Page 70 of The Endless One

Then she wilted in his arms. Like a flower that had gotten too much sun, she drooped onto his chest, laid out there even as he drew them back so that they were both lying down on the altar.

He held her close to his heart and allowed the feelings to wash over him.

“I thought you died,” he whispered. He squeezed his eyes shut, as though that would prevent the feelings from becoming too overwhelming.

“I watched you sacrifice yourself for me.”

“You splintered into a hundred pieces, and all I could think was that I wouldn’t be able to put you together again.”

She sighed. “Elric, this isn’t a competition.”

“It is.” He gripped both of her cheeks and turned her face up to look at him. “It damn well is when you insist on killing yourself over and over again. Stop doing that.”

“I’m not so sure I can die again.” Her cheeks were pressed forward, so the words came out garbled.

He didn’t know the answer. Gods were hard to kill. Goddesses were wily as well, and the rules around the existence of their kind were hazy at best, but… He gave her head a little shake, making it seem as though she was nodding. “Just because you are now a goddess does not make you invulnerable. You will not take any more unnecessary risks.”

“I will do what I must to keep my kingdom safe.”

“I will tie you to this altar and leave you here to rot while I figure the rest of this out,” he breathed. “Stubborn woman, can’t you see I’m trying to keep you safe?”

She grabbed onto each of his wrists, forcing his hands away from her face so she could speak in a more normal voice. “Yes, I can see that. But, Elric, can’t you see that I don’t want to be safe? I want to fight. Don’t make it so I clawed my way back to the living realm only to sit on my thumbs and wait for someone else to do the work for me. I am capable. I am powerful. And I will take my kingdom back.”

He didn’t know what to say to that. He didn’t want her to do any of it, not without knowing that she was alive.

A low growl rumbled through his chest before he shook his head. “Endless,” he muttered. “That’s what I told you you would become if you chose to be my witch. And now look at you. The Endless One herself.”

But then there was the soft sound of a gasp, and the crashing of ceramic against the stone. Both he and Jessamine glanced at the entrance to the cave, where Elissa stood with a broken pot at her feet.

“You’re alive,” she gasped again, pressing a hand against her heart.

And apparently, their quiet time together was at an end.

Thankfully, Elissa was always dressed heavily in layers. She’d been able to part with some clothing pieces that could cover Jessamine’s and Elric’s nudity as they wandered through the empty streets of Inverholm. The tunic Jessamine wore was split all the way to her hips on either side, leaving both of her legs bare as she moved. But it was better than the underskirt Elric wore around his hips. He’d been a little disgruntled when it was offered to him, but he’d taken it nonetheless.

Elissa filled them in on as much as she could get out while they walked back to the castle. But emotions got the better of her, and she couldn’t seem to get most of the words out, no matter how many times Jessamine and Elric asked her to repeat herself.

So in fits and spurts, Jessamine learned that it had nearly been three weeks since their disappearance. Ajax had created quite the following in Orenda, with rumors of fanatics worshipping him through self-harm, and the coven had seen spells growing from across the water. But it seemed like he had continued ignoring Inverholm. Perhaps because he thought it truly was a kingdom of the dead, or that the remaining coven wasn’t a threat. Or maybe he just didn’t know they were still here.

“Do you think he knows we died?” Jessamine asked Elric as they walked up to the castle gates.

“I think it’s entirely possible. The death of a god is something that most others can feel. I knew the moment all the others died.” Elric shrugged. “I have never been alive when a new god was made, though. So it is entirely possible that he knows we’re back as well.”

“I don’t like not knowing if he’s aware of us,” she muttered, wedging herself through the gate and into the courtyard.

“I don’t think it’s likely he’ll try to sense if more energy has been introduced to the realm.” Elric reached for her hand, grabbing onto her fingers and squeezing tightly. “That’s a hurdle we’ll address when we get to it.”

She nodded. Of course they would. They had gotten through so much together. This was just another mountain to climb.

But first, she had to talk with her coven. She needed to figure out what abilities she now had, and how to use them in a way that wouldn’t get her in trouble. After all, magic was never easy. Usually it came with some kind of price, but it didn’t seem like that was the same rule for gods. Or that’s how it currently felt, at least.

Elissa hiccupped, tears still making it hard for her to breathe. “They’re… they’re in here.”

The kitchen, Jessamine realized.

Because of course they were in the kitchen. Why would they be anywhere else? If Sybil had taken over the coven—and she sincerely hoped that her friend had—then they would always be in the kitchen when they were planning things.

As she walked through the door behind Elissa, she was pleased to see that everything there had returned to some semblance of normal. Herbs hung from the ceiling in neatly bundled packets, each one of them designed to take place in a particular spell. Everything had been moved and cleaned, centered in a way that made it easier for people to walk around the kitchen without bumping into each other or having to stay in their own places. And, of course, there was the entire coven seated around the massive island.