While walking back, he made sure to pick some flowers from his mother's garden—for Liz, just in case she was still mad.
Maybe they'd soften the blow. Hopefully.
But she wasn't mad. If anything, she looked happy.
She was sitting beside his mother, their heads leaned close like they were sharing something sacred.
Persephone touched her arm and laughed—soft, easy. Like his mother had someone to talk to. The sight hit him harder than expected.
Relief. Joy, maybe.
He couldn't remember the last time she smiled like that.
Their laughter wasn't loud, just soft. Like they'd done this a hundred times before.
Then she saw him.
"Those for me?" she said, raising a brow.
He held the flowers out without a word. "In case you were still mad."
She smirked. "I was. But not anymore."
He was about to smile, maybe say something else—but he couldn't waste any more time.
"I'm going to leave today," he said. "To find the island. The one where the Labyrinth is hidden."
