Chapter 1518

Rose sat upright first, her back straight, her hair cascading down her spine like black silk. The wrap she'd worn was now scattered in soft ribbons around her hips, her chest bare, glistening slightly in the light. She looked up, eyes still glowing faintly gold, and smiled.

"It's awake," she said.

Jude turned his head. "What is?"

"The island," she answered softly. "The true island. Not just the trees and the earth and the monsters we feared. This is its heart. And now it knows us."

Stella sat up next, the curve of her body elegant, wild. She stretched, sighing like someone waking from a dream that had left her soaked in want and wonder. "It knows you , Rose," she said. "You're the one who touched it first."

Rose looked at Jude. "We all touched it. We just needed to be ready."

Grace ran her fingers down Natalie's arm, then slipped her hand into Jude's, squeezing lightly. "It chose him too. He's the center."