STARLIGHT UNBOUND by Deus Ex Machina - HTML preview

STARLIGHT UNBOUND

slide past it unless it was looking for something more. The others didn ’t react to it.

Leona let out a low whistle, stepping closer to the painting with wide eyes. “Now this... this is something.”

Lucien glanced at her, but her eyes moved over the canvas without hesitation, drawn to the broader strokes, the vibrant chaos. She doesn’t see it.

Darius frowned, hands on his hips, as he studied the canvas. “It’s messy. I don ’t get it.”

Carter tilted his head. “It’s not supposed to be ‘gotten.’ It’s supposed to be felt. ”

Lucien watched them all. No one else sees it.

Leona nodded, her voice a murmur, as she stared at the painting. “It’s breathtaking. ”

Lucien said nothing, his gaze fixed on the starburst. The longer he stared, the more it seemed to draw him in, the pull undeniable.

***

The others’ voices faded into the background as they moved toward the side exit, leaving Lucien alone.

Other visitors were drifting in and out of the space, murmurs blending with all the sounds of the gallery.

To Lucien, it was as though the world had narrowed to a single point —the painting, and the starburst at its center. The rest of the world became a blur.

The swirling colors seemed to move in his peripheral vision, the chaos folding and unfolding in a rhythm he couldn’t quite place.

It ’s alive. Why does it feel like it’s pulling me?

He didn’t hear the soft footsteps approaching from behind.

***

The smallest movement caught his attention, and his whole body tensed as he realized someone was standing beside him.

“Do you see it?”

Lucien turned with a start to find Lyra Hart standing beside him. At first, he wasn ’t sure it was her.

She was striking —not in an overwhelming way, but with an intensity that seemed to fill the space beside him. She wore a sleek, fitted black dress, its

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