“After the transfusion. She’s too fragile.” His eyes were back to sky blue as he watched his sister, his vulnerability obvious. He seemed to realize it, because he tried to mask it. “Besides, there’s nothing comfortable in your stupid-ass place. It’s all, weapons here, trophies there, with the occasional throne room. Of which you have several. Talk about compensating for something.”
While I didn’t disagree, I retorted, “You’re welcome to find another fucking world to hide in, asshole.”
“And what is it with the bloody goats everywhere?” he demanded.
I rolled my eyes, though again, the man had a point.
We were on Asgard, abandoned after Ragnarok, and in this world, Ares was Thor. Despite having access to all his memories, I frankly had no clue why he’d decided goats were the best animals to pull his war chariot.
I sat next to the twins, letting myself breathe in and out. “I had to portal,” I said after a while.
Apollo groaned. “Zeus will sense that.”
“I know.”
“He’ll feel you came here.”
“I know,” I repeated.
“I’m going to have to move again.”
I only glared at him now.
“You’re a dick.” After a second, Apollo added, “But thanks for bringing her.”
I nodded rather than admit I hadn’t brought her to him for his sake. I’d done it because I couldn’t let Silver die.
She had nothing to do with any of my reasons for being on Earth, and yet, in mere days, I’d been ready to compromise a revenge centuries in the making just to ensure she was whole.
This wasn’t good.
25
SILVER
Iwoke up to the smell of spring, the sound of horses whinnying, running water, and birds singing. Before even opening my eyes, I knew we were no longer in Paris—or in Highvale for that matter. This place smelled, sounded, felt different. Fresher, more natural, but also stranger.
I made myself sit up, finding that felt like being punched in the stomach. I glanced down to my torso, bare of anything except my bra, expecting to see the ghastly wound. I didn’t. The hole that should have been in my stomach was closed up.
I blinked.How? I was so sure I was about to die, and now I was completely healed. Maybe I was dead, and this was heaven. But if that were the case, why did my midriff feel like I did seven thousand pull-ups?
“How long was I out?” I wondered out loud.
“Just a few hours.”
I hadn’t even seen him. Cas sat by my bedside, a book in his hand. He was shirtless again, but it felt a little less stupid than usual, because it was warm.
That observation made me realize another reason why I knew we weren’t anywhere familiar. The weather certainlydidn’t feel like November in the northern hemisphere. All windows in this bare stone room were thrown open, sheer white curtains billowing softly, and the sunshine heated my face.
“Where are we?” I asked, baffled.
“Home.” He shut down the book. “You needed immediate medical attention. I know Kleos would have helped, but I wasn’t certain how long it’d take me to find her, even if I could find the bank and portal us into Highvale. This was faster.”
I still didn’t understand exactly what had happened, or where we were, but I gleaned, “You have a healer here.”
That was the only reason why I would have be better in mere hours after getting skewered.
“You can say that again.”
