And in the kitchen, I saw Cade. He was staring at me with that look in his eye, the one that whispered I was the only one he saw in the whole wide world. His expression was a smirk and an adoring gaze mixed into one. I reached for him, my fingers passing through his body, through the ghost of a vision he was.
The tears started falling. I buried my head on the countertop and cried, my whole body heaving with every painful sob that escaped my lips. I cried until time was lost, until I couldn’t possibly cry any longer, and then I cried even harder. Legs buckling, I slid down the cabinet doors until I was nothing more than a puddle of salt, snot, and sorrow on the kitchen floor.
I knew I needed to pull myself together, needed to be strong because the end was near, but for just a moment, I allowed myself to succumb to the sadness and doubt.
Less than a year earlier, I had been a quiet loner simply looking for some friends. Since then, my family had been ripped apart. My friends had been killed and taken from me, or they had betrayed me. That would have been enough to make anyone want to crawl into a hole and recoil from the world. It was too much. Demigod or not, I was still just…me, Valerie Moore, a person who’d already been through enough. I was tired, alone, and cracking under the pressure.
Keep it together, I begged myself. Just a little bit longer.
A light knock sounded at the front door, and I quickly wiped my tears with the backs of my hands then pulled myself up to stand.
“Just a minute!” I called out, giving myself a few extra moments to get rid of the redness around my eyes. I fanned them with my hands and blinked a few times before opening the door to find Lilly on my porch.
“Morning,” she said with a soft half-smile. It was like she already knew I’d been bawling.
I swallowed back another round of tears and smiled. “Ready to go?”
“As I’ll ever be.”
“Is Holden here?”
She shook her head. “Not yet.”
“How about Pax? Is he ready?”
“Yep.” She pointed to the cathedral steps across the street where he sat waiting.
I readjusted the strap of my duffle and followed her over. We’d no more than sat down on the steps when Lilly paused and announced that someone was coming. Sure enough, a few seconds later Holden’s silver truck rounded the corner and pulled up to the church.
He lowered the window and, for once, wasn’t wearing a cocky expression.
“You guys ready to go?”
I raised a brow. “Are you?”
He nodded. “I have the latest intel on Nicholai’s location, and the address is already plugged into the GPS.”
“Good.”
I threw my bag into the back and started climbing inside then Lilly grabbed my arm.
“Wait.” She paused, and I was pretty sure she was sensing vibrations in the Earth that I couldn’t feel. “Someone else is coming.”
I shared a nervous glance with Holden. Who the hell would possibly be coming?
We both climbed out, and the four of us made an Elemental wall across the street, waiting.
My heart hammered. My elements pushed on the inside of my skin, dying to come out and play. After a quick, half-assed debate, I opened both palms and let them stand at the ready. I felt safer that way, anyway, and they were finally appeased.
The others followed suit. Lilly tried her damnedest to keep her newfound Wind abilities from sneaking out, but a strong breeze still blew through the air, tossing my hair off to the side.
I switched to my infrared Fire vision and scanned the horizon, fully expecting to find an army of Sect soldiers marching through the streets. Oddly enough, I only found one heat signature, and it was moving fast, right at us.
My first thought was that it was a wild animal, but it was too tall and thin for that, so I knew it was definitely a person. The flame grew in size until it rounded the corner and I switched back to normal vision. The person was wearing the all-black, serpentine attire of a Sect soldier, but without the head gear. Her long blonde hair was whipping fiercely in the air behind her.
Elise!
Adrenaline surged through my bloodstream, firing me up for fight or flight, but I wasn’t sure which reaction to go with. Was she coming to recapture me? It seemed a little odd that she’d be doing the job solo. Fighting my instincts, I squeezed my fists and stood tall, trying not to react in the slightest.
“We need to move! Now!” She shouted the words because she hadn’t yet reached us, and more nervous energy bubbled inside me. Flames crawled up my arm and ice spread out across the ground in front of me. It felt different, though, less like it had gotten the better of me and more like it was simply protecting me.
As much as I wanted to obey her command, I still stood firm.
“We’re not going anywhere until you explain yourself.”
She slowed down, and when she finally reached us, she pulled me into a startling hug. I wasn’t sure what to do, so at first, I just stood there stupidly. Eventually I patted her shoulder and hugged her back.
“You’re too damn stubborn,” she said when she finally pulled away.
I snorted. “It’s a family trait.”
Pax stared nervously between the two of us. “You two are related?”
Lilly shot him an incredulous stare. “Seriously? They could pass for twins. Wait—are you twins?”
“Cousins,” I clarified. “This is Elise. Elise, this is Lilly and Paxton.”
She nodded. “I know them. They’ve been captives of the Sect since before I even started.”
Lilly’s gaze drifted lower, skimming Elise’s outfit with a curled lip and scrunched nose.
“Yeah, I know,” Elise said, gesturing to herself with a sigh. “That’s why I left.”
“You’ve gone rogue?” I could hardly believe it. The Sect was all Elise ever seemed to care about. Well, that and Aunt Marge.
Wait…
“Why are you here?” I asked, needing to know the answer despite how rude it sounded.
