Page 92 of The Unseen Hour

“I’ll make sure you get back to them, Starlight. They’ll forgive you. We’ll stop the hour, and they’ll realize that everything you did was for a reason.”

Even if the rest of Emrys never found out what had happened to the hour, I’d have to explain things to my family. There was always a chance they might think I’d lost my mind at first, but I’d have Orion to back me up. And if they truly couldn’t accept what I had to say, I’d leave.

I loved my friends and family, but I’d rather take my chances traveling Rayus with Orion than allow myself to be locked in a room as the crazed sister who spoke of gods no one believed in.

“What do you most want to do when you return?” I asked Orion.

A lot depended on how much people knew and were able to believe.

“Be with you. Without hiding you from Charon, and without the hour hanging over our heads.”

Since I’d arrived, Orion had considered my safety.

“I hope you know,” I started, “that you are the most important person to me. Wanting to make sure everything else is⁠—”

“I know. I’ve never felt threatened that you still have family and friends to return to. I hope it works out for you. I’ll do everything I can to make sure they believe and support you. I have no one else, Celia, but that doesn’t mean I expect you to abandon everyone you ever cared about just for me.”

But I would.

“Things do need to change, though. Emrys needs to change.”

I shouldn’t have to worry about choosing between Orion and my family’s reputation.

He smirked.

“Then we change it. Bring a little bit of the freedom from the Ether to Emrys.”

I couldn’t help laughing. He made it sound simple, when I knew it would be anything but. Although …

“I suppose for two people who have ended the Unseen Hour, anything is possible.”

“That’s the spirit, Starlight. Now then, why don’t we figure out something to eat? If we had tools, I could catch a fish,” Orion lamented when we saw some swim by.

“You could always wade in and try to scoop one up with your hands.” It was a half-hearted attempt to tease him, but my aching joints stole all the humor from my voice. The pain hadn’t even fazed me during our activities before our rest, but I’d been too distracted to notice.

The blue and green lights of the Ether’s sky, faint as they were in this vast landscape, were high in the sky when Orion threw his arm out, signaling a stop.

Adrenaline rushed through me and all my muscles contracted.

“What is it? A brush boar? A bear?”

“No.” Orion shook his head. “It’s a sound. Waves.”

He was right. Rhythmic and insistent, the sound wasn’t the same as the river.

“There!” Orion pointed in front of us. Under the light of the pale blue moon, I could see distant waves.

We’d reached the beach.

There were shadowed shapes looming, sticking out from the sands and towering above our heads. When we got close enough, I saw that they were rock formations. These were not sunny and forgiving shores; they were rocky and dangerous.

“Death said we’d be looking for rocks,” I said.

“Yes. Should we try to find the baton now?” Orion’s voice was hesitant, but I nodded.

We gave it a half-hearted search, realizing quickly that the limited light would make it nearly impossible when what we were after was such a small item. Something easily confused with a small stick.

The waves were such a deep blue they were almost black. We needed the brighter orange and purple lights to have much hope of spotting anything between the dark stones and grey sands.