.” She flinched. “You didn’t just fuck up your friendship with Lucie. You put your credibility with the rest of Aegis at risk. You lied by omission. You protected Jonan. You stood beside the guy who killed her father. You knew, and you didn’t tell her.”

  “I was scared, Neil,” Kailey snapped suddenly, lifting her head. “I didn’t know how to tell her without destroying everything.”

  Neil’s expression didn’t waver. “And so, you let it destroy her instead.”

  That silenced her.

  A gust of wind blew through the open structure, tousling her hair and whipping the edge of his coat.

  Neil spoke again, this time softer. “If you had been Lucie… And you found out your best friend was dating the guy who killed your father… And stayed with him, even after knowing the truth… How would you feel?”

  Kailey’s voice was barely a whisper. “Betrayed.”

  Neil nodded slowly. “That’s exactly how Lucie feels right now.”

  Kailey bit the inside of her cheek. Her hands were trembling, and she folded them in her lap to keep from showing it.

  “When I left the others after Laura dropped the news,” Neil continued, his voice grim, “Letha was muttering something about hunting you and Jonan down. She’s furious. You’d best stay out of her way tonight. Give her space. Give everyone space. Let the storm pass.”

  Kailey stared at the floorboards. “I didn’t mean for any of this.”

  “I know,” Neil said. “But that doesn’t change what happened.”

  For a long moment, silence settled between the twins. Only the wind dared speak.

  Below them, the rest of Ashenridge slumbered, its makeshift homes patched together with salvaged metal and old stone, its watchlights flickering like the dying embers of a fire.

  A village built on hope, on pain, on the resilience of those who had lost everything. Refuge for the Gifted, now standing on the precipice of civil war.

  Kailey couldn’t stop thinking about it. How many more Lucies would there be in this country? How many more families shattered? How many more friendships destroyed?

  And what had she done? She had played her part in tearing something down.

  “…Do you hate me?” she asked suddenly, not daring to look at Neil.

  Neil turned to her, his expression unreadable. “You’re my sister,” he said. “I’ll always be in your corner. But I’ll still call you out when you screw up. That’s what siblings are for.”

  Kailey smiled faintly, even as tears burned her eyes. “You sound like Laura.”

  Neil grinned. “High praise. Or a death sentence.”

  That drew a weak laugh from Kailey, and for the first time since the confrontation, the weight on her chest lightened, if only just a little.

  “But I need you to understand,” Neil said seriously, “you’re going to have to work to rebuild the trust you lost tonight. With Lucie. With the others. With yourself. No one’s going to hand it back to you just because you feel bad. You’re going to have to earn it.”

  Kailey nodded slowly. “I know.”

  There was silence for several moments, with nothing but just the sounds of the wind blowing.

  “I told Sera once,” Kailey said at last, her voice thin and frayed, “that Zest would only hurt her.”

  Neil tilted his head, but didn’t interrupt.

  Kailey’s lips twisted into a bitter smile. “It felt like forever ago. But I still remember. I said she loved him so much that she’d let him get away with anything. That her love would blind her. But now… I think I was just projecting. Because I did the exact thing I accused her of.”

  Neil gave a soft snort, though his tone was wry. “Technically, your concerns weren’t unfounded.”

  That drew a breath of something between amusement and despair from Kailey.

  “They are dangerous,” she murmured. “Both of them. I mean, we all knew the stories, right? Even before we went to Elvryn looking for Blade. The whispers. The bounties. The body counts. Zest and Sera weren’t just names in the underground. They were the kind of names that made even seasoned mercenaries flinch.”

  “And yet,” Neil added, “they never turned that kind of danger on each other.”

  “No,” Kailey agreed softly. “They didn’t. I used to think it was just strategy. Two sharp minds working together. But now, I see it wasn’t just that. It’s the little things, you know?”

  Neil was quiet, letting her speak.

  “The way Zest would listen when Sera spoke. The way she never second-guessed his instincts in the field. The way they looked at each other—like two people who didn’t need to prove anything. I thought for sure Zest would protest being split from her during the Kald mission. I mean, Sera was sent to the heart of enemy territory and he was stationed with the team handling the water purification plant. But he just nodded. Said okay. Trusted her.”

  Kailey swallowed hard. “If I had been in Sera’s place… I don’t think I could’ve let Jonan go like that. Not without fighting it. Not without worrying he’d die. And I don’t think I ever gave him the same trust, either.”

  Neil glanced sideways at her, the wind catching strands of his long black hair. “So is it that you didn’t trust him? Or that you knew, deep down, that you couldn’t? To be equals or partners in a relationship, Kailey, you need to trust that they can handle themselves too. That was the mistake you made.”

  Kailey didn’t answer right away. She leaned forward, resting her arms on her knees, eyes searching the forested horizon as if it might offer her clarity. But the woods remained still. The stars above remained indifferent.

  “I saved him once,” she said finally. “Jonan. After he figured out I wasn’t just Gifted, but Aegis too. He told me he was in love with me. That I mattered to him. And I… I told him I wasn’t good for him.”

  Neil blinked. “You told him that?”

  Kailey nodded. “I meant it. Not just because of Aegis. But because of everything. The war. The secrets. The way things were heading. He didn’t know about Lucie’s father yet. Neither did I. But he did tell me he’d killed someone once. By mistake. I never imagined… Never guessed that it would be him.” Her voice cracked, and she looked away. “Fate has a way of fucking us over,” Kailey whispered.

