SERAPHINA’S POV
Together, we stepped through.
The barrier closed around us, and for one breathless moment, the world vanished. There was no beach behind us, no ocean, no sun.
Darkness scraped my skin, searching for entry. The silver markings on my back blazed in answer.
Then we broke through the other side.
Sound rushed back.
Waves. Wind. Boots hitting wet sand as the first wave of warriors followed us through.
We stood on Catherine’s island.
The beauty was gone, but not from the landscape. The palm trees still swayed. The water still glittered. The white sand still curved gently along the shore.
But beneath it all, everything felt wrong.
The air smelled too sweet, like flowers left too long in a sealed room. The birds didn’t call. The trees did not rustle naturally, even though the wind moved through them.
Every shadow beneath the foliage seemed thicker than it should have been, and the estate on the ridge gleamed in the distance with polished, indifferent elegance.
