“I understand that. I do. But you can’t ask me to leave her behind.” He looks at Valentina, a plea on his face. “Her feelings, her desire to live no matter what, her will, and her strength were the things that made it possible for me to continue living. As long as she wears my star, she and I are connected. I can feel what you all feel too, but with her, it is more intense. Perhaps because my heart is involved. Perhaps because I seek out the connection between us.

“I have loved her without knowing where in the world she was, what she looked like at any moment in time. I have loved her so long that time seems immaterial to me. It was enough that she existed somewhere. That she breathed, felt, and loved. It was enough. I knew if I searched her out, I would put her in danger. So, I didn’t until I had no choice but to seek her out. Seek you all out.”

He looks at us. The stars in his eyes are lustrous, but the tears don’t fall. “And now that I have found her, have held her, I can’t continue without her. I know what Baarish does. I can’t stand aside and let him hurt her. I will die first.”

“Nobody is going to die,” Valentina says, frowning. She takes a deep breath. “Paheli will come back to us, Taraana. She is stronger than you give her credit for. She is stronger and wilier than any of us. You need to trust her.”

“I do trust her, but you are underestimating Baarish and his desire to capture me,” Taraana says. “He will do anything to get me back in his power, and if he finds out what Paheli means to me, he will use her as bait.”

“They can’t use magic against her,” Ligaya says.

“Baarish never used magic against me. He just hurt me. Over and over again. Until I didn’t know what it meant to exist without pain.”

“They won’t catch her,” Valentina says. “I refuse to consider that possibility.”

Taraana is far from convinced. Clenching his fists, he looks at the door leading to Marrakech as if he can will it open. The unseen lights in the Between flicker, and we are reminded that while he may seem helpless, Taraana is not entirely without power. Especially not here in the Between. If he wanted to, he could probably force Valentina to move. That he doesn’t says a lot about him.

“What do we do now?” Ghufran says. We have never lost Paheli before. This unanchored feeling is new to us, and we don’t much like it.

“We need to start walking before our pursuers enter the Between,” Talei says again. Of us all, she is the most anxious. “Where are we going, V?”

“To the safe house,” Valentina replies shortly.