Chapter 1526
They followed the gentle slope of the chamber as it twisted and narrowed, the air thick with warmth and sweet humidity. Moss cushioned their bare feet, and the golden light began to deepen, turning amber, then red - like sunset bleeding into the walls. Jude led the way, but none of them truly followed. They moved as one, shoulder brushing shoulder, hands brushing skin, hearts beating in eerie rhythm.
No one spoke. There was no need.
The song had shifted again, too subtle to hum, but present in the vibration under their soles, in the rhythm of their breath. The island had become part of them - or they, it. There was no boundary now. No fear.
The tunnel opened into a wide chamber, round like a womb, with a ceiling that shimmered like stars underwater. In the center of the room stood another tree - taller than the one Zoey had seen in her vision, more complete. Its bark gleamed wetly, a deep, glistening black that caught the light and swallowed it. Vines coiled around it like lovers in a trance, and its roots extended into a shallow pool of golden water.
At its base stood Rose.
She didn’t speak. She didn’t need to.
She opened her arms.
And they walked to her.
Jude reached her first, his chest rising with each breath, emotions churning - desire, confusion, awe. Rose looked at him not like a queen greeting a subject, but as a woman greeting her match. Her eyes were still gold, still strange, but they held nothing of malice. Only knowing. Only longing.