Hogan smiled, and it was full of so much love, I leaned my head on Ryder’s shoulder.
“Is that your wish?” he asked.
Jean closed her eyes for a moment, her lips moving as she replayed her words. “Yes. That is my wish. Please and thank you.”
Hogan’s eyes crinkled at the corners. “So polite. How could I not grant such a polite wish? As you so wish, so shall it be.”
The air became just a little warmer, and a light breeze brushed over me. It lasted for about five minutes, then the breeze stopped, and the warmth lowered to a more pleasant temperature.
“As you wish,” Hogan whispered. Then he leaned his head back and closed his eyes.
“Hoges?” Jean said, twisting around, but trying not to move her ankle.
“Good,” he said. “Tired. That was pretty damn boss.”
Jean grinned. “Yeah, it was. Bad ass.”
“How long do you think we’ll be here?” Ryder asked.
I shrugged. “Until Bathin wakes up.”
The dragon-pig, who had geared down to a stroll while nosing at the walls, waddled over to us. It plopped down next to my thigh. I dropped my hand on it.
I might have slept.
A warm circleon my chest woke me. I blinked, trying to remember why I wasn’t in my bed, why I was curled up against Ryder, and why his shirt was off. Then memories clicked into place like toggles being thrown, and I was awake.
I sat, lifting my head from Ryder’s shoulder and looked around. Everyone else was sleeping except Rossi, who was sitting now. He raised his fingers in a silent greeting. I wondered if he had cast a sleep spell, or if we were all just that exhausted.
We’d fought demons and survived.
We’d fought a god and survived, though I didn’t know if Mithra was still alive.
We’d killed the demon king.
I was sure there wouldn’t be any terrible consequences for that.
But we were here, hopefully in Ordinary, alive, together.
The warmth flared on my chest. I reached down and pulled Crow’s god stone away from my skin.
Crow?
Delaney, good. You’re here. You’re in Ordinary. I’ll be there. Hold on.
We should be at Hogan’s. We should be…
“…on the game table in a pretty little rock?” Crow stood in the center of the stone with us, a grin on his face. “Did I get that right?” He spread his arms wide.
I walked over to him, stepping into his hug and hugging him back. “You better really be you and not a leprechaun pulling a trick or a demon double-crossing us.”
“I’m really me.”
“How did you get here?” Myra asked.
“God stone. Delaney’s wearing it.”
“God stone?” she asked. “You stole it out of the library?”
