Page 44 of The Gods Order

6

The house is holding its breath. The energy itself feels like it’s waiting for one of us to make a move.

We aren’t sitting in stillness, but this isn’t the kind of tranquility where we’re basking in each other’s company.

It’s the kind where everyone is thinking too loudly.

Creed is…tinkering. I’ve never seen him tinker. The clank of plates and cups is the only sound he makes as he wipes already-clean shelves and puts everything back exactly where it was. He’s almost done with the last cabinet, and I have no idea what he’ll move on to next.

Amick sits on the couch without a book. He’s staring forward, unblinking, fingers laced together in his lap.

Kyzen taps my thigh in rhythm with the soft hum Riven’s been letting out for the past hour. Neither of them has spoken since dinner.

I lay my hand over Kyzen’s to stop the tapping.

“Why does time move so strangely?”

He tilts his head. “What do you mean?”

“There were moments today that flew by, and now the minutes are dragging. Why? Is it our minds? Emotions? Or is time just weird as hell?”

He huffs a quiet laugh. “Waiting makes people miserable.”

“That’s definitely part of it,” Amick says, finally breaking his statue-pose. “Your mind measures time differently depending on stimulation, stress, focus. All kinds of things.”

I smirk. “You say that like you’ve researched this.”

“I most certainly have.”

“Of course you have.” Riven chuckles. “Why?”

Amick shrugs. “I like getting lost in my mind. When we were younger, it bothered me when I was focused on something and time would just…vanish. I wanted to learn how to slow it down.”

“That is the most Amick thing I’ve ever heard.”

I shake my head at Riven and his teasing.

“I don’t know how you function with so few thoughts happening,” Amick says and Riven scoffs, laying his hand to his heart.

“I think all day, every day, thank you very much.”

A small smile tugs at my mouth from the normalcy.

Today has felt anything but normal. After ten blissful hours of sleep, I tried to convince myself that walking down that hall and unlocking those doors with a key was a crazy dream. The pearly white circle scar on my palm slapped that delusion right out of me.

Ellian showing up first thing this morning to tell us about Gladian and Mara’s situation didn’t help. He was thrown off that we already knew, but Amick shoved him straight off the cliff by telling him the God of Boundaries had returned.

And that we share blood.

Our wonderful High Chancellor had to sit down and catch his breath.

Updating Yemi, her Valtrue, Lambrit, Rose, and Havar made the morning fly by. Then we arrived at the Court, and everything slowed.

Mara’s absence was loud. I’m used to her greeting me and making some comment about my tardiness or our baby fighters. I wanted to check on her, but Ellian warned us she and Gladian wouldn’t return until he found their Valtrue.

For Mara’s sake, I hope they’re nothing like Mellcom and Jeremiah.

Lunch at Annalise’s with Laney was…humbling.