Page 244 of The Gods Order

“There’s one more thing,” she says, then lowers her tone as though she’s afraid someone other than us will hear. “Apparently, she had shared too much with me and when she went to continue doing so, the Valories, I don’t know, gave her a message, I suppose. She then told me she had already said too much.”

She glances at each of us, holding our gazes with a newfound intensity.

“When she hugged me bye, she whispered in my ear, ‘When the seven become one, he’ll make his move. Don’t wait for him. Make yours first.’”

I mull over those words, working them out in my mind.

Amick’s faster than all of us.

“We don’t need to prepare for his retaliation,” he mutters. “We prepare our own.”

“Our own?” Riven asks.

“Yes,” Amick says, pushing himself up off the ground.

He wipes his pants off, murmuring under his breath as his head bobs up and down like he’s already agreeing with something.

“Share what you’re thinking,” I say, standing and pulling Thayla up with me.

Riven and Creed jump up as well.

“We need to get home. We’ve got a lot to do today.”

“Give us a little more than that, will you?” I ask, calling out to him as he stomps toward Val.

His footsteps slow as he pivots back around to face us.

“We’re not going to give him the opportunity to build back his strength completely, then take his wrath out on Godsden when he senses his connection to the Binding sever. We put all seven replicas back into the Binding, then we attack.”

I blink at him, then peer at Thayla and the other two.

A slow smile stretches across her face as she eyes Amick up and down.

“We’re going to wage war on the Abandon.”

“Yes.” He nods. “Again.”

A little giggle pours from Riven as he skips ahead to catch up with Amick. He’s already barking orders at Val to take us home and summon everyone.

Creed marches forward to catch up with them.

My power stirs beneath my skin and a deep acceptance like no other I’ve felt before flares through my blood. The hair at the nape of my neck stands on end.

I lace my fingers through Thayla’s and our eyes meet.

“What’s wrong?” she asks.

I shake my head.

“It’s time, little goddess.”

Creed

31

The familiar chill of Hell settles over my skin the second my boots touch the rubble.

Sevryn appears at my right, Barir at my left, and Gladian beside him. None of us speak beyond a nod as we march toward the Division.