Chapter 25

Cyran-

Lingering by the pool long after Azura went into the house, I fixed my gaze on the water. What I saw wasn’t the water though, it was fragments of memories as I recounted the scene of finding Azura dead in a cave. Since seeing the first Potential Stone Keeper in the cave, at the beginning of winter, I couldn’t stop seeing Azura’s dead body, covered in blood.

Every night I have relived the same nightmare, never finding any relief. It wasn’t until I woke up next to Azura the night before last that I had finally slept. I had been angered to see her in the room, but more than that I had been mad at myself.

When I first woke up, I had been surprised to see her next to me, but I had mostly felt a warmth spread through my veins. That alone had been enough to make me want to keep her as far away from me as possible. If the last few months weren’t enough of a reminder to stay away from her, I didn’t know what was.

This morning when I woke up, having slept soundly, I realized that I neede