“Yeah, I kinda do,” I admitted. “I know you may still have to deal with whoever he left behind, but I'd rather not have any reminders of him around.”
“I wonder if this will ever end?” Braxen murmured.
I looked at Brax in surprise. “What a terrible thing to say.”
“But he's right,” Rune said.
Merrick nodded. “Michael is tricky, convincing, and smart. He's got plans that we don't know about. I wouldn't be surprised if the Host keeps growing and spreading across America.”
“Why is he doing this?” I asked.
“Who knows?” Rune said. “Revenge maybe. Or he could be simply trying his damnedest to stay on Earth.”
“He might even believe the garbage he's spouting,” Braxen said. “He was a zealot faced with the falsity of his beliefs. Some people only dig in deeper when faced with their lies.”
“That's true,” I said. “But I hope the Spokane Cerberus gets him.”
“I wish them good luck,” Rune said. “But I'm glad to wash my hands of him.”
“It wasn't Michael who blew up Lora's gallery,” Braxen said. “He could still order his people to attack us while he stays in Spokane.”
“Stop ruining the mood,” Merrick huffed.
“We'll deal with the Host whether he sends them after us or not,” Rune said. “But I have a feeling that Michael is going to focus on spreading his reach.”
“Why can't Hades just deal with him?” I asked. “He could handle that soul like that.” I snapped my fingers.
“He's not allowed to interfere,” Rune said. “It was part of the agreement between him and the other Olympians. Because we hold pieces of his magic, it's as if Hades is constantly on Earth, all over it, when he's only supposed to rule the Underworld. The other gods didn't like that, but they knew this was the best way to protect the world.”
“So, they allowed it under the condition that Hades not interfere personally,” Merrick said. “He can give us orders and help a little, especially if our lives are in danger, but he can't do our work for us.”
“Pieces of him,” I murmured. “Yeah, Hades said that to Hermes. He said that when Hermes attacked you, it was as if he had attacked Hades himself.”
“Yes, now you see,” Braxen said. “If Hades were to come here and do our work for us, it would give him too much power on Earth. He could make excuses to come here whenever he wanted and do whatever he wanted, justifying it by saying it was to defend the planet.”
“Ah, I see. The Gods are the only ones keeping each other in check.”
“That and their morality,” Merrick said. “A few of them have some.”
We chuckled, and I nestled back into Rune's arms as I held hands with Brax and Merrick.
“I can't believe how perfect this feels,” I whispered.
Rune leaned down and said, “You don't have to whisper. No one's going to take this away from us.”
Braxen growled as if the mere thought pissed him off, and Merrick squeezed my hand.
“Forever,” I said, loud and strong. “We've got forever now.”
The men closed in around me, wrapping me in their love and protection. I wasn't on my own anymore. Surprisingly, I was good with that. I was good with them looking after me. They weren't Hermes. My mates were about as opposite from that god as they could get.
A flash of Hermes filled my head—his furious face as he tore away my immortality. He had tried to kill me. The man who said he loved me. But now I knew true love. I knew real love couldn't hurt me. My mates would sooner hurt themselves. Instead of killing me, they'd die for me. And I would die for them. But what was even better than that was how we would live for each other. Forever and ever.
I had bitten the hand that fed me and nearly paid for it with my life, but I would do it again. Because Hermes had been feeding me poison, keeping me under his thumb even when he didn't want me anymore. He deserved that bite. Maybe he even deserved the fires of Hades. But that wasn't for me to judge. I was done with him, and that knowledge lifted my soul. Hermes couldn't touch me anymore, not physically or emotionally. Only my mates could do that.
A car honked, and they stepped back.
“Let's go home,” I said.
