Thyla. Part 20

Cat believed she didn't know everything about her father about the evil he did. I wasn't so sure. Those pale blue eyes of hers seemed to contain so much that was cold and wicked. I could almost believe she knew it all.

But, like Isaac said, sometimes it's good strategy to keep your enemies close.

Just before you left, you turned to me and said, 'Have you been writing all of this down, Tessa?'

'Yes. All of it,' I said.

'Keep it hidden,' you said, your brow furrowing. 'Just for now. For now. I think that would be safer. And ...' Your eyes drifted to my wrist. 'Vinnie told me about the cuffs. About what they do. About how they let you be normal normal. Please wear it, Tess. All the time. Will you do that, for me?'

I told you I would wear the cuff always. I'm sorry for lying again, Connolly.

'Good. Good, I'm glad,' you said. 'I just want you to be normal. I want you to be happy.'

'I know,' I said. 'Thank you.'

Then you were gone. The door clicked shut behind you, and all that was left was me and silence and a head suddenly full of one hundred and sixty years of memories. It felt as though the memories were a huge jigsaw puzzle. Most of the pieces were in place now. A few more pieces and the picture would be complete.

On the morning after the battle in the clearing, Perrin came to visit me. He was dressed in his school uniform. It made him look younger.

I was in my room. I had been given a day off lessons to recover. The school did not know what I was recovering from, but they saw the bruises and gashes (which were healing quickly, as Isaac promised they would, but were still visible). They knew it was something major.

'Five minutes,' said Miss Bloom as she let him in. 'And leave the door open.'

Then she was gone, and Perrin and I were alone, with the air sparking between us.

'Have you remembered?' he asked, without saying h.e.l.lo.

'Some,' I said. 'Most '

'Have you remembered us? us?' he said, walking towards me, his voice urgent now. 'Little girl, tell me you've remembered us.'

I looked at him with wide eyes, trembling, unable to speak.

Because I did remember.

Stolen moments, longing, his eyes staring into mine like he wanted to see my imaginings.

Hungry kisses.

Me. Perrin.

A Sarco and a Thyla.

Forbidden.

It felt like dreams, like the dreams I'd had when I was still forming a picture of my history. The dreams that were concocted of memories buried deep in my consciousness. But how had I buried Perrin? How had I forgotten this?

And how had he acted as if he had forgotten me?

'Why did you never tell Rhiannah you recognised me?' I asked. 'Why did you never tell her you had seen me in my human form before?'

'I think you know the answer to that, Tess,' he said. 'It would destroy her ...' He trailed off, and I knew he was thinking of where Rhiannah might be now; wondering if she was already destroyed destroyed. He shook his head and went on. 'It would destroy everything. This has to be our secret.' He moved closer to me. 'I remember the first time I saw you in human form. I saw you change. I thought I had never seen anything so beautiful. I still think that.'

Perrin leaned forward.

And then suddenly, as we stole a kiss that felt like our first and our thousandth, I remembered more.

And more.

And my story changed all over again.

Firstly, a huge thanks to the amazing people at Random House to Zoe for her faith in this project from day one, to Kimberley for her tireless work, vision and wisdom, to Christa for her brilliant cover, and to everyone else there who has helped to make Thyla Thyla a reality. Thank you to Angelo Loukakis for reading the start of this novel and telling me it had potential. Thank you to my super-agent, Nan Halliday, for her incredible knowledge and faith in me, and for so many other kindnesses she shows me. I would be nowhere without her. Thank you also to my writing group: Tansy, Larissa, Em, Sarah and Tracey, for putting up with me talking about Sarcos and Thylas and Diemens ad nauseum. Thank you to my parents-in-law, Laurel and Craig, for not minding when I disappeared to write (and also for listening to me gabbling about shapeshifters and immortals and such. I promise, your son has not married a nutter). Big thanks to Mephy Danger Gordon for being my muse. Finally, most enormous thanks to my family and my darling Leigh. You are my clan and my everything. a reality. Thank you to Angelo Loukakis for reading the start of this novel and telling me it had potential. Thank you to my super-agent, Nan Halliday, for her incredible knowledge and faith in me, and for so many other kindnesses she shows me. I would be nowhere without her. Thank you also to my writing group: Tansy, Larissa, Em, Sarah and Tracey, for putting up with me talking about Sarcos and Thylas and Diemens ad nauseum. Thank you to my parents-in-law, Laurel and Craig, for not minding when I disappeared to write (and also for listening to me gabbling about shapeshifters and immortals and such. I promise, your son has not married a nutter). Big thanks to Mephy Danger Gordon for being my muse. Finally, most enormous thanks to my family and my darling Leigh. You are my clan and my everything.