I swallowed hard.“I… need to stay here.For a bit.”
She searched my face, her smile fading into concern.“Neve?—”
“It’s okay,” I insisted.“Really.Just… trust me.”
Zelda didn’t push.That had never been her style.
Instead, she reached into her bag and pulled out her deck of cards — the old, worn one she treated like a living, breathing thing.The gold edges flashed as she set them between us.
“Fine,” she sighed, fanning the cards with practiced fingers.“But then we’re doing a reading.Because something’s going on with you, and I’m not leaving until I get a peek at whatever the universe is screaming about.”
I tensed, because there was something screaming.More than she could imagine.
But I nodded anyway, because it was Zelda, and because having her there felt like someone opening a window in a room I hadn’t known was suffocating me.
She shuffled once, twice, three times.
“Alright, Neve.”Her voice was low, her eyes bright with mischief and wisdom.“Let’s see what secrets you’ve been keeping from me.”
Zelda tapped the deck lightly,as if waking something ancient.Her rings clinked against each other, soft chimes in the quiet room.
“Okay, honey, let’s see what the universe wants to tell you today.”
I snorted, but my fingers still trembled when I placed my hands over hers, over the cards.The familiar warmth of her presence helped, but there was a cold thread of nerves sliding under my skin.
She noticed, because this was Zelda, and she let nothing get past her.
“You’re shaking,” she whispered.
“I’m fine.”
Uh-huh.Even I didn’t believe myself.
Outside the door, a floorboard creaked — barely audible.Most people wouldn’t have heard it.But the hairs at the back of my neck rose.
Atlas hadn’t gone far.He’d said he’d be right outside if I needed anything.Apparently that included breathing the same air I did.
Zelda started shuffling.“Think of what you want to know.”
I couldn’t help it — I glanced toward the door.
She raised an eyebrow.“Oh, wow.You’ve got that ‘someone is haunting me’ look.”
I coughed.“I—no—just shuffle.”
She laughed and pulled the first card, laying it down with a dramatic flourish.
The Tower.
My stomach dropped.
“Oh boy,” she mused.“Someone’s life burned to the ground recently.”
I swallowed.“Maybe.”
“Not maybe.”She tapped the card.“This is destruction, danger, trauma… and survival.Neve, you didn’t just fall into someone’s spare bedroom.You were sought.”
My heart pounded against my ribs.Behind the door, there was another shift of weight, and I knew Atlas was listening.I could feel his presence; hot, tense, unblinking.