Page 77 of The Labyrinth and the Threaded Daughter

It let her be.

Her eyes filled with tears. “It did not–”

“I know.”

She swallowed, voice trembling as she spoke for the first time without fear. “Corin.”

The sound of his name—spoken by her—hit him harder than any blade ever had. He laughed once, breathless, as joy and relief came crashing through him all at once.

Finally she had been able to say his name, to accept him, without rage. And his heart was so ecstatic that he couldn’t stop himself from reaching out.

She hesitated only a fraction of a moment before placing her hand in his.

And together, they stepped forward—out of the Labyrinth. Out of her prison.

The golden veins dimmed behind them. They weren’t extinguished, but a sense of calm came over them. Whole. The stone did not close. It did not chase them.

It simply watched them go.

And for the first time in centuries, the Labyrinth let its heart walk free.