“Come on, Vervain. You're the Trinity Star and the Godhunter. You've been here before and you survived. You will get through this again.”
I pulled on a pair of pants, completely unsurprised that they fit me like a glove. The guy had probably been planning my abduction from the moment he got free of the Void.
“But how did he get free?” I growled. “A soul can't just dance out of the Void. Not even the soul of a Hindu god, and those gods are known for their dancing.”
I glared at the array of silk blouses, then settled on a solid cotton shirt—your average white button-down that every woman should own. Or so the Youtube style influencers say. I found a pair of expensive sneakers and some thick socks. Perfect for running if I happened to get the chance. Always be prepared. That's key to surviving an abduction.
“Sheesh, I should write a handbook. I've been abducted enough to give tips.”
Then I looked for a weapon.
It had been a long time since I'd fought someone with a sword or any weapon, for that matter. I'd lent my Wolverine gloves to Torrent years ago and had no intention of asking for them back. But I was back to square one, cut off from magic. And that meant using steel. Or, if a blade of some kind wasn't available, whatever stabby, pointy thing I could find.
The stabbiest things in the dressing room were stilettos. I weighed their value against those of the sneakers. The sneakers won. Stilettos would be too obvious. Especially in that outfit.
I went back into the bedroom and hurriedly searched for a weapon there. Nothing.
“Do you really think I'd leave knives lying around for you to use, my Queen?” Katila called down the corridor. “Come now. I'm waiting.”
My feet moved on their own, taking me down the hallway and to the crazy son of a bitch waiting for me. I felt like Princess Leia getting pulled to Jabba the Hutt by a chain.
It had been so long, and I had pushed those memories so deep, that I couldn't recall if it had been like this with Anubis. It had been bad; I remembered that much. There had been mind games and enemies coming by to taunt me. And there had been a heavy collar. A collar very similar to the one Leia wore. I seem to recall Anubis dressing me in something scandalous too.
And then the Egyptian God of the Dead fell in love with me.
Well, Katila thought he was in love with me already. Could I use that? Probably. I had to think like a normal woman now. A woman with no control over her own body. In that way, I was less powerful than a human. Talk about the mighty falling.
I entered a huge living room, so large it had to be divided into sections by the arrangement of furniture. The bedroom had been big, but not enough to prepare me for this. Marble columns soared to the ceiling where light came from an unknown source; thick rugs helped to define the collections of couches, chairs, and tables; and an archway on my left opened onto a terrace. Katila was sprawled on a divan, his white cotton shirt open to the waist to show off his chest and frame the Pasha.
He sat up when he saw me and waved at the chair on his left. “Please, take a seat, Vervain.”
Yeah, Anubis had sounded civilized too. All while he dragged me around on a chain like a dog.
I went to the plush velvet and gold chair, overstuffed to the point of bounciness, and sat down. “Where are we?” I glanced out toward the terrace. “The God Realm somewhere, but is this your territory?”
“It is now.” He grinned.
“Who did you take it from?”
“Let's not get into all of that yet, Vervain. We need to get to know each other better first.”
“And you don't think telling me who you stole a territory from will help me get to know you?”
“It's irrelevant.”
“Just for clarity, you're the one who took the Ark and left it in the desert, right?”
“Would you believe me if I said I wasn't?”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “It would be a hell of a coincidence.”
Katila grinned. “The game is a foot.”
“Afoot,” I corrected. “One word, not two. Unless you're talking about removing body parts. In which case, I'm feeling a bit peckish.”
“I was just extending the word, but truly? You'd eat a foot?”
“I've eaten it all in my dragon form. And yes, specifically, a foot.” I frowned in thought. “Or did I just play football with it and crack jokes? I think I may have given the foot to the Wild Hunt.” I shrugged. “I've eaten so many enemies I can barely keep track.”