Her turquoise gaze slid onto Holden. “Why is he here?”
He glared at her. “One question at a time, Prett. Answer Val’s first.”
“Okay. I’m here because the Sect was planning to kill my family: my cousin, my mother, my aunt, and my grandfather. The last two, I can honestly do without, but the first two…” She shook her head. “I thought I could follow orders and bring you in, Val, but the whole time you were captured all I could think about was busting you out. I felt guilt like I’ve never known. I realized you and Mom are more important to me than my job, and when I found out what they were doing to Cade, I knew I couldn’t wait. I needed to leave immediately and help you.”
My heart freaking flatlined. My voice was barely a whisper. “What…what did you say?”
“Your fiancé,” she clarified. “The Landston guy? Nicholai is torturing him for information.”
“Fiancé…?” Holden asked in confusion.
A massive lump formed in my throat, and my stomach churned like an agitated pit of vipers.
My stare locked onto Holden. “You said he was dead…”
“Ha!” Elise almost laughed. “He’s the one who handed Cade over to the Elitists. So, I’ll ask you again, Michaels: what. are. you. doing. here?”
I stepped back, staring at Holden in pure horror. “Is this true?”
“No,” he replied quickly.
“Liar!” Elise snarled, pointing a fantastical blade at him. It was an opaque crystal that shimmered with all the colors of the rainbow, and instead of being flat, it looked more like a multidimensional wedge.
Holden shook his head and backed away slowly. “It’s not like that.”
My chin quivered and tears streamed down my cheeks from out of nowhere. “Then what is it like?”
His expression caved in on itself, revealing turmoil, sadness, and regret. “I made a deal with Loren…Cade in exchange for you. That’s how I got you out.”
My hand shot to my mouth and I turned away. I co
uldn’t stand to look at him. Cade had been alive all this time? He was alive and being tortured?
I paused and stared intently at my cousin. “Is he really still alive?”
She nodded. “Last I heard, yes.”
Oh my god! I could hardly dare to believe it. All the pain and grief and misery…gone. Cade is alive! It was like I could finally breathe deeply for the first time in two weeks.
“Val,” Holden added quickly, “I never would have done it if I knew Nicholai would take him. Loren wanted to be with him, and I wanted to be with you, that’s all.”
“That’s all?” I screamed, whipping around and facing him as rage consumed me. “I’ve told you a thousand fucking times that I don’t want to be with you! Can’t you take a hint? I wanted to be your friend, Holden, but now you can go to hell!”
“Valerie, please, I’m sorry,” he begged, and he at least had the decency to start crying.
I pushed his chest, knocking him backward a few paces. He was lucky I didn’t push him with my power. “Go away! I don’t even want to see your pathetic face right now.”
“Val…” Lilly said, putting her hand on my shoulder. “I need him to help me with my Wind.”
“So do I,” Elise admitted reluctantly.
I slowly turned around as the meaning of her words clicked into place. “You have Wind powers?”
She nodded and held up her hands. A twisting, Earthly wisp sat in one palm while a swirling funnel of Wind struggled in her right, blowing everyone’s hair around.
“I got them when I was fleeing the Sect. Just another reason why I can never go back.”
I shook my head, trying to make sense of this whole thing. Taj had chosen Elise; I could work with that. What I couldn’t work with was Holden. Not anymore.
“Let’s just get in the truck and go,” I decided. “You two will be fine until we reach the Revolutionists. Sienna will be able to help you then, or Soren. Maybe you can even create some sort of anti-Wind gemstones or something? You’re both Earths, after all.”
“You can’t just take my truck,” Holden said, but his tone sounded uncertain.
“We can,” I threatened, stomping across the pavement and jabbing a finger into his chest, “and we will.”
I spun around and yanked open the driver’s side door, and Elise, Lilly, and Pax filed into the other seats. But, before I could climb in myself, the unthinkable happened.
Holden crashed to his knees in agony and started yelling. Wind swirled around him like a cyclone. Tiny sparks of fire snapped around the funnel until the whole thing caught on fire in one of the most terrifying unnatural disasters I’d ever seen.
Realization dawned on me instantaneously.
I growled and screamed at the top of my lungs, loud enough for even Euphoria to hear. “FUCK YOU, NIK!”
The God of Fire, king of all dicks, had apparently just chosen Holden as his champion.
Looked like I wouldn’t be getting rid of him after all.
I used my Fire to calm his down, and he quickly got his Wind side under control.
Gritting my teeth, I jabbed a thumb toward the back seat.
“Get in the goddamn truck.”
29
Cade
I opened my eyes to the sound of silence—well, one of my eyes. The other was completely swollen shut.
I had no idea where I was or what was going on, but I was acutely aware of the all-consuming pain pulsing through every inch of my body. It was fucking unbearable. My eyes watered involuntarily, and I squeezed them shut, willing unconsciousness to claim me once more.
It didn’t.
“There you are,” a female voice said.
The scent of lilacs tickled my nose, making me think of Val. Lilacs were her favorite. I looked up, blinking to clear away the blur, and my gaze landed on Amelia, Valerie’s mom.
