Roiling nausea jerked me from an uneasy sleep. I blindly reached for the bucket by the bed, barely managing to get it under my chin before retching broke the silence.

A sharp ringing began in my ears as I slumped back against the pillows and squeezed my eyes shut, wincing. The throbbing in my head hadn't lessened while I'd slept. It had returned in full force the moment I'd opened my eyes; now the pain felt like a jackhammer pounding against my skull.

Taking several deep, bracing breaths, I finally summoned the energy to crack my eyes open. When the room eventually stopped spinning, I reached for my phone and texted Skye, blinking to clear my blurry vision. Hey. Can u talk? Sorry for the radio silence.

She responded almost immediately. Yeah. Give me a sec to plug in my phone.

Reading her words caused me to glance out the nearest window, where I was shocked to see sunlight streaming into the room. The last thing I remembered was Dimitri's face in my mind and the feeling of Will's hand in mine. Was it morning already? Had I slept all night?

My phone chimed from the bedside table, and I was reaching for it when a knock sounded on the bedroom door. "Come in," I called out, unable to raise my voice above a whisper.

Will stuck his head in, a relieved smile breaking across his face when he saw me awake. "You're awake! How are you feeling?"

He came in and sat on the side of the bed, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear before taking my hand. It was then that I felt his fingers gently graze the raised bump on the back of my head. I bit my tongue so hard that blood flooded my mouth as I tried to suppress the pained cry from escaping.

I squeezed his hand as I looked up at him, focusing on his face and not the nausea and dizziness clashing inside me. "I've been... been better. Still dizzy and nauseous; the pain... pain in my head feels like a jack...jackhammer pounding against my skull."

I had to force each word out through a pained hiss of breath. Since I was still unable to raise my voice above a whisper, he had to lean in to hear me.

I was panting through gritted teeth when I finished speaking, shoving down the rising nausea inside me. I slowly pushed myself up to a sitting position, Will gripping my shoulders when I began to sway. "Do you feel up to telling me how this happened?

I swallowed hard before dredging up the last of my depleted energy. "It all started—started a few weeks ago when I came home from work one day and went up to—to the attic to get a camera for the Photography Club."

With another deep, steadying breath, I dove in. I started with going up to the attic, finding the book, and learning how it worked. I told him about appearing in a town in France, hitting my head on the cobblestones, and meeting Dimitri before he brought me to his house. I described meeting the woman I assumed was his mother, and ended with me appearing back in Will's guest room moments before the latter came in yesterday.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I collapsed back against the pillows, catching my breath. I steeled myself before reopening the still-raw wound from yesterday. Despite the anger, sadness, and shock still swirling around inside me, no tears came forth.

Will's eyes were wide as he scanned my face—the pallor of my skin, the dark circles under my eyes, the hollowness of my cheeks—and blew out a shocked breath before speaking. "Wow. I'm going to get you a piece of toast and some water. You haven't eaten or drunk anything in a while. I'll be right back."

No sooner had he shut the door behind him did my phone ring. I blindly reached for it, my fingers bumping against the case before I gripped it in my hand, swiping a finger across the screen to answer the call. "Hello?"

Skye's normally bubbly voice was quiet and subdued when she spoke. "Malia? Are you okay? You weren't at school yesterday, and when I saw Will, he told me that you're staying at his place indefinitely. Then, when I tried to call you after I got home, you never picked up. What's going on?"

I couldn't hold back the tears at the worry in her voice. Everything—overhearing Mom and Dad's argument, the latter's harsh and bitter confession, getting in my car and driving until hastily showing up at Will's with nothing but a duffel bag—came out in a rush of words, punctuated by intermittent sobs. When I finally fell silent, Skye was quiet for a few moments before speaking. "I'm so sorry, Malia. Is there anything I can do?"

My voice was raw and hoarse as I responded, forcing out each word as I breathed through the pounding in my head. "Matt gets back from his assignment tomorrow, but I don't—don't want to leave Eliza hanging like that. I'm going to give—give her a call and tell—tell her that I'm gonna be out for a few days." Tears choked my voice, but I didn't stop. "I'm so—sorry."

Her voice was as warm and reassuring as a hug, which triggered more tears. "Oh, Malia. Don't apologize. You've been through a lot lately, but I'm here."

"Thanks," I whispered before ending the call. No sooner had I hung up the phone than the door opened.

