“My parents gave it to me,” Emma added sadly.
The moment her stone disappeared, the ground rumbled strongly, and we all took a step back. Except for Laous, who was apparently beyond rational thought at this stage; even his minions were stepping back. I couldn’t even see Rao. Hopefully he had taken this chance to escape.
“Yes!” Laous shouted, and I turned to find the wall opening before us. Literally.
The gap was about two people wide. It extended all the way to the very top of the cliff face. Laous rushed forward, but he was slammed back at the entrance, almost like there was an invisible net over it.
Springing to his feet, he swung around on us. “More layers of security. I would really like to kill that Draygo now.”
“Looks like you need the secret keepers again,” Callie drawled. “Bet you’re glad you didn’t manage to kill me.” She shot him a sardonic grin. “You owe Daniel some flowers.”
Laous regarded her with his dead, hooded eyes. “Get me my stone and I’ll send you an entire garden.”
Callie narrowed her eyes on him but didn’t choose to engage again.
“Let’s do this,” I said in a rush, moving forward. I was ready for it all to be over.
Xander wouldn’t let me go first, of course, and we had a silent argument. Finally, I conceded, because he was a stubborn bastard. “Don’t get used to it, though,” I hissed as he gently moved me back. “We do this shit together.”
He just grinned at me, happy to have gotten his own way, only to find that he bounced right out of the entrance as well. I snorted with laughter, and his grin turned into a furrowed brow. “Let me try,” I suggested.
Stepping toward the entrance, I held my breath, waiting for my face to smash into whatever invisible barrier was there. Except I sailed right through, into the narrow and dark cave beyond.
“Secret keepers only,” I said as I spun around. My brow furrowed as I looked at the worried expressions of the overlords. I wasn’t sure why they were so stressed. It was far worse knowing we were leaving them out here with Laous, who I was still sure was up to something.
Emma, Callie, and Maya started forward and I held my hand up to them. “Wait! Why don’t I just go and get the stone by myself. No need to risk all of us.”
Xander growled loud enough that a bunch of birds lifted from nearby trees. “Get your ass out of there, Avalon. You have no power to defend yourself.”
Before I could say anything, Callie shook Daniel off and took the leap across the entrance, standing with me. “I have power,” she said. “I will keep both of us safe.”
Emma and Maya rushed forward as well, and neither Lexen nor Chase stopped them. Lexen even stepped up to Xander’s side, slapping his friend on the shoulder. “This is something the girls have to do alone,” he said. “Our mates are strong and capable. They would not be fit to rule at our sides if they weren’t. We have to trust them.”
Xander relaxed minutely, even though his chest was still heaving. “In and out,” he said to me. “Do not waste any time in there. For all we know the cave could collapse the moment the stone is taken.”
I nodded, my eyes drinking him in like it might be the last time I ever saw him. Then, with a deep breath, I turned and stepped into the cave.
My girls right by my side.
It was time to end this.
21
Callie’s hand slipped into mine and I held on tightly. Only two of us could move through the cave at the same time, and I was glad that she’d taken the initiative.
“I’m grateful that you’re all here with me,” Emma said, from close behind. “This feels right. A fitting ending to this last four months of my life.”
Maya coughed. “Please don’t say ending. I’m not ready for it to be an ending yet. I still haven’t done one tenth of the things I want to do. I still haven’t had sex, for freak’s sake.”
I chuckled. “Well, you definitely have to do that before you die. Especially since Chase is sooo damn fine.”
She laughed with me, and I was glad she didn’t get jealous. It wasn’t like it was a secret. All the overlords were superhot, but Xander was the only one I wanted. He was mine.
“He is gorgeous,” she said with a sigh. “Sometimes he catches me just staring at him like a complete sap.”
“It’s weird that we’re all eighteen and basically married, right?” Emma snorted that out. “Like, when Lexen first explained the mating thing to me, I kind of freaked out on the inside, but I never thought for one second I didn’t want it.”
I felt Callie shrug next to me. “When you know, you know. I don’t think age is really that big a factor. And … life is short, relatively speaking. I say embrace whatever good comes your way and worry about the future when it arrives.”
