Chapter 88

　　Maya

　　My determination is still bubbling within me when the tree of life's roots breaks the earth. Green vines and flowers cover the plant, which opens to reveal a sleeping, human-sized Finn.

　　I rush forward and fall to my knees. My heart is pounding in my throat as I eye the bruises covering Finn's russet skin. Thorns have pierced him, and some are left like bullets in a gunshot wounded body.

　　"Oh-my-god," I brush his white, silky hair away from his eyes and study his dark eyelashes spread over his cheeks. He is still breathing, which takes some of my anxiety away. I hug his chest, whispering into his ear. "Thank the gods that you're okay... I don't know what I would do if you were dead..."

　　Finn stirs, and his lips part to allow him to speak weakly. "The training almost killed me—the elders weren't happy with me and made me go through one hell of a trial to gain their abilities. Fuck—I'm sore all over my body."

　　I smile. "Better wounded than dead."