Page 83 of Can you take it?

“Tell it to bring us some food. I think we’re going to be here for a while,” I said.

“Then perhaps I should ask them to bring me a new boat partner, or perhaps a weapon of some kind,” she returned.

We sat on opposite sides of the small boat; the tops of both of our knees touched, knocking into one another with the rhythmic sway of the sea.

I nodded behind her. The water had parted into three rushing streams, and each of our boats began to steer into one, off in a different direction from the others.

Anna closed her eyes and took a few breaths. I wanted to take away everything that was causing her pain. Instead, I simply asked if she was okay.

“You don’t care about me,” she said as she looked out at the orange sky where her crow friend had flown off to.

The perfect hero would have wanted nothing more than to convince her that I did in fact care about her. But me? All I wanted to do right now was to tie her up against one of these boat poles and make her blush.

“I care about you,” I stated.

“Then give me the pendant,” she said, catching me off guard.

“You should have kept it when you had it.”

She glowered. “What if I can trade you something?” My eyes took their time touching every curve of her body. “Not that kind of trade,” she said with a blush. “Like, ‘after I have all of my powers, I will build you an artificial sun’ kind of trade.” A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.

“What is it with you guys and your artificial suns?” I said, genuinely trying with all of my strength to push away the light glitter of humor that danced inside of me whenever I seemed to be near her.

She snorted. “Apparently eons ago, the Fates offered Dad his own weather god for Tartarus, you know, so that he could decide on the weather and atmosphere to his liking, but he turned it down because he didn’t want another god in his space.” She shook her head and chuckled.

“You really do love him,” I stated, realizing for the first time how much Kaohs had done for her. She loved him.

“Kaohs? Of course. You think I’d be doing all of this if I didn’t feel like I owed him the world?” She gestured between the two of us.

Suddenly, pain seared through my head so forcefully that it took me to my knees. Screaming was coming from somewhere.

‘Eli! Please help me!’

Cal. ‘Cal, hon, what’s wrong?’ She was in so much pain.

‘Oh my suns, what was wrong?’

‘I can’t find Mendax,’ she said, panicking.

‘Fuck. What happened to you? Cal? Are you still there? I can feel you fading. Oh my suns, Cal, you are fading. Fuck, Cal!’ I screamed both inside and out.

“What’s happening?” Anna asked, moving to my side on the floor of the boat.

“Cal—she’s dying,” I said as I struggled to sit back up with the searing pain in my head.

She gasped. “What happened?”

“I need to find Mendax. He needs to get to her.” Every extra ounce of energy I had went into pounding down the door to Mendax’s bond.

‘I know! I’m here!’ Mendax screamed.

‘What’s happening?’ I questioned. ‘She’s dying, Mendax; what did you do? Why didn’t you protect her!’ I shouted.

‘She’s having the child, and because it’s half Shadow Slayer and half SunTamer, they are running into complications.’

Oh my suns. “Cal is having the baby,” I told Anna.

‘Apparently the wretched little thing is giving her a real battle, but she will pull through—she has to. I forbid her from leaving me alone with this…this thing!’