  Neil’s face was unreadable, but his voice held the weight of experience. “Yeah. It does.”

  “I guess… I thought we were solid. Jonan and I. Even if we started off on opposite sides, even if it was messy. I thought we could find a way to make it work.”

  “To be honest,” Neil said, “I think all of us had doubts about Sera and Zest too, back then. It wasn’t just you. You weren’t the only one worried they’d destroy each other.”

  Kailey let out a weak laugh. “And now, they’re the only couple left standing.”

  Silence fell again. She wiped at her eyes. Her skin was cold from the wind and saltwater air.

  “Am I an idiot?” she asked. “Sera said I was delusional. Maybe she’s right. I didn’t mean for it to be like this, but… Maybe I am just that stupid. Maybe I shouldn’t have started anything with Jonan at all. I knew from the start that he was ESA. I should have stayed away then. But something about him just draws me to him.”

  Neil didn’t respond immediately. He leaned back against the wooden frame of the tower, folding his arms across his chest. “You want the truth?”

  Kailey gave him a look. “You were always going to tell me either way. You’re going to tell me whether I want to hear it or not,” she sighed. “I already know what Sera and all the others would say, and you’re probably the only person who isn’t about to stomp all over my feelings, so yeah.”

  Neil allowed himself the barest smile. “Fair.”

  He took a breath. “Falling in love isn’t wrong, Kailey. And wanting to see the best in someone you love? That’s not wrong either. But what you should’ve done…was talk to him. Really talk. You should have had a talk with him long before it got to this point why he was with the ESA, and what he thought he was accomplishing,” Neil pointed out bluntly. “You both had the chance. Even before you knew about Lucie’s father. You chose not to.”

  Kailey’s shoulders hunched. “Tell the guy who’s part of the team hunting me down that I’m the enemy he’s supposed to kill? Yeah, that’ll go over well. Great way to ruin a date.”

  That earned a quiet snort from Neil. “Yeah, you might’ve ruined the ambiance.”

  Kailey gave a watery smile. But Neil wasn’t done.

  “You remember Blackpool?” he asked. “When Blade broke Wes out?” Kailey nodded faintly. That mission felt like a lifetime ago. “One of the guards at Zalfari told me something. Said that back then, Lucas admitted to Zest that he was in love with Sera. And you know what Zest said?”

  “…What?”

  “He told Lucas that what he felt wasn’t real love. That love doesn’t mean putting someone on a pedestal. It means accepting everything of them. Their strength. Their flaws. The parts that scare you. That make you uncomfortable. And that if you ignore half of them because you don’t want to see it, that’s not love. That’s delusion.”

  Kailey froze.

  Neil looked at her. “With Zest, it’s different. Sera has her faults. We all know that. Zest never tried to change Sera. Never tried to tame her. And she never tried to soften him. That’s why they work. That’s why they survived. Because they saw each other clearly, and they stayed, anyway.”

  “…But Jonan and I,” Kailey whispered, “we never even talked about the fact that we were enemies. We just…pretended we weren’t. Like none of that mattered.”

  Neil gave a soft nod. “And you built a foundation out of silence. That might be the mistake you and Jonan made. You both ignored the part that we were enemies…back then. He was ESA. You were Aegis. Enemies. We aren’t now. But you started your relationship while both of you pretended that you weren’t enemies.”

  Kailey’s hands trembled as she pressed them against her eyes. “Fuck. You’re stepping all over my feelings right now.”

  “Yeah,” Neil said quietly. “Sorry.” But he didn’t take it back.

  “He’s not a bad guy,” Kailey whispered again, more to herself than to Neil. “He’s not.”

  “No one’s saying he is. He made mistakes. We all have.” Neil’s voice was gentle. “And maybe he wants to change. Maybe he can. But that doesn’t erase the fact that he killed Lucie’s father. Or the fact that he waited until tonight to dump it on her. When we’re less than twenty-four hours from a mission that could decide whether half this country burns. Maybe you can tell me what he is thinking, because I honestly don’t get it.”

  Kailey was silent again for several moments before looking up at Neil slowly. “Do you think Lucie will ever forgive me?”

  Neil was silent for a moment.

  “It’s hard to say,” he admitted. “Lucie’s one of the most forgiving people I’ve ever met. She’s got a lot of love in her. Enough to drown in. But forgiveness isn’t free. And it’s not guaranteed. If you want it, you’re going to have to earn it, Kailey. And even then, she might still walk away.”

  Kailey nodded numbly.

  Neil hesitated, then added, “And you need to be okay with that. Even if it breaks you.”

  The words struck like a blade to the chest. Finally, Kailey said, barely audible, “You said once that Jonan would only hurt me.” Neil turned, meeting her pearl-white eyes with his own. “You were right, weren’t you?”

  The question hung there, suspended between them like the wind.

  “Get some rest,” Neil said at last, rising to his feet and dusting off his tunic. “Tomorrow’s not going to be any easier.” He turned to go, then hesitated. “Oh,” he added, glancing back over his shoulder, “and maybe keep that gun holstered next time. Some of us don’t want to start sibling bonding time with a bullet to the chest.”

  Kailey snorted, even as she wiped the corners of her eyes. “No promises.”

  Neil rolled his eyes and descended the ladder.

  And Kailey remained alone once more, but this time, she didn’t feel quite as broken.