Chapter 12

" Elara!"

Solena comes to hug me, and I hug her back. I smile at my brother, Khai, and hug him. He looks relieved to see me and hugs me tighter.

" Elara, we were worried," he says. I inhale his scent, feeling better in his arms. Khai and I are close in age, and we grew up being close despite having different personalities.

" I'm sorry," I say,

" I was relieved when Zuriel found you," he breathed. I look at Solena,

" They are looking at me strangely. What's going on?" I look between them. Khai scowls and Solena smiles tightly. It's creepy. She only does this when she's trying to conceal information, which is difficult because she's terrible at keeping secrets.

" Sol, you're doing that thing with your lips and teeth again," I point. She stops and pulls a stoic face, but it soon contorts.

" You're so annoying. Can't you be normal for five minutes?" Khai says, bewildered.

" I can't help it. No wonder I was hiding out here," Solena cries. They argue back and forth. I roll my e