We ran until my lungs hurt.
I didn't know where Shawshank was taking me, but I didn't stop asking questions.
"Who is that man?"
No answer.
"Why does he know me?"
Silence.
"Why does my grandmother fear my father?"
Still nothing.
I finally stopped.
"Shawshank!"
He turned.
"What?"
"I am not moving another step until you tell me something."
His chest rose and fell as he caught his breath.
"We don't have time."
"I don't care."
"The queen is behind us."
"Then let her come."
He stared at me.
I had never felt this angry.
Everyone seemed to know something about my life except me.
My mother.
My grandmother.
The queen.
That mysterious man.
Even Shawshank.
And I was the only person being kept in the dark.
"I deserve answers," I said quietly.
"You do."
"Then give them to me."
Shawshank came closer.
"The man following us is called Darius."
"Darius?"
He nodded.
"He is powerful. More powerful than most people in this kingdom."
"Is he my father?"
"I don't know."
I stared at him.
"You're still saying you don't know?"
"I have never seen him without his mask until recently."
"But he called me his daughter."
"Yes."
"And my grandmother warned me about my father."
"Yes."
"So he probably is."
"Probably isn't enough."
I folded my arms.
"Then what do you know?"
Shawshank hesitated.
"I know Darius was once close to your grandmother."
My heart tightened.
"How close?"
"Very close."
"Was he the man in the photograph?"
"I think so."
I looked away.
My grandmother had loved someone from beneath the sea.
Could that man have been Darius?
And if he was…
Was he really my father?
"Why did my grandmother leave him?"
"She didn't."
I looked at Shawshank.
"What happened?"
"He disappeared."
"Where?"
"The deepest water."
My stomach turned.
"The place my grandmother warned me about?"
"Yes."
"What is there?"
Shawshank looked into the darkness ahead.
"Nothing the living should see."
I shivered.
"Then why are you taking me there?"
"Because it is the only place the queen cannot enter."
I looked around.
"How far?"
"Not far."
We continued.
The tunnel became narrower.
The walls were covered with black coral, unlike the beautiful glowing coral I had seen earlier.
The deeper we went, the colder the water became.
Then Shawshank stopped.
A huge stone gate stood before us.
Unlike the palace doors, this one had no decorations.
Only one symbol.
A circle divided into two halves.
One side was blue.
The other was gold.
I touched it.
The symbol immediately lit up.
Shawshank stared.
"It recognizes you."
"Why?"
"I don't know."
I sighed.
"You really need a new answer."
A tiny smile appeared on his face.
"I'm trying."
Despite everything, I smiled too.
Then the gate opened.
A wave of cold rushed over us.
I looked inside.
There was no palace.
No garden.
No beautiful lights.
Just darkness.
"What is this place?"
"The Forgotten Depths."
I swallowed.
"Sounds welcoming."
"It isn't."
We entered.
The gate closed behind us.
Immediately, I felt something strange.
The golden mark on my ankle disappeared.
I looked down.
"Shawshank…"
He looked.
His eyes widened.
"It's gone."
"What does that mean?"
"I don't know."
I groaned.
"Of course."
He laughed softly.
I looked at him.
"You're enjoying this."
"No."
"You are."
"Maybe a little."
For a moment, the darkness didn't feel so frightening.
Then something moved behind us.
We turned.
Nothing.
"Did you see that?"
"Yes."
"What was it?"
"I don't know."
I stared at him.
"Please don't say it again."
He smiled.
We continued.
After several minutes, we reached a small chamber.
There was a stone table in the middle.
On it sat an old wooden box.
Shawshank approached it.
"Don't touch it."
I looked at him.
"You said that about everything."
"And every time you touched it."
I smiled.
"True."
He opened the box carefully.
Inside was a piece of blue fabric.
He lifted it.
My heart stopped.
I recognized it.
It was from an old dress my grandmother used to wear.
I remembered seeing it in our house when I was little.
"How did this get here?"
Shawshank looked at the fabric.
"Your grandmother."
I touched it.
Another memory flashed.
My grandmother was holding me as a baby.
She was crying.
Angela stood beside her.
And Darius was standing across the room.
My grandmother was saying something.
This time, I heard it clearly.
"Take her away."
Angela shook her head.
"I can't."
"You have to."
"He'll find her."
"Then hide her."
Darius stepped forward.
"I will never hurt my daughter."
My grandmother looked at him.
"You don't understand what you've become."
The memory disappeared.
I gasped.
Shawshank caught me.
"What did you see?"
"Darius."
"What happened?"
I looked at him.
"He was there when I was a baby."
Shawshank's face became serious.
"What did he say?"
I swallowed.
"He said I was his daughter."
Silence.
Then a deep voice echoed from somewhere in the darkness.
"Because you are."
I froze.
Shawshank pulled me behind him.
Darius stepped out of the shadows.
This time, there was no mask.
He looked at me with an expression I couldn't understand.
Sadness.
Love.
Regret.
"Bjei," he whispered.
I stared at him.
"Are you my father?"
He nodded.
"Yes."
My entire world seemed to tilt.
I couldn't speak.
Darius took one step closer.
"I've waited many years to tell you the truth."
Shawshank stood between us.
"You can't have her."
Darius looked at him.
"I don't want to hurt her."
"Then stay away."
Darius looked back at me.
"Your mother lied because she was afraid."
I felt tears fill my eyes.
"What happened to my grandmother?"
His expression broke.
"She sacrificed herself for you."
"And you?"
He looked down.
"I was forced to leave."
"By who?"
Darius looked toward the darkness.
"The queen."
A distant roar shook the Forgotten Depths.
Darius's face changed.
"She has found us."
Shawshank grabbed my hand.
Darius stepped closer.
"Bjei, listen carefully."
I looked at him.
"If the queen captures you, she will use your blood to open the ancient gate."
My heart pounded.
"What gate?"
Darius pointed behind me.
I turned.
A massive door had appeared in the darkness.
And on it was the same golden symbol glowing on my ankle.
Darius whispered:
"The gate your grandmother died trying to keep closed."