Goddess Ascending

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Goddess Ascending Page 11

by Heather Hildenbrand


  “Oh, what I do is so much more than a madam, Elidi. Come here. Let me show you.” She stands and offers her hand.

  Against my better judgment, my hand reaches for hers and slides over her smooth skin.

  Iynx pulls me to my feet and guides me to the window until I’m standing before the glass with Iynx behind me. She points to a figure outside.

  “Look at him,” she says softly, her words unnecessary because I can’t seem to do anything else.

  Kol is shirtless and glistening underneath the sun’s rays as he hauls an armload of firewood from one end of the yard to the other. His biceps flex and bulge with the strain.

  My breath catches. I drink him in.

  Iynx’s hands land lightly on my hips and rub soft circles against the fabric of my dress. My body comes to life, tingling and zinging with rays of pleasure that pool between my thighs.

  My head spins, and my knees wobble as images of Kol’s body pressed to mine fill my head.

  “Pleasure is about more than sex.” Iynx’s voice is soft in my ear, barely a whisper. Her breath on my cheek smells sweet. “It’s about accepting what you feel. What you want. What you need. Embrace your desires, darling. Accept them as part of you, and they will make you stronger.”

  I sigh, my limbs liquidy and my thighs aching. Iynx is right. If I just give in and walk out there and offer myself—

  “Whoa. Hold on.” I step away, nearly wrenching my body out of Iynx’s grasp as I stumble back to my chair.

  “Feel it,” she encourages. “Breathe through it.”

  The door opens, and I groan as Kol strides across the room.

  “What’s wrong with her?” he demands. “What happened?”

  “She’s fine.” Iynx waves him off, but he drops to one knee in front of me.

  “Elidi, what’s wrong?” he asks.

  “Impeccable timing,” I mutter.

  “What?” he asks.

  “Nothing.” I take one more deep breath and will the flush in my cheeks to get lost. Then I lift my head and meet Kol’s eyes. “Iynx was just showing me a little of what she can do.”

  Kol cuts Iynx a sharp look. “Really?”

  “She wants to know more about what she is,” Iynx says, and her innocence is way too forced. I look up at her, but it’s Kol who responds.

  “What she is. Not what you are,” he says.

  Iynx shrugs. “It’s all connected.” She winks at Kol and adds, “But I don’t have to remind you of that.”

  His jaw hardens. “Iynx,” he warns, but she backs away, her hands up in defense of some unspoken offense I don’t understand.

  “Kidding, kidding,” she says, and the teasing in her tone is replaced by solemnity. “Kol, you know I’d never hurt her. I just want her to accept all of herself. I want the same for you.”

  He stares back at her for a long moment. I can tell he’s angry, but he doesn’t argue with her or comment further about whatever it is they’re both alluding to. Finally, he looks back at me.

  “Are you all right?” he asks.

  I nod, hating the way they’ve just discussed my near-orgasm like it was some sort of physical attack. Although, considering the onslaught of sensations, maybe “attack” is accurate.

  “I’m fine. Just a little . . . overwhelmed,” I tell him.

  He presses his fingers to the pulse point on my wrist.

  “What are you doing?” I ask, confused and a little wound up at his touch considering where my thoughts have been.

  “Just checking on you,” he says.

  “But how—”

  His hand moves to cup my cheek, and he peers intently into my eyes as if searching for something. I lean in, closer and closer until we’re nearly nose to nose. He releases me so suddenly I have to catch myself to avoid face planting into his shoulder. I sit back, and Kol stands, putting some distance between us.

  “I told you she’s fine,” Iynx says.

  “I’m going to get her some water,” is Kol’s only reply.

  He turns for the door, and I call to his back, “I already have lemonade.”

  He whirls to glare at Iynx, furious all over again.

  “Tell me you didn’t.”

  “What’s in the lemonade?” I ask, eyeing my empty glass with a ball of panic in my stomach.

  “It’s infused with Iynx’s power,” Kol says.