Will gave me a soft smile as he came inside, a tray of water and crackers in his hands, and shut the door behind him. "Mom said she'll check on you later tonight before she leaves for her shift. Can I do anything for you?" His voice was as soft and gentle as Skye's had been.

It was my turn for a weak smile. "No, but thanks." Though I tried not to, I couldn't help but think about Dimitri. He'd been so kind to me, and I felt terrible for running out on him like that.

After draining the water and waiting several moments before slowly starting on the crackers, I grabbed Unknown Paradise off the bedside table. Will's eyes tracked my movements, brow furrowing in confusion as he glimpsed the book. "What is this? Is that where you were when you hit your head?"

"Yeah," I replied without moving my head. "This is what I heard Mom and Dad arguing about the night I showed up here out of the blue. I haven't mustered the courage to ask him yet, but I think Dad has gone into the book, too. You should have heard him, Will. I've never heard him sound so harsh—he's never so much as raised his voice to me or Mom before."

I shuddered as bits and pieces of their argument floated through my head. The words poured out of my mouth before I could even think to take them back. "Dad's voice was tense, almost sharp. 'I went up to the attic a few hours ago and noticed some boxes had been shifted around. Upon further inspection, I also noticed a specific book was missing from one of the boxes. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you, Daniela?'"

My chest hitched as I recalled the tension in the living room. "Mom's voice was equally as tight when she responded. 'If you're asking whether I removed Unknown Paradise from one of the numerous boxes in the attic, the answer is no, Declan. Do you think Malia has seen it?'"

I took a steadying breath and exhaled slowly. Will put the tray on the nightstand before sitting on the edge of the bed and taking my hand. He didn't say a word as he began stroking my knuckle with his thumb. That gentle, reassuring touch gave me the strength I needed to continue. I felt the tension drain from my body as I looked up and met his steady and reassuring gaze.

"I choked when I heard my name. Dad exhaled a tense breath, his voice rising until he was nearly shouting. 'I don't know. I told you to get rid of it months ago! It's already caused enough trouble for me. I don't want Malia dragged into it!'"

Tears flowed down my cheeks, blurring my vision as I exhaled. It wasn't until Will pulled me into his arms that I realized I was trembling. "Mom scoffed. 'It's a little late for that now, isn't it? If she's already seen it, what's to stop her from reading it? You've already lost me; if things keep going the way I think they're going, you'll lose Malia, too!'"

My voice broke a heartbeat before my heart clenched painfully. "I jumped when I heard Dad yell from the kitchen, his voice booming. 'What's to stop me from taking her with me? You've made it clear you don't want anything to do with me, so why shouldn't I? She's my daughter, too! She'll never have to worry about her parents' impending divorce—'"

When my voice broke off, I crumpled, any other words immediately swallowed by tears. Other than Skye, I hadn't told anyone about the shocking news of my parents' impending divorce. Will enveloped me in his arms, squeezing tightly, as though his grip could keep me from shattering. But I knew nothing could. My heart had begun to break when I'd heard Mom and Dad's argument; recounting their words made me realize it had been irreparably damaged. Angry, painful sobs wracked my body, punctuated by ragged gasps for air.

I'd never felt this furious and betrayed before. When the tears eventually stopped, leaving a yawning hollowness inside me, I swiped at my face before opening Unknown Paradise. I didn't give myself a chance to second-guess or talk myself out of my hasty decision. Will's eyes widened, and I felt the words rise inside him a heartbeat before he opened his mouth. "Lia, I don't think—"

I snapped my fingers with my free hand. The sharp sound cut him off a heartbeat before the swirling void swallowed us up. I gripped Will's hand, lest we get separated. I was slightly more prepared this time for the landing—my knees barely buckled before I found my footing. Nausea swirled in my stomach, but I managed to keep it down this time. Tightening my grip on Will's hand, I blinked away the fuzziness in my gaze as I waited for the world to stop spinning.

Will, however, stumbled as he hit the ground, nearly falling before he found his footing. He slowly removed his hand from mine, bending over with both hands on his knees. "Take your time," I said, placing a steadying hand on the small of his back. "Sit down, put your head between your knees, and take slow, deep breaths. It will help with the dizziness and nausea."

