He could see anger give way to confusion as her face furrowed and she looked away. She still gripped her gown with tight fists, but slowly her fingers began to release. He had taken a step of faith to trust her. Now it was her turn to take a step of trust and believe he wanted to help her.

She let out a shaky breath as her gaze met his. “I would like that. I’ve started searching and have already visited Baris Abbey and talked to Cohen. I’ve read everything I could find, but the answer still eludes me. Who were the Ravenwoods before Rabanna? How did our gift help our people?” She raised a hand and pressed it against her chest. “Who am I?”

For the first time, Damien was touched by her honest words. He had grown up knowing who he was, what he could do, and how to use his power to help his people. But from what Selene had said, her upbringing had been much different.

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “I didn’t know that you felt that way. I can’t imagine what it is like.” He had been so appalled when she first shared that he hadn’t been able to see past his disgust and spot the hurting woman beneath the mask of words she had used. “And I am sorry too for how I acted when you first told me.”

“It was understandable. I’m ashamed of my family’s secrets. I want to find a better way for me, for my sisters, and for my people. I want to change. That is why I left with you when you offered me sanctuary in your land. And I saw something inside of you that I hoped might help me.”

Damien raised an eyebrow. “You did?”

“Yes, when I walked in your dreams.”

“What did you see?”

Her eyes came up and met his. “Your soul.”

He looked down and touched the area above his heart. “My soul?”

“Yes. Sometimes we meet the soul of the sleeper when we enter a dreamscape. When I first dreamwalked inside your mind, I saw yours.”

“You can really see a person’s soul?” His eyes widened. There was more to the Ravenwood gift of dreaming than he had imagined.

“I can, if it presents itself. The dreamscape is made from your thoughts, consciousness, and memories. And once in a while, the very essence of who you are will appear as well. Your soul.”

“What do they look like?”

Selene sat down. “I’ve seen souls as dark as night, and souls surrounded by chains. But yours . . .” She looked out the window. “It was very different.”

Damien sat down in the other chair. “How?”

“Your soul is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”

Heat slowly spread from his neck, up across his cheeks, and to the tips of his ears. He opened his mouth to say more, but his throat was dry.

She continued to stare out the window. “Your soul is full of light.”