Chapter 114: The Rising Tide

Leander

To say I’m stunned would be an understatement. After what Emily told me, we lapse into silence. I sit stroking her side almost absentmindedly as I wander into the maze of what all this may mean.

The girl curled up beside me is a curious creature, made up of countless contradictions. Delicate yet resilient, willful yet thoughtful. Clearly terrified, but with the heart of a lioness.

Which is good because she’s going to need it.

If my late wife told Emily that she has the power of creation, then it’s bedrock truth. Tatiana would never lead us astray. The fact that such a blinding power could be bottled up within this slender, fragile woman is staggering. I’ve seen demonstrations of the magic swirling in her blood, but this is another thing altogether.