  “Wait. Are you saying you fed me some sort of sex-ade?”

  Kol glares at Iynx.

  “We talked about this,” he says in a low voice.

  Iynx takes a step forward. “Kol, now listen—”

  “No more, Iynx. I mean it.” His tone is harsh and biting, but Iynx only rolls her eyes, unruffled. Kol’s eyes narrow.

  “Promise me.”

  “Fine. No more lemonade,” Iynx says.

  Satisfied, Kol nods once then heads for the door.

  The moment it shuts behind him, Iynx looks down at me and winks as she adds, “Today.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Two more bubble baths and one good night’s sleep later, I finally feel like me again. Iynx steers clear of me, and there’s no more pink lemonade. Only water and the best food I’ve ever eaten. Kol delivers it to my guest house on a silver tray and then retrieves it when I’m done. He doesn’t say anything about my sex-ade trip, and I don’t bring up our kiss.

  I dress in my leggings and tunic, which are freshly washed and sitting out on the dresser when I emerge from the bathroom. Having them back feels important like I’m expected to do something today. Which is good. My impatience has become a second skin.

  I scarf down the fruit and juice on the tray Kol left then wander outside in search of him.

  He’s in the backyard, building some sort of sculpture with tin cans and piles of firewood.

  “Are we having a bonfire?” I ask.

  He looks up, and his eyes do a quick scan of my body that leaves me tingling.

  “Something like that,” he murmurs.

  “Okay, before we go any further, I think we need to establish a few ground rules.”

  “Like what?”

  “First, no more veil jumping. I can still feel my organs moving when I walk, and it’s weird.”

  His lips twitch. “Your organs aren’t moving. It’s just the vertigo.”

  “Vertigo is dizziness. I’m not dizzy, I just—”

  I wobble, and Kol grabs my elbow, steering me back onto the path before I can veer and fall.

  “Fine, I’m a little dizzy,” I grumble.

  Kol turns away but not before I see him smile.

  I glare and wrench my arm out of his grasp. “This only proves my point.”

  “Okay. No more veil jumping,” he says.

  “Second, I get to know all the things.”

  “What does that even mean?”

  “It means you should have told me what Iynx can do. I thought I made it clear before, but just in case, I will not follow you around like a lost puppy. You tell me what’s happening and what I’m walking into, or this won’t work. Deal?”

  A muscle in his jaw works back and forth. Finally, he says, “Deal.”

  “What are we even doing out here other than hiding?”

  “Training,” he says, gesturing to the cans.

  “You want me to compete in an eating contest involving non-perishables?”

  “No, I want you to shoot them.”

  “Shoot them,” I repeat, my confusion growing. “With what?”

  “Your magic.”

  I cut him a look, brows raised. “I don’t—”

  “Like you shot me,” he adds, and understanding dawns.

  “That weird flash of light in my kitchen.”

  He nods. “It stopped me in my tracks.”

  “But I don’t know how I did it,” I argue. “Or what it was. That was the first time anything like that’s ever happened.”

  “Today will be the second,” he says, undeterred.

  “And you want me to shoot hot sparks here? In the dese
rt?” I ask. “Did our walk yesterday not teach you about the lovely effects of heat exhaustion?”

  “Training in extreme temperatures makes you a better fighter.”

  “Like whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger?” I ask.

  He shrugs. “You’re the one who told me you never sunburn. And you handled our walk here without food or water better than any human would have.”

  “So I’m good with heat. Doesn’t mean we should tempt fate—”

  He hands me a candy bar. “I noticed yesterday you seem to like these,” he says.

  I eye him then the chocolate dubiously.

  “What?” he asks.

  “I don’t know if I trust it,” I say. “Need I remind you of the sex-ade incident?”

  “This isn’t like the lemonade.” He stresses the last word.

  “Riiight. Didn’t your mother ever tell you not to take candy from strangers?”

  “I’m not a stranger,” he points out. “And my mom’s dead.”

  The way he says it, completely flat and matter-of-fact, makes me look up sharply. My heart pings with an ache of sympathy—and understanding.

