And a pulse of something I didn’t understand yanked me back from the brink of death.
CHAPTERFORTY-SIX
Ilurched up with a gasp. Ayla fell backward, and her twin caught her.
“Odie!” Alex sounded frantic. “Are you . . . okay?” The last word fell from his lips hesitantly, as if he sincerely doubted it.
But why? I’d never felt better, more alive.
“I’m good. I—”
A vibrant light caught my attention. I looked down to see that my hands were glowing white.
“Oh my god! What is this?”
Sana’s lips trembled as if she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. “It’s aether. Maybe Ayla’s or Lyon’s . . . Maybe yours to command? We won’t know unless it dissipates.Ifit dissipates. Either way, I think the aether is allowing you to use it.”
Use it . . .
“Help me up.”
Three pairs of hands helped me to stand. I prepared to wobble, but found that I was fine. Strong. Brimming with magic.
Ready.
I scanned the room. I wasn’t sure how long I’d been out, but judging by the bodies on the ground, it was too long. Most of the casualties were fae soldiers.Diana was still fighting, but with a terrible limp. Andre had found her, and was at her side. Sam and the white-haired elf Flynn fought together too, and they seemed to be kicking some ass.
Then, I saw something that made my heart stop.
Stark against the obsidian ground were the bodies of two white wolves. There was no way I could tell who they were, or if they were even dead, from here.
But when Ishtar loosed a high-pitched scream, I knew I didn’t have time to find out.
I needed to end her. Now.
My gaze snapped to the Queen of Hell, still near her throne. It seemed that a few demons had joined from topside, and were assisting her in beating back the swarms of magicals. Fae soldiers, the remaining two white wolves, the vampires, and Alice were all lashing out every chance they got.
But it was my best friend and Hunter, positioned closest to the queen, who made my mouth dry up. Eva was fighting back with all her might, black tendrils soaring from her, only to be punctuated occasionally by sunshine yellow magic that stood out against black stone. Hunter struck down any demon that dared come close to his woman. He alternated between using his totem, which glowed with fire from the ifrit he’d trapped inside the weapon, and green magic. Watching them, how Ishtar was targeting them with great intensity because she knew they loved me, made my heart stutter.
You ready, Tabitha?I asked, drawing in a breath.
There was no answer.
Tabitha?
Still nothing.
A pit formed in my stomach as I recalled how she’d curled in on herself when the aether filled me. Had it forced her out? It seemed that way. A ghost couldn’t be killed . . .
“Odette? Are you okay?” Sana asked
My worry for the resident in my head must have shown on my face.I cleared my throat. “I’m fine.”
And I was. Sad, scared, and countless other emotions, yes. But I was also ready and prepared to do what I must.
Before, I would have been worried that, without Tabitha, Ishtar could possess me, but not anymore. The Queen of Hell had proclaimed that I hadn’t needed the ghost. After what had just happened with the aether, I believed that I could keep myself safe.
I was a godling, brimming with aether.
