“If I wanted you dead, you wouldn’t have been invited to the hot spring.”
She sighs, like the memory brings her so much happiness.
“In that case, how are you handling those fuckers betraying you once again?”
“Didn’t handle it or even think about it until yesterday. I’m furious, but I got it out of my system. What about you? Is Gladian and Chasin taking it hard?”
“Yeah, but not for the reasons you’d think. I mean, don’t get me wrong, his ego is hurting right now because he knows how shitty it looks that a member of our Valtrue fucked the Godsdawn over and another is dead. What he’s mostly struggling with, though, is how nothing else has changed.”
“What do you mean? I’d think losing two Valtrue members, one permanently, one…well, whatever the fuck Mellcom’s going to do about his tie, would change everything.”
“It should, but it hasn’t. We all should’ve lost the extra piece of power we got from Jeremiah’s tie the moment he died. I thought maybe I couldn’t tell because of the extra you gave me, but Chasin and Gladian aren’t feeling any different either. It’s got Gladian all fucked up.”
I cock my head to the side. I wouldn’t know why in the realm that didn’t happen. It’s ridiculous that it’s supposed to happen. I understand you get that initial boost of power through your new tie when your Valtrue is formed, but you can’t always prevent death. So you shouldn’t be punished by losing power when someone in your Valtrue does die.
I peer over my shoulder, catching Kyzen’s eye. Well, he was already staring at me, but same difference. He makes his way over to me as soon as I nod at him.
“Everything okay with Rose?” I smirk at his nosiness.
“Yeah. She was a little concerned about Lambrit and wanted to vent.”
His face softens. “Makes sense.”
“Yeah, what doesn’t make sense, though, is Mara just told me that neither she, Gladian, nor Chasin is experiencing any loss of power since Jeremiah died. We have no clue if the Goddess of Seduction or the God of Obliteration have severed Mellcom’s tie, but don’t you think they’d be able to tell?”
“Really? No difference?” he asks, facing her, and she shakes her head. “Yeah, that is strange. Unless it has something to do with Gladian being a Domain God, you all should’ve lost a little. Sounds like a mystery for Amick.”
“Goodness, he has enough mysteries going on and plans to make,” I say.
“You guys are already planning some other crazy shit?” Mara asks and I give her a mischievous smile.
“Hunting down all the other Gods Bindings. Want to help?”
Her face pales comically.
“I should’ve stayed a bitch in my bubble all by myself. You lot are going to get me killed. I’m going to ask Yemi if she knows about this shit.” She shakes her head, stomping away while yelling at everyone to line up.
Yemi tilts her head as Mara grabs her elbow and pulls her a few feet over. I can tell the moment Mara asks her if she knows what’s going on. Yemi winks at me, then pats Mara’s arm.
Kyzen and I chuckle as she grips her hair and groans loudly.
“She isn’t too bad when you spend some time around her,” he says as he lays a kiss on my temple.
“No, she isn’t. She just needed permission to be who she wants to be.”
He hums. “Sounds familiar.”
I roll my eyes and blow him a kiss as I walk away.
“Welcome back, everyone,” I yell, gaining everyone’s attention. “We’ve got a lot of catching up to do and today, I’m throwing you right into the deep end. Before someone has thechance to put a sword to your throat, you’re going to know where to hit them first. Kill strikes. A goddess’s best friend.”
Amick
40
The last thing I mean to do is sound insensitive, but today has been so relieving.
I’m elated to be back in a routine.