  “I didn’t know. I’m sorry. How did she die?” I ask.

  “Labor was too much for her. She died when I was two days old,” he says.

  “Kol, that’s awful. I’m sorry.”

  He looks into the distance, his gaze a million miles from here. I don’t say a word, letting him process whatever he needs to. But he just shakes his head.

  “It’s been a long time. It’s not a big deal.”

  “Losing a parent is always a big deal,” I say. “What about your dad? Where is he?”

  “He died two years ago. Demon attack.” His words are even more clipped than before, and I forget all about the candy bar I’m still holding.

  With my free hand, I reach for him. He steps back. A moment of silence passes, and I try—and fail—to read him.

  “What kind of demon?” I ask finally because I have to know. Because everything else about this new life is digestible. Wolf guardians? Sure. Gods and goddesses? Why not? Demons? I already saw the horses from hell.

  “Gray skinned, hollow eyed kind with massive strength. Otherwise known as hellions. They’re Hades’ creations. His soldiers. They attacked my father’s campsite while he was on a recon mission for Vayda.”

  “I thought the war ended and Hades was banished to Hell? How are the demons getting through the veil or whatever?”

  “That’s what the recon mission was about,” he says. “Hades has never given up on his quest to rule the gods. Over the millennia, he’s tried various tactics from infiltrating the human world to seducing humans into doing his work. The more chaos he can create here, the easier it is for him to send in soldier-demons unnoticed.”

  “So the demons can look human?” I ask.

  “Some have the ability to shapeshift. It didn’t used to be a threat because for a few centuries, the world was relatively stable. But a few decades back, we uncovered one of his soldiers in Germany. In fact, the creature managed to start and lead an entire human war before we were able to stop him.”

  “Germany?” My eyes go wide. “Are you saying Hitler was a demon?”

  “I’m saying it’s the closest Hades had gotten in centuries to actually causing the chaos he needs to invade again.”

  “That’s crazy. So demons are still running around here in disguise, trying to overthrow human civilization?”

  “Most often, they infiltrate politics, but the ones that can’t shapeshift tend to roam in the rural areas of the world in order to hunt.”

  “To hunt what?” I ask.

  “Gods.”

  I swallow hard.

  “My dad was tracking a small pack of them in Canada, but he got too close.” His expression darkens. “If it weren’t for this ridiculous feud—”

  He breaks off and fists his hands, clearly done with this conversation.

  I try to think of something to say, but I know from experience that nothing will erase a pain like that. Instead, I do the only thing I can think of that can possibly move us forward. I peel back the wrapper of the candy bar and take a huge bite.

  I chew, swallow, and take another.

  By the time I’m done, Kol is watching me with faint amusement.

  “What?” I ask around a mouthful of granola and oats.

  “I’ve just never seen someone take such large bites before,” he says.

  “I have a large mouth.” The words—though muffled by the food—register too late, and I realize Kol knows it because his half-smile turns into a full blown grin.

  “Trust me, I know all about your mouth,” he says, and my cheeks heat at the memory of his mouth on mine.

  I pretend the candy bar is too much of a mouthful to form a response.

  “Ready?” he asks when I’m done.

  I nod.

  “Good, let’s get to work.”

  We start with stretches, and I’m just recovered enough from the vertigo to remain upright. By the end, I’m feeling confident—even if I am already soaked in sweat.

  “Get some water,” Kol says, tossing me a towel.

  I use it to wipe my face and neck then happily do as he asked. When I’m done, Kol’s already waiting.

  As I approach, he bends his knees and squats into a crouch. The moment his hands come up, my confidence plummets. The idea of fighting Kol—even for training—makes me want to rethink my plan.

  “I thought you said you wanted me to practice shooting sparks from my hands,” I say.

  “You said yourself it’s only happened once. If I remember correctly, you were trying to fight me off. I thought it might help to recreate the scene.”

