[Lyra]

“So, what do you have planned for your birthday?” Casira asked.

The question yanked me back to reality, pulling my mind out of the swirling hurricane of thoughts that had consumed me since last night.

I knew, without having to mind-link with either of them, that my parents' strained whispers and tense silences were all about that human and how she was being treated. I honestly couldn’t fathom the hold Zphreya had on them.

Why did they value her peace over mine?

“Ly?”

Ugh. ...