Luis's POV
When I stepped back into the human world, I kept my destination a secret from everyone in my family. My stepmother remained unaware, as did my step-siblings. The truth of where I had vanished to stayed locked away.
Most importantly, I never breathed a word about my suspicions regarding our father. The man we had all grieved for, the man whose funeral we had attended, might still be drawing breath somewhere in this world.
The very thought sounded like madness, even when it echoed through my own mind.
Yet that moment remained burned into my memory with perfect clarity. The chaos at the palace, the violence that erupted around us, the crimson stains spreading across marble floors. Aunt Naia had woven her protective magic around us, her spell crackling through the air as the portal began to tear reality apart. In those final seconds before we were pulled through, a sudden gust had caught one of the hooded attackers, pulling the fabric away from his face.