He carefully lowered himself to the ground, doing as I suggested. I sat down beside him, and for several minutes, the only sounds were our combined ragged breaths. When he eventually removed his head from between his knees and looked up at me, a bit of color had returned to his cheeks. "You okay?" I asked, not taking my hand off his back. "We can sit here for however long you need."

His voice was rough when he responded, stammering slightly. "I'm o—I'm okay." I could tell by the way he trembled under my touch that he wasn't strong enough to get up yet.

"Malia?" I looked up when I heard my name. Dimitri walked over to us, his expression a mixture of relief and concern. A woman with long black hair and olive skin followed closely behind him, eyes wide and filled with confusion. I vaguely remembered hearing a female voice when Dimitri had brought me to his house after I'd hit my head, but everything after that was a blur.

Her face smoothed into a cautious, yet genuine smile when she noticed me. "Hello," she said, her accent as thick as Dimitri's. "You are Malia, yes? Dimitri has told me about you." Her words were hard-edged, slow, and precise—enough to let me know that just as French wasn't my first language, English clearly wasn't hers or Dimitri's either.

"Where are we?" I asked, risking a darting glance around before the motion set my head to spinning again. I knew where we were—inside Unknown Paradise, clearly—but I had no idea if here even correlated to back home. For all Will and I knew, we weren't even in the US anymore.

"Well," Will said, lifting his head and cracking a weak smile, "it's clearly not Chalmette." Chalmette was a relatively secluded suburb outside of New Orleans in which Will, Skye, and I all lived. Each of our houses was five minutes away from the others by car, and ten minutes on foot.

"Yes," I said, finally answering the woman's question, while casting a sidelong glance at Dimitri. He bent down in front of me, scanning my face, then flicking his gaze over to Will. "This is Will," I said, not daring to move my head again. "My boyfriend."

Dimitri nodded at Will, his eyes as kind as they had been when I'd first met him. "I am sorry we had to meet under such unfortunate circumstances, but I have been worried for you, Malia. One minute you were in living room, the next—poof!—you were gone. I worried something else might have happened to you."

I wasn't sure what it was. It could have been any number of things—the genuine softness with which Dimitri spoke, the shock of jumping back into Unknown Paradise so soon after such a distressing twenty-four hours, or simply the fact that Will was here with me. Nevertheless, tears welled in my eyes and spilled down my cheeks before I could stifle or brush them away.

Dimitri glanced between me and Will before speaking again. "Come inside and sit down. It's getting dark soon. To answer earlier question, you are in Montgues. A tiny town. And this," he said, gesturing to the black-haired woman behind him, "is my sister, Noemi."

"No-EH-mee," Will repeated, slowly sounding out each syllable. His accent was better than mine, his pronunciation much smoother.

Noemi's smile was as genuine as before, but worry crinkled her eyes as she swapped glances with Dimitri. I felt Will take my hand and squeeze it gently.

"Thank you for the hospitality, Dimitri—and it was lovely to meet you, Noemi—but we really should be getting back home. We've both got work in the morning, and it's getting late." Will's voice was quiet as he looked at me, but I just stared straight ahead, not moving or speaking.

I vaguely heard Will and Dimitri's conversation through the shock- and anger-induced haze that had settled over me. I didn't flinch when the former gripped my hand, nor when the latter leaned toward me. "Do you mind if I check on back of your head? Have you been experiencing nausea, dizziness?" His voice floated in and out of my ears.

It was only when Will tensed and took a shaky step backward that I managed to break out of the shock-and-anger induced haze into which I'd fallen. "Malia," he got out, his voice strained as though the air was being squeezed out of his body. When I looked up at him, I noticed his eyes were wide as saucers.

At first, I didn't understand. But when I heard a voice in front of me—as strained as Will's, if not more so—everything fell into place with heartbreakingly clarity. "Malia?" I knew that voice. I remembered the words he'd shouted vividly. Didn't know if I could (or would) ever forget them.

Both Will and Dimitri moved to either side of me, gripping my hands. It wasn't until Noemi spoke, her accent thickening as her uneasiness floated into the air, that I allowed myself to meet the eyes of the man in front of me. "Sorry, who are you?"

When I finally found my voice—hoarse and strained as it was—I hardly recognized it. It seemed to take an eternity to force out the one word; the word I knew would change everything for me, not to mention Mom, Will, or Mrs. Callahan. "Dad?"