Chapter Twenty-Five
Ava
Iwas overwhelmed.Too much had changed in a short amount of time and I wasn’t sure how to handle it. My memories were returned and I had my mate back. Though my heart knew him as Alaunus, my mind saw him as Macgrath as well. He had changed a great deal since our time together so many years ago.
Neither of us were the same.
Yet my love for him was still there. No matter how different he was from my memories, it didn’t affect the depth of my feelings for him.
And I could sense that he felt the same toward me. Now that our memories and our bond were restored, I couldfeelhim inside of me. His thoughts, his emotions, they were all there, right beside my own. I knew it was the same for him.
Knowing what I now did, I wondered if he resented me for what I’d done to him before Rhiannon cursed us. I’d created him using ancient magic and a blessing from the Goddess herself. I’d been desperate to save him and I hadn’t once thought about how it would affect him.
A soft meow caught my attention and I looked down. Satchel sat on the floor, peering up at me with her shimmering eyes. Without waiting for an invitation, she hopped up onto the bed and butted her head against my arm.
I stroked her soft ears and head, murmuring nonsense to her. She lifted up, placed her paws on my shoulders, and tilted her head down. I understood what she wanted and bent my neck so my forehead rested against the top of her head.
As soon as my skin met her fur, magic swelled around us and the room went black.
I clutched the cat to my chest, protecting her. I couldn’t let anything happen to Satchel. It would break Savannah’s heart, and mine.
“Be at ease, daughter.” A warm feminine voice whispered out of the darkness.
Even before I saw her, I recognized that voice. The Goddess had come to me once again.
Light returned, a soft, blue glow at first that eventually brightened into the golden sunlight of late afternoon. As I looked around, I recognized the forest where I once begged for her help.
The same stream flowed beside me, the sound of the running water almost musical. I could see the faint sparks of light I remembered still in their depths. The grass beneath me was verdant and fragrant, so velvety that it resembled fine cloth rather than vegetation. The trees were thick and lush with ripe fruits dangling from the limbs. I could smell lavender, rosemary, and the sun.
I was home.
Satchel wiggled out of my arms and wandered over to the Goddess, sniffing at her long dress. The Goddess crouched and stroked the cat. Satchel’s eyes drifted shut and her low, rumbling purr echoed in the clearing.
“Mother,” I whispered. While I felt no fear of her, I did feel a twinge of worry. This may have once been my home, but it wasn’t any longer. I didn’t want to leave the people I loved. Any of them. “Why have you brought me here?”
I knew she heard my concern because she looked up at me and her face grew softer. “Worry not, my child. I do not intend to keep you. Only to speak with you and ask that you grant me a boon.”
Confusion filled me. Why would the Goddess require a favor from me?
She straightened, leaving the cat on the ground. Satchel’s eyes opened and I could see the disappointment glittering within them. Then she sighed and followed the Goddess as she walked over to where I sat and settled on the ground next to me. The luminous skirts of her dress spread around her, glittering and shimmering with the light of a thousand stars.
I bowed my head to her. “Anything you ask of me, I will do everything in my power to grant you.”
A sad smile tugged at her lips and she tilted her head in a way that was…familiar somehow. “Wait until I explain what I ask of you before you say that, child. It will not be—” She stopped and swallowed. Her already dark eyes grew even more shadowed. “Easy.”
The hairs on my arms and the back of my neck lifted. Somehow, I sensed what she would say next.
“I would ask you to spare Rhiannon’s life, daughter,” she said. And though it was not worded as a question, I could still hear the entreaty in her voice.
And she was right. This would not be easy because my first instinct was to leap to my feet and rail at her.
Instead, I took a deep breath and folded my hands over my lap. The last two thousand years had taught me patience.
When she saw that I was willing to listen, her smile became genuine. “You have grown wise in your lengthened years.” The curve of her lips faded as she regarded me. “I know what Rhiannon has done and I know the pain she has caused not only you, but the world. And she will face the consequences for those actions. But I beg you to spare her,” she said.
“What if I can’t?” I asked hesitantly, fear finally taking hold of me as I realized the Goddess had the power to take away everything I had finally found once more. “What if she gives me no choice?”
Will you take Macgrath away from me? The question was on the tip of my tongue but I swallowed it. The Goddess might be firm and mete out punishment, but she was not often vengeful. At least not from the stories I now remembered.
