I stepped deeper into the closet and noticed they were all women’s clothes. All my size. All in the Aunare style of long flowing dresses or loose pants and endless styles of sleeveless or tank tops. After a bit of searching, I found a pair of fitted pants that had more give than I’d expected and a black top. I didn’t realize that there was a large cut-out in the back before I put it on. It was more revealing than I’d like, but the cut felt elegant and the material had to be something like silk. It was so soft against my skin.

I was pulling my hair into a ponytail when there was a beep from my door. “Hello?” I yelled as I stepped out of the bathroom.

The door swished open, and Rysden di Aetes entered.

My father.

My skin started giving off a low glow. My nerves were literally showing on the outside, and I hated that. I did the breaths that Declan had taught me, and the glow went down a bit, but I couldn’t fully quench it.

Rysden came to stand in front of me with a smile on his face. It was a nice, warm smile on the surface, but it set me on edge. He wanted something. I knew it. Otherwise, my mother would’ve been here.

Rysden’s blond hair hung to his shoulders. His eyes were blue, like a bright summer day. He was taller than I imagined—and bigger—but I should’ve known that the head of the Aunare military and chief advisor to the king would be intimidating.

“It’s nice to see you awake,” he said after a moment.

I nodded, unable to find any words for him. I stepped deeper into the bedroom and sat on the bed.

“I don’t want to push you, but that’s—unfortunately—the road ahead for us.” He sighed.

My heart ached at the sound of it. I’d given up hope that I’d ever be reunited with my father so long ago, but when I was a girl, I used to dream about this. Of him coming to save my mom and me. And yet, now that I was here with him on Sel’Ani, I wasn’t sure what to say or how to feel about him. All I knew was that I didn’t know this man in front of me. He hadn’t gone through what mom and I had, and it felt too late for us to try to have a relationship. I was past the point of needing him.

But maybe that wasn’t fair. It wasn’t my father’s fault. He didn’t want to leave us. So I kept quiet before I could say anything that couldn’t be unsaid.