Chapter Twenty-One
Tethered Hearts
The storm faded to a heavy mist as dawn broke over the lake, soft light slicing through the fog like delicate fingers. The world looked washed clean—but Amelia knew better.
Lucien's words still echoed in her mind: See you soon, niece.
She stood near the water's edge, arms wrapped around herself, watching the ripples move as though something beneath the surface breathed with her.
Kaia's voice broke the silence. "We have to move soon. If Lucien really is preparing a tether, he might already have started the ritual."
Amelia nodded, distracted. "Yeah."
Kaia tilted her head. "Are you okay?"
Before Amelia could answer, someone approached behind them—light steps on the wet grass.
She turned.
Rowan.
He hadn't said much since the first time they'd met days ago, but now, his emerald-green eyes met hers with quiet urgency. He looked like he hadn't slept. Rain darkened the curls that fell over his forehead, and he held something in his hand—a folded map stained at the edges.
"I know where he's going," Rowan said softly.
Kaia stood straighter. "How?"
"He's not using the lake. Not yet. He's heading to the Veilwell Cavern. It's connected to the lake beneath... but older. Forbidden. That's where rituals like this start."
Edward stepped out from the trees, arms crossed. "We don't have long, then. We'll need a plan."
Rowan looked at Amelia, voice lowering. "I'll take you there."
Amelia blinked. "Me?"
Rowan's eyes held hers. "Lucien's after you, Amelia. If we want to stop him, we have to get there before he uses the tether. And... I want to make sure you come back."
Kaia smirked lightly and turned away, pretending to check her dagger. Edward stayed silent but gave Rowan a single, unreadable nod.
Amelia looked down at her hands, at the faint glow in her fingertips she hadn't noticed until now.
She was changing. The lake was inside her. And yet, when Rowan was close, something in her calmed. Like her thoughts didn't echo so loudly.
"Okay," she said finally. "We go together."
They set off just before noon, the path winding through mist-covered woods and silent, watching trees.
About halfway there, Rowan motioned for them to stop and let Kaia and Edward move ahead to scout the path. He and Amelia sat near a hollow tree.
"You scared?" he asked after a moment.
She nodded. "Terrified. But I don't have time to be."
Rowan looked at her for a moment, then spoke quietly. "You were glowing, earlier. Not in a creepy way. It was... kind of beautiful."
Amelia laughed, surprised. "Thanks. I think."
He smiled and leaned back against the tree. "You've changed since the first time I saw you at the lake."
Amelia raised an eyebrow. "You mean when I screamed at my own reflection?"
He chuckled. "No. Before that."
She blinked. "What?"
Rowan looked at her, serious now. "I saw you once—months ago. You were by the lake at night. Just sitting. You looked like someone trying to remember a song she didn't know the lyrics to. You were sad, but... brave."
Amelia's breath caught. "You saw me?"
He nodded. "Didn't say anything. I wanted to. But something told me you were waiting for something bigger than a stranger."
Amelia looked away, her voice barely above a whisper. "I've always felt like I was waiting. But now... I think I'm finally becoming whatever I was waiting for."
Rowan reached out and brushed a strand of hair from her face. "Whatever you become, Amelia, I'm with you."
Their eyes met—close, electric.
For a moment, the world faded.
Then Kaia's voice broke the spell. "Let's move! We're close!"
Amelia stood quickly, cheeks warm. Rowan offered his hand to help her up. She took it—and didn't let go right away.
As they walked toward the Veilwell Cavern, the mist behind them curled into ghostly shapes.
The lake watched.
And Lucien was already waiting.
The forest deepened around them, shadows growing longer even though the sun was still up. The trees whispered. The mist clung to the roots like memory.
Rowan kept close, never too far, never too near. Amelia felt the quiet between them stretch out like a silk thread, delicate but unbreakable.
"Do you think your mom is still alive?" Rowan asked softly, eyes on the fog ahead.
Amelia nodded. "I don't just think it. I feel it. Like she's calling from somewhere deep inside me. Every time I look in the water, I see her face. But it's like... she's trapped in a memory that doesn't want to let her go."
Rowan glanced at her. "Maybe she's the one anchoring you. Keeping you from drifting too far into the lake's magic."
Amelia looked down at her hands. They'd stopped glowing, but her skin still felt warm. "And what if I am drifting? What if I can't come back?"
Rowan's voice was steady. "Then I'll find you."
She stopped walking.
He turned to face her.
The forest around them fell still, like it too was waiting.
"You really believe that?" she whispered.
Rowan stepped closer, his voice low and certain. "I don't say things I don't mean."
His hand brushed hers gently, then fully took it. She didn't pull away.
"I know what you're feeling," he continued. "The weight. The pull. Like something inside you is unraveling while the world outside expects you to stay strong."
Her breath hitched. "That's exactly what it feels like."
He reached up slowly, tucking another strand of her damp hair behind her ear. "But you don't have to be strong all the time."
She looked up at him, unsure if it was the lake's magic or her own heartbeat humming in her ears.
And then—without rushing it, without warning—he leaned in and kissed her.
It was soft, steady, grounding. Like a promise made under thunderclouds.
For a moment, all the whispers, all the strange reflections, all the fear melted away.
When they broke apart, Amelia didn't speak right away. She just smiled—small and real.
"I've never kissed anyone before," she said quietly.
Rowan chuckled, brushing her cheek with his thumb. "Then I'm honored to be your first."
She leaned her forehead against his, and for the first time in days, the ache in her chest lessened. The lake still pulsed within her—but now there was an anchor outside of it, too.
Kaia's voice called through the trees again, closer this time. "Amelia! Rowan! We found the entrance!"
Amelia pulled back slightly, but her hand stayed in Rowan's. "Time to end this."
He nodded. "Together."
And with that, they ran toward the Veilwell Cavern—hearts racing not from fear, but from hope.
But deep beneath their feet, water stirred.
And Lucien smiled in the dark.