Labyrinth Lost (Brooklyn Brujas, #1)

by Zoraida Córdova

It’s almost impossible to lie to Rose. Not just because of her gifts, but also because she speaks with a quiet steel and those big, unwavering, brown eyes. She’s never the first one to look away.

Instead, all I do is dust off my jeans and bask in her calming presence. Rishi has that effect on me. She’s so wonderfully bright, like when you stare at the sun and when you look away you have that spot in your line of vision. That’s how Rishi makes me feel.

She smiles like there’s sunshine inside her and walks like she’s ready to fly.

eyes. When she looks at me, I feel like she’s seeing right through me. Like she knows I’m hiding a big part of myself.

He whispers, “I’m sure you’ll look beautiful surrounded by your dead.”

The Devourer does not free the power she takes. Be careful you are not caught by her shadows.” I find myself turning to Nova, who starts to lead us into the tunnel. And I think to myself, It’s a good thing I’ve got a boy made of light.

The music slows like a caress. Rishi takes my face in her hands. Her long, black lashes create spidery shadows down her cheeks. Her midnight eyes flick down to my lips, and when she sighs, I know she was eating peaches. My heartbeat multiplies, like there’s a tiny heart at the end of all my fingers and toes, between my clavicles, inside my ears, and at the tip of my nose.

“You’re going to start believing in the Deos?” Rishi grins. “Or I could just put all my faith in you.” I get closer to her. Her brown skin is bathed in the starlight. Her long, dark hair is windblown and wild around her shoulders. Something in the pit of my stomach falls, and when she smiles at me, it just keeps on falling. “You can believe in anything you want,” I say, “as long as it feels right. Even seeing the things I grew up with, I wanted to pretend they weren’t real. I have all the proof in the world, while some people go lifetimes hoping to see a miracle. It was easier to think I was living the wrong life. It’s easier to want to be someone else.” “I would never want you to be someone else.” She coils my hair around her finger. The ends have started to curl on their own. Magic transforms you. “I want you to be you. You’re magic, Alex. I always thought so, even before I knew your secrets.” Her smile is full, and hearing these things, my heart feels so full it might burst. I exhale hard, look up at the circle of stones that surround us.

Mama Juanita has this way about her, like the world should tremble when she walks.

“I love your magic.” Rishi holds my stare. Her eyes flick to my lips, then back to my eyes. “I should tell you that you look different. Good different. You walk with your head up and your eyes are brighter. You wear the magic on your skin. It’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”

“Ready?” I whisper to Rishi. For the first time since we’ve journeyed together, she looks nervous. I hold her hand and walk with her, a promise that I won’t let go. In turn, she stays close and whispers, “I would follow you into the darkest dark.”

The thing that drew me to Rishi was her happiness, the way she wore it on her sleeve, the way it lit her up like the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve. Now, in the most hopeless of places, she gives me that light.

“I’m right here. You have to know that.” Rishi presses her hands on my face. “I do know. You gave up your magic for me. I couldn’t stand it if I lost you.” “You won’t.” “Please don’t break my heart, Alex.” I feel like my heart will beat right through my rib cage. “I have all these feelings that I can’t sort out. I think I’ve felt it since the day you found me. But when this is all over, we’ll figure it out, okay?” Even in the dark, she finds my lips. They’re warm despite the air around us. I press my lips against hers, softly and slowly, like stepping into a wide, unknown ocean one foot at a time.

“Death is the most sure but unexpected part about life. It’s almost up there with love. It’s bound to happen, but how and when—now that’s the tricky part.”

She ate the stars and swallowed the earth.

People look at him a certain way. Fear. Awe. It’s the same thing, I guess. He’s older still, pulling his hood over his face so people won’t ask him what he is. Brown skin and light eyes, like the world’s biggest mystery.

“Let’s dance,” Rishi tells me, pulling me onto the dance floor. “Is it weird that I miss the Meadow del Sol? And that you could see so many stars. Sometimes I dream of it.” “I’ll give you stars,” I tell her. I conjure the Los Lagos night sky on the ceiling, and I thank the Deos for making me who I am. An encantrix, a bruja, a girl.

I have so many questions, like: Where have you been? Where did you go while we were all in the hospital? If you love me so much, then why did you vanish? If you love me so much, then why did you still hurt me? Not all loves are meant to last forever. Some burn like fire until there is nothing left but ash and black ink on skin. Others, like the love I feel for Rishi, stay close to the heart so I’ll never forget.