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Andraste’s white and gold wings surfaced in my memory. Had she foreseen this and tried to take advantage, or was she just a boss babe trying to bring unsuspecting women into her weird warrior cult? Or had she genuinely tried to help me?

Nah. She was a goddess. So far, there were only two good ones: Cliona and Evie.

The jury was still out on Cernunnos.

“Shall we?”

“You sound way too chipper this morning.”

He held out his elbow for me. “Lords rarely get to show off their physical prowess anymore. It’s all paperwork and ruling.” His smile had a manic edge to it. “Now we’re out in the woods with a tent and lots of sticks to poke fire with. How could I not be chipper?”

“We can’t risk starting a fire,” I grumbled.

Soren’s eyes took on a wicked glint. “We don’t have to start one outside.”

“I swear. Can you go a single hour without making a dirty joke?”

“I could,” Soren drawled, “but would life be worth living?”

“Come on, you idiot.” I stomped over to the barely visible trail and started climbing.

Three hours later my calves were burning, and it felt like we hadn’t moved more than a few feet. Logically, I knew that wasn’t the case, but every time I looked up, the tip seemed just as far away as when we’d started.

Soren had fallen silent an hour into the trip, his expression one of quiet rumination. I’d tried to get him to talk a few times but finally gave up when I received nothing back but grunts.

My thoughts were bouncing between Ethan, Cernunnos, and my mother. If I managed to take my mother out, the spell would fall and Ethan would be free.

That would solve both everything and nothing at all.

Cernunnos was a puzzle I’d probably never figure out. He wasn’t like anyone I’d ever known, and his logic felt like being trapped in a maze with no exit. He cared about me. I cared about him.

And yet, here I was trudging up the side of the mountain with a man who’d probably slept with half the population of New York City, wondering why the hell he had a death wish.

“How long do you think it will take us to reach the top?” I asked, not expecting an answer.

“Not until tomorrow,” Soren answered. He slowed his pace and dropped back to walk by my side. “Why? Tired already?”

“If you want to climb on my back, I’ll show you, spider monkey.”

Soren’s brow furrowed for a moment before he burst out laughing. “Did you just make a Twilight joke?”

I gaped at him. “Did you just understand a Twilight joke?”

“One of my old girlfriends had a teenage daughter who was obsessed with the books.” His cheeks turned pink. “I took them to see the movie when it came out.”

I nudged him with my shoulder. “You old softie.”

Soren rolled his eyes. “She was a good kid.”

“Like I said,” I teased. “You’re a softie.”

He scoffed. “Hardly.”

Mmm hmm. Whatever. “Hike until sunset?”

Soren nodded. “I’ll need time to get the tent set up, so we may stop a little before depending on where we are.”

We marched for several more hours before Soren tugged me off the path. “I spotted a good area here.”