Great. Just fucking great.
She was probably half the reason I could barely move without vomiting.
“I was instructed to inform my father immediately once you woke up,” she said lightly.
My stomach lurched then and I gagged, heaving up nothing but a sticky string of spit. My whole body shook, and fear flooded through my veins in heated waves. I couldn’t remember why, but I had a very bad feeling about those words, even more so than usual.
“It’s all right, kid,” she said, her voice softer than I was expecting. “I’m not going to call him just yet. I want to talk to you first.”
Like I’d believe a single fucking word that came out of her mouth.
I spit on the ground, ridding my mouth of the nasty taste of bile and blood, then turned to where she was sitting on the cave floor. “Why can’t I remember anything?”
She held up her hand, in which a syringe was poised and waiting, filled to the brim with some sort of clear liquid.
So they’re drugging me. Fantastic.
I guess that explained why she wanted to talk—she knew I wouldn’t remember a damn word of what she said.
“I heard you and my daughter are almighty gods now,” she mused, a hint of sarcasm tinting her tone.
The thought of correcting her and saying we were merely demigods crossed my mind, but I really preferred not to. Let her think what she wanted. I didn’t owe an Elitist any explanations.
“That makes this whole thing extra pathetic, doesn’t it? Even the gods aren’t stronger than us…”
I gritted my teeth and immediately regretted it. My whole face ached. Everything was sore and swollen.
Fuck you, Amelia. I wanted to say it out loud, but it felt wrong considering she was my fiancée’s mother—even if she was an epic bitch.
“Do you know where the other demigods are?”
Why do I feel like I’ve been asked that question before…?
I sighed. “No.”
She sighed, too, and nodded. “I believe you, for what it’s worth, but my father and the others don’t. They’re going to keep chipping away at you until you break.”
Wonderful.
Except, I was already broken, and I had no idea how much longer I could last. I’d technically died once before, and this felt eerily similar to that, albeit much slower.
Amelia stared into the darkness of the cave. “She’s coming.”
I couldn’t help it. Despite the bleakness consuming me, my chest pinched tight with hope. A bit of life breathed back into me, a bit of determination. If Val would be arriving soon, surely I could hold on a little longer, for her.
“Why are you telling me any of this?” I asked, struggling to push myself up onto my hands and knees. By the time I made it into a sitting position, I was out of breath, sweating, and shaking like a leaf.
Amelia watched me with curiosity and mild amusement. “Why not? You’re not going to remember any of it, anyway.”
“Touché.” I leaned my head back against the cave wall and tried to catch my breath as my head spun.
“My daughter loves you,” she said matter-of-factly.
It didn’t sound like a question, but it also didn’t sound like the end of her thought. So, I stayed silent, waiting to hear the rest.
“And I love her,” she said.
Not at all what I was expecting to hear.
She turned to me, baring her soul behind the pale blue gaze that so perfectly matched her daughter’s. In that moment, for some fucked-up reason, I believed her. It was hard to deny it when I could see it shining in her eyes. She really did love Val.
Still, I said nothing.
“I don’t know if she can win,” Amelia admitted in a whisper, turning away and shaking her head. “But if she does, I hope she’ll understand that I did all of this for her.”
I chuckled, and pain rushed up my spine into my head, exploding into every corner. “You became evil, killed countless innocents, tortured her fiancé, and tried to kill her…because you love her?”
Her eyes snapped back over to mine. “Fiancé?”
I gave her a flat look. “I love her, too.”
Good? That was it? That was all she had to say for herself and her crimes?
“When the time comes,” she continued, “I’ll prove to her it’s true.”
I had no idea what that meant, but I figured I ought to try to use it to my advantage.
“Why don’t you prove it to her by letting me go? I swear I’ll tell her the truth.”
She smirked and lifted the syringe.
Fuck.
“That would be suicide, kid,” she said, smiling like a psycho. “I have to play my part just a little bit longer, and so do you.”
She jabbed the needle into my neck but didn’t push the plunger right away.
“Rest now. The next time you wake up, I’ll be gone…and Nicholai will be here.”
Then everything went black.
30
Stupid gods and their stupid games.
I gripped the steering wheel so tight my knuckles were white. What the hell were they thinking, forcing us all together like this? I pushed the pedal to the metal and whipped into the passing lane, blowing past a little car on the highway like it was standing still.
No one had the balls to complain about my driving.
After a few nerve-racking hours of silence—well, other than the loud revving of the truck’s engine—we exited the interstate and hopped onto the winding, pothole-filled back roads of New York. Trees lined the road on both sides, and it reminded me of home. The familiarity kept me slightly grounded.
There were no other vehicles in sight, and there hadn’t been for miles. I began worrying we weren’t going in the right direction, but then I reminded myself that Holden and Elise’s intel matched up, and of course Nicholai would choose a secluded place to set up camp.
It’ll all be over soon.
“Val, you need to slow down.” Holden poked his face forward between the headrests and gave me a grim, stern look. “I didn’t say anything on the highway, but these turns are sharp, and you’re driving like a bat out of hell.”
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