“Fine.” Themis threw her hands in the air. “I see the trials complete.”
The words had barely left Themis’s lips when I tossed the pendant into the air and yelled. “Together, Charon!”
Charon was ready. His maw was already open, and fire erupted from it.
I didn’t know how I understood this could work, but in this moment, I was confident that I could help. This thing between Hartand me was bigger than a game of goddesses. It was powerful, it was magic, it was fire and flame.
It was ours. And we would use it now to end this.
Heat licked up my spine, and I turned the hand that tossed the pendant so that my palm faced out. I pulled from my connection with Hart. That fire, that heat, just below the surface of our skin came rushing forward and flame burst forth from my hand. The ice of Themis’s fury from moments ago was replaced with a heat so intense I thought I might pass out.
“I’ve got you, Chaos.” Hart braced me as fire poured forth.
The flame turned white with its intensity. I could no longer see the pendant within the blaze, yet more heat surged through me.
“Just another moment, Ember.”
I fought for breath as Hart turned me toward the throne. Charon’s fire followed as Hart aimed us at the last remnant of his father’s reign. This wasn’t just about destroying the game. It was about the adamas in this city and its hold on the people. We wanted them to choose their own fates, after all. The room grew hotter, stickier. The air was so thick I couldn’t quite gulp down a breath.
Then, as quickly as it had started, the heat retreated.
Ash was the only remaining evidence of the throne’s gems or the necklace that saw us through these trials. Something released in the room, like a door opening or a candle snuffing out. I wanted to believe that this was another shift of power. A final conclusion on the goddesses’ hold on this city. The magic of goddesses and adamas would no longer determine the fates of the citizens of Kavios.
Each person would choose their own.
Strong hands held me when I thought I’d fall. I knew the feel of Hart’s hands like my own—like I knew the taste of hisemotions. That magic that I’d just proved had nothing to do with the goddess’s curse at all.
We’d channeled flame through the force of our connection. I’d unpack that later, but now, this new facet felt like a natural conclusion of everything we were to each other. I wanted to sink into him. I wanted to be done. I wanted him to carry me to wherever we needed to be next.
But the temperature in the room plummeted again. “You stupid bitch!” Themis stormed forward, toward the spot where I’d tossed the pendant. Every step was permeated with frost. Crystals zipped across the floor, turning the marble into an icy sheet.
Hart moved me behind him and Charon. The taste of Hart’s fear was potent, but the smile that tilted Eris’s lips told me it was misplaced.
“We’re done here, Themis. Neither of us is welcome in Kavios any longer.”
“What did you do?” Themis raged at her sister.
“As I said, dear, it’s not my fault if your solution lacked creativity. Now, we must leave.”
Her final words had the power of a solemn vow. They sent another ripple of power cascading through the throne room. This one blew open the doors, and I knew in my bones that it was headed toward the city.
“Why would you allow this?” Themis shrieked.
“This is well within our agreement. I suggest you refocus your frustration.”
Themis growled. “This isn’t over. I will win elsewhere.” With a final glare in my direction, she disappeared.
Eris gave a final curtsy as if she, too, prepared for a dramatic exit.
“Wait,” I said.
Hart stiffened, and my favorite words to inspire fell from his lips. “Fucking Chaos. Couldn’t we let them leave?”
I smirked at him and turned to the goddess. “The flavor of our emotions. That we can taste each other’s. Our fire. Our connection. Those weren’t part of your curse, were they?”
Eris’s stare seemed to penetrate my entire being. I almost wished I’d let her leave. Maybe I was imagining things. Maybe I hadn’t helped burn the pendant and the throne to ashes.
She raised a brow at me. “They were not.”
