I was screaming and sobbing as the tip pierced his body, sinking deep. The original lava did not break our bones, but this ancient weapon, forged by our people … it was our weakness. Everything had one.
I love you, Maddi.
That was his last whisper before the world exploded around us, and my world went black.
Chapter 38
It was the sun that woke me, as warmth seeped into my skin, sinking through to my organs.
Skin … organs…
Connor.
The memories were there, partly shielded by my brain as it gave me time to try and deal with everything. I remembered though. I remembered it all.
My body had returned to me.
And my brother was lost.
Prying my lids open, I lifted a hand, examining the tanned skin and perfect nails before me. There were no flaws, no obvious signs of the trauma I’d both caused and suffered.
My scars lay beneath the skin.
It should worry me that I had no idea where I was, how I got here, or what had happened after Connor plowed into my trident.
I remember that part so clearly. I’d lowered the weapon but tried to move it last minute so it didn’t hit him directly. He’d shifted with it though, making sure it cracked right through his chest, into the center of his power.
Numbness in my body and mind was the only thing keeping me from experiencing the sheer overload of agonizing and painful memories. Best to just lie here. Wherever here was.
Maybe I was in the underworld.
I didn’t look transparent, but from what I understood of that place when you were dead, the souls just looked normal to each other. There was no peace in my body, though. I was filled with restless energy that slapped against me, urging me to release the numbing void. Release it and feel.
“Maddison fucking James!”
The voice was loud, pissed off, and it came from one of my favorite people in the world. Ilia stomped over to stand above me, staring down with a furious look on her face.
“Girl. You better get your sandy ass up. Right. Now.”
She was angry, clearly, but there were tears in her eyes too. I blinked, feeling some of that numbness slipping away, the pain clawing at my insides. Tears trailed down my cheeks, and while I didn’t make a sound, my body was screaming.
Ilia didn’t say anything else. She just sat beside me, close enough that her hip touched my shoulder.
The pair of us remained like that for hours, silent but together.
“How did you find me?” I finally asked. With those words, I found the strength to sit.
She snorted, her eyes distant. “I tracked you for years, girl. I could find you any fucking where, especially with my newly gifted powers.” She grimaced briefly, before a smile ripped across her face. “Thank you for that. I mean, I kinda love that we’re almost related now, since I have your mother’s old powers.” Her brow wrinkled. “Yeah, that’s weird. Anyways, let’s just say it has taken some getting used to, but I’ve managed not to send storms raging across the world in the last few weeks.”
“Weeks…” I whispered.
As naked as the day I was born, white-blond hair—my natural color that I hadn’t seen for years—cascading down my back, I turned to face my best friend. “It’s been weeks?”
She nodded. “Yeah. You’ve been missing for weeks. None of us had a goddamned clue what happened to you. Asher near lost his mind. This morning, when I picked up a signal from you, I rushed off before I could tell anyone. Scared you might disappear again.”
She looked around.
“Nice island. You know it wasn’t here yesterday, right?”
