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Clive rubbed his forehead. I wish I knew. What we do know is a goddess did single you out and give you the gift of language. That seems like a good indicator that this is real.

I nodded. There’s that.

Stheno leaned past me and smacked Clive’s shoulder. “Quit the shit. You know you can’t go with her. Give her what she needs and pay the man.”

They assume I’m balking at the price tag. Clive’s voice helped to quiet some of my fears.

We have a goddess, I said to him, and we made it past their big boulder. I assume if a tourist tried that, it wouldn’t work.

Let’s hope not. He rubbed my shoulder. I don’t know if I have it in me to pay the man and watch you walk away like this. We’re supposed to be doing the dangerous things together.

Meaning you jump in front of me as often as possible.

Of course. See how well we understand each other. He leaned in and kissed me.

Bracken stepped forward. “I can certainly help in this situation, though I’m afraid I’ll need to transfer funds. I don’t have the cash on me.”

Stheno’s eyebrows lifted as she looked Bracken up and down. “Really?”

Vlad and Coco joined us. Vlad leaned into Stheno and said, “Don’t scare the poor man.”

“Oh, I’m not frightened,” Bracken assured Vlad, causing Stheno to snicker.

She looked over her shoulder at Vlad. “This one’s loaded too. If Clive can’t afford to finance his wife’s rescue mission, I suppose we could start a collection.”

While all the craziness was going on around us, Clive’s gaze had never left mine. It was tearing him up to stay behind. I leaned in and kissed his cheek, while Stheno asked if Coco had a spare million she could cough up.

“I love you,” I told my husband, “and I will do everything in my power to return safely to you, including bailing on the mission if it can’t be done. You and our lives together are the most important things in the world to me.”

“And Fergus,” Clive said, his resistance breaking.

“I assumed that went without saying.”

He closed his eyes for an extended beat. When he finally opened them, he turned to the bartender. “I can transfer funds into your account.” He pulled out his phone and tapped on his banking app.

While Clive and the barman spoke, I looked back through the front window. The old woman was standing now, staring back at me. She waved me out and I went, past the twin men who were watching the circus we’d brought to their quiet tavern.

I went through the blue door and closed it, cutting off the voices inside. Now all I could hear was the crash of the waves as the sea hit the rocks below.

Looking decidedly disgruntled, the woman resumed her seat. “What is going on?”

I was suddenly hit with a need to sit, for my head to be lower than hers. As she hadn’t invited me to sit with her, I sat on the stone patio and leaned against one of the wooden pillars holding up a pergola overflowing with flowering bougainvillea.

“I’m sorry we’re disturbing your evening.” I glanced up at the waxing moon and felt its power. Soon.

The woman cleared her throat, and I turned back to her. “Sorry. We’re here because a friend contacted me asking for help.”

She took a sip, studying me over the glass. “What kind of help?”

“I’m afraid I don’t know.” I folded my hands in my lap. “My friend, though, isn’t the type of person to ask for help easily. The fact that she is must mean it’s serious, so here I am. I just hope I can do what’s needed.”

She humphed at that. “And what makes you so special that you’re the one she asked for?”

I shook my head, at a loss for an answer. “I have some skills, but I don’t know which, if any, might be needed. She is herself a very powerful being.” I shrugged. “I might not be the first she’s asked. She could be scraping the bottom of the barrel with me, just hoping I’m lucky. I wish I knew.”

She peered over her shoulder through the window again and then back at me. “That man seems quite angry about you going.”

I followed her gaze and saw Clive, looking like he was raging at Vlad and Stheno. That couldn’t be good. “Oh, no.” One of them had probably made a stupid joke and Clive wasn’t in the mood for their bullshit. “That’s my husband. He’s very concerned about my safety. Where I’m going, he can’t follow, so he can’t protect me.”