I pause. “Fevers and headaches…because of the heat and dehydration?”

Alex steps closer. “I think so.”

Mikaela shakes her head. “I think it’s something else entirely.” She folds her arms. “But we agree to disagree.”

I nod, suddenly noticing the gauntness in their faces, the way their clothes hang loosely on their frames. They’ve been barely surviving out here. And they’ve been having the same fever and headaches as I was.

It’s strange, but too much for us to unpack right now.

“The Drakav know where to find water,” I tell them. “They can help us gather food, too. We don’t have to struggle anymore.”

“That’s all good. If they can help us till the Xyma arrive, we can probably make it,” someone says. A sour feeling develops in the pit of my stomach. They’re still hoping the Xyma will come? As my case shifts across the group, I realize it’s not all of them that are hoping. Mikaela, for one, simply rolls her eyes when the woman speaks.

I don’t know how I’m gonna break it to them, but I don’t think the Xyma are coming and I believe the Drakav are our best bet. “The Drakav will help us,” is all I say.

Relief washes over their faces, but I can see the questions still lingering in their eyes. What will this help cost? What does it mean to accept assistance from these alien beings?

Before they can voice these concerns, my heart drops. I’ve been so caught up in the reunion that I haven’t registered the absence of the one person I was most desperate to see.

“Where’s Jacqui?” I ask, scanning the group of women. “Where’s my sister?”

A strange hush falls over the group. No one meets my eyes directly, and a cold dread begins pooling in my gut.

“Jacqui?” I call louder, stepping away from Rok and toward the bus. “Jacqui, why don’t you come out? I thought you’d be happy to see me.”

I move toward the vehicle, aware of Rok following close behind me. The interior of the transport is dim after the bright sunlight, and it takes a moment for my eyes to adjust. What I see makes my heart ache—makeshift bedding arranged on every available surface, personal items carefully organized to maximize space, evidence of their struggle to create some semblance of order and comfort in this harsh environment.

But no Jacqui.

I emerge from the transport, panic rising in my chest. My gaze sweeps across the group, wondering if I somehow missed her, before my eyes shift to the horizon, as if expecting to see her walking toward us from the endless expanse of sand.

“Where is she?” My voice rises. “Where is my sister?”

The women exchange glances, a silent communication that sends ice through my veins. Finally, Erika steps forward, her face solemn, eyes filled with compassion and regret.

“Justine,” she says softly, “your sister…she…I’m sorry.”

The world seems to tilt beneath my feet. “What do you mean, you’re sorry? Where’s Jacqui?”

Erika swallows hard, unable to meet my gaze for more than a second. “She left about a week ago,” she says finally. “She went to search for you.”

Time stops.

I stagger backward, and would have fallen if not for Rok’s arms suddenly around me, supporting my weight as my knees threaten to give way.

“What?” The word comes out as barely more than a whisper. “What are you saying?”

“We tried to stop her,” Mikaela adds quickly, her face pinched with guilt. “When you didn’t return, we told her it was suicide to go out there alone, but she wouldn’t listen. She held back as long as she could. She said she couldn’t just sit here and wait, not knowing if you were alive or dead. She said…” Mikaela’s voice breaks. “She said she’d never forgive herself if she didn’t try.”

I shake my head, trying to deny the reality of what I’m hearing. My sister, my cautious, responsible sister, ventured alone into the desert to find me. Jacqui is alone out there.

“No.” The word tears from my throat. My knees hit the sand before I realize I’ve fallen. “No, no, no⁠—”

Someone says my name, but I don’t hear it. The world narrows to a single, suffocating truth: Jacqui is gone. She went into that endless dust after me, alone, unprotected. And I wasn’t there.

A violent sob claws its way out of me. My hands fist in the sand like I can dig through it, like I can tunnel back in time and stop her from leaving. “She wouldn’t—I told her to stay. I⁠—”

Strong arms wrap around me from behind, pulling me against a solid chest. His whole being encloses me as his chin rests on my head. He doesn’t speak. Doesn’t tell me it’ll be okay. He just holds me, his grip unyielding, as if he can keep me from shattering completely.

I twist in his arms, pressing my face to his neck. My tears soak into his skin, and his growl vibrates through me. He isn’t angry. This is something deeper. A promise. A vow.

Without understanding anything they just told me, he knows. As if he can feel my pain.

“We will find her,” he projects into my mind. “I will tear apart every dune in the dust if I must. But I will bring your sister-female back to you.”

I clutch him tighter, my fingers digging into his back. He doesn’t flinch. Doesn’t pull away. He just holds me harder, his mind brushing against mine. Steady. Unbreakable.

My rock.

After a few moments, I feel steady enough to take a breath and look over my shoulder at Mikaela. Everyone else averts their gazes from me as if guilty. As if they feel like I will blame them for letting her leave.

“Which direction?” I ask, my voice hollow. “Which way did she go?”

Mikaela opens her mouth to answer, but it’s Pam who points toward those stone formations I’d set out to reach originally. “She followed your original route.”

I turn to Rok, desperation clawing at my throat. “We have to find her,” I project, not caring if his brothers hear the frantic edge to my thoughts. “Please, Rok. We have to find my sister.”

Rok’s expression remains calm, but I feel the surge of determination in his mind. “We will find her,” he projects firmly. “If she lives, we will find her.”

It’s the “if” that breaks me. I collapse against him again. The world narrows to a single, terrible thought: Jacqui is out there, alone, in a wasteland that nearly killed me despite having Rok’s protection and knowledge.

As the gravity of the situation settles over me, I become aware of the Drakav clan and the human women watching us, two worlds suddenly thrust together by crisis and necessity. Whatever initial tensions existed between them seem temporarily suspended in the face of this new emergency.

But then Erika steps closer, arms crossed, but her shoulders are slumped. She looks defeated. “There’s…there’s something else.”

The way she says it makes me stiffen. “What?” I whisper.

“It’s…Hannah. She’s gone too.”

I ease off Rok and he helps me to stand, one powerful arm supporting me as I push back my tears and turn to face Erika.

“Gone?”

Erika sighs. “After Jacqui left and didn’t return…she ventured off on her own. Said she couldn’t sit here and wait to die.”

Mikaela releases a sigh too, and slumps to the ground, crouching with her face in her hands. “Tried to stop her, too.”

“Which way did she go? After Jaqs?”

Erika shakes her head. “No. She went that way.” She points in the opposite direction to where the stone formation is. Oh shit.

My gaze shifts to Rok at my back. In about two seconds, I bring him up to speed.

“Ain is high,” Kol projects, stepping forward. “We should establish better shelter for these females and begin the search before Ain sets.”

His practical approach cuts through my spiraling thoughts, giving me something to focus on beyond my fear. I nod.

Before I can respond further, Tharn steps forward, his golden eyes meeting mine with unexpected intensity.

“I will go,” he projects, firm and clear. “I will find your sister-female.”