  I bite my lip, eyeing Kol’s giant muscles. If it weren’t for the vertigo, I might convince myself I could take him. But the idea of it only makes me think of Finn and how he used to help me demonstrate self-defense to the women in my classes. So far, I’ve managed to distract myself away from the betrayal of my best friend—or the questions it raises. I can’t help but wonder what secrets drove Finn to burn my house.

  “Besides,” Kol goes on, “physical exertion can help to trigger your ascension.”

  That gets my attention. “It will?”

  He nods, and I shove aside thoughts of Finn and what he might know.

  “What else will trigger my ascension?”

  Kol hesitates which only makes me more suspicious and determined for an answer.

  “Kol?” I press.

  “Tell you what, you train with me now, and I’ll tell you when we’re done,” he says.

  “You’re manipulating me.”

  “One hundred percent.”

  “You’re not even trying to deny it?”

  “Nicnevin isn’t going to stop, so I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure you stay alive. You need to be ready.”

  “You sound like my aunt. She was always enrolling me in self-defense classes because you never know, and being a pretty, young girl makes you a target.” I do my best impression of Aerina’s voice before I realize Kol’s never met her.

  “She sounds smart,” he says.

  “She is.” I frown. “Or she was.”

  Kol steps closer. “She is,” he says quietly. “Elidi.”

  The sound of my name makes me blink. I look up at Kol and find him studying me with concern lining his features.

  “We’ll find her,” he says.

  “I know.” I nod, and my resolve slides back into place. “Fine. Train now. Information about ascension later.”

  “Deal,” he says.

  “And I get another candy bar,” I add.

  He rolls his eyes. “If you beat me, yes.”

  I smirk, but he just beckons me forward.

  For the next hour, Kol and I spar.

  He’s strong, but I’m fast—normally. Unfortunately, my body is awkward thanks to the vertigo still plaguing me, and none of my attacks sneak past his defenses. Twice, he manages to kn
ock me on my ass thanks to the slickness of his skin distracting me from his right hook.

  By the time we break for water, I’m sweating and frustrated.

  “How long did you take those classes?” he asks.

  “Off and on my whole life.” His brows shoot upward, and I scowl. “In my defense, those classes were for fighting off other humans. And, my organs are still jiggly. You have an unfair advantage.”

  He fights a smile. “Give it another day or so. It’ll pass.”

  “Do we have that long before The Silenci find us?” I ask.

  Kol doesn’t answer.

  “Have you heard anything from Grim or Vayda about where Aerina might be?”

  “Not yet. But if anyone can find her, it’s the two of them.” He says it like it’s not a good thing.

  “Do you think Nicnevin hurt her?” I ask quietly.

  “No.”

  His certainty surprises me, and I look up at him sharply. “How do you know?” I ask.

  “Honestly, because there’s no strategy in that.” He grimaces. “If she wants to get to you, the best way is through your aunt.”

  My hope turns to fear. “You think she’ll use Aerina . . . as bait?”

  “You’re a goddess, Elidi. You were born for more than what your mortal body is capable of. So don’t give up. You’ll figure out your ascension,” he says. “I promise. Now, come on.” He punctuates his words with a shake of my shoulders.

  I blink, stepping back to regain my balance. “For a guy who didn’t want this job, you make a lot of promises,” I grumble.

  He smirks. “Once I’m in, I’m in. And I always give one hundred percent.”

  I narrow my eyes. “Are you trying to say I’m not?”

  He shrugs. “I’m just saying you couldn’t knock me down if I stood on one leg.”

  I grit my teeth and drop the water bottle at my feet. “Wanna bet?”

  His eyes gleam. “I don’t bet. I make promises, remember?”

  My mouth tightens as I try to size him up, assess his weaknesses. “Fine, I promise that I’m going to take you down.”

  He lifts his chin in silent challenge. “Bring it, spitfire.”

  With a battle cry that Braveheart would have been proud of, I charge.

  Kol’s body angles right, but I’ve anticipated his sidestep and follow him, lining both our bodies up perfectly.

 

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