[ Salome does not hunt for pity, when she notices Mimi’s expression shift she snuffs the shame that sparks in the iridescent blue of her pupils. She knows the circumstances of her country were vastly different than most; surrounded by violent currents and born with the fate of their lives predetermined.

What she hated was his question: why had Death cursed their island? What had her country done to deserve such a cruel fate?

When Salome dared to pose that question to the Royal Family, fear swelling in her chest as her frail husband’s health turned for the worse, her entire life fell apart for it. ]

I wish I knew the answer. I’m certain that there are powerful individuals who know why, but they won’t admit to it. I don’t even believe that “Death” is the one to blame for this curse, but that has been the story for as long as I have known it. [ Her attention is drawn away briefly, hearing the sound of children playing gleefully, and suddenly her shoulders grow less tense. ] … This body of mine only has two more years before symptoms of the curse begin to show.