Page 78 of Quarter Labyrinth

My spirits fell. “I didn’t wish for this. I didn’t wish for any of this. But Leif wears an identical necklace that proves it’s from Callahan. How else would my mother get it if it wasn’t hers?”

Clark’s eyes went to my clavicle. He reached for the chain, pulling free Delilah’s necklace. The blue gem sparkled like the lake beside us. “And what’s this?”

“I asked Delilah for protection against Dimitri, and she granted me this.” I didn’t dare mention her price. Clark looked irritated enough.

“Geez, Ren,” he said, frustration lacing his voice. “Have we even been in the labyrinth together? Stone gods, your mother’s identity, Leif…and I wasn’t there for any of it.”

“That’s all been odd coincidences.”

“Except for sneaking out last night to meet with Delilah, which you waited to do until I’d fallen asleep.”

A flicker of pain shot through me, but it was nothing compared to the pain in his eyes.

Beside us, a fallen orange leaf floated on the glassy lake, and I watched it for a while, feeling very much like we were the same. Gliding over the water set on drowning us. Trying to figure out where the smooth currents were. Suddenly too far from shore to ever be safe again.

I swallowed hard. “I keep my cards close to my chest. I’ve always been like that.”

Clark’s voice softened, turning sad. “You weren’t always like that with me.”

My shoulders hung low while I tried to find something to say to make him feel better. He beat me to it.

“How am I supposed to protect you if you aren’t with me?”

“I’m the one who should be protectingyou. For as long as I live, Clark, I’m going to be protecting you.” My voice broke, and something broke between us as well.

The strife between us had come to a climax, but I felt it shift now, dissipating as Clark sighed. He stepped closer to me, the frustration in his expression melting away. I let him hands come to my arms, feel his breath on my forehead, smell the labyrinth clinging to him.

“We protect each other,” he corrected. “Thick or thin, stone gods or labyrinth or a fleet of merchant ships, I will be with you through it all.”

I nodded, though the motion felt heavy with doubt. A part of me wished I could be the one to set everything right, even if I couldn’t pinpoint where we’d gone wrong. It gnawed at me, this uncertainty, this unraveling of something I once thought was unbreakable. When did I stop trusting Clark with everything?He’d proven himself time and time again, standing firm like a shield between me and the chaos of the world.

So why wasn’t that enough?

My chest tightened as the question lingered. Clark’s gaze softened. He reached out, his fingers gentle as they lifted my chin. His touch steadied me, even as I felt unworthy of it. Then his lips brushed against mine like a whispered promise. Warmth spread through me, a quiet ember chasing away the cold.

Everything about Clark felt soft, honest, andgood. He was sunlight filtering through cracks in the storm clouds, a place to rest when the weight of the world became too much. And yet, I felt like jagged stones, sharp edges that cut into him each day, tearing at what he gave so freely.

He pulled away before the spark between us could ignite into something more.

“I’m sorry,” I said, the words trembling as they left my lips. “There’s a lot going on in my head, and I’m not doing any of this right.”

His brow furrowed, but his touch didn’t waver. Instead, he swept his thumb gently across my cheek. “Let me in,” he urged. “And we will figure it out together.”

The sincerity in his words hit me like a wave, and I felt something loosen in my chest, though I couldn’t quite name it. Could I do that? Could I let him in completely? I didn’t know. But as his hand rested against my cheek and his eyes searched mine, I wanted to try.

I promised, but even as I said it, I knew I’d have a beastly time keeping my vow. The truth didn’t come naturally to me. Itnever had. I grew up with my mother’s words over me:Never tell anyone who you are. They will come for you if they find you.To let someone in, let them see all of me, it took a strength I wasn’t sure I had.

When Clark looked at me, I swore he could hear the tumbling of my thoughts.

“Tell me this. Would you give up the Silver Wings for me?”

“No,” I replied. Captaining the Silver Wings had always been more than a dream, it felt as certain as the blood rushing through my veins. “But once, I was willing to leave you behind to get the Silver Wings. I no longer want one without the other. I can’t give up the Silver Wings, Clark. But I promise not to give you up either.”

I hesitated to ask, but I needed to know. “You never wanted a life on the seas. Has that changed?”

He glanced around us, back to me. “Land is fun, but the adventure lies with you. I love you, Serenity Montclair. I’ll love you until the day I die.”

It struck me then. There was our problem.

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