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“Nothing is troubling me. Just processing.” He raised a brow in question, while the other one lowered. Okay. He was confused. I took a breath. “No one knows what Tartarus truly is. I mean, how can we when no one has been here, and people only know the stories that get passed down on Earth? We all thought it was Hell. A place for torture and punishment. But these people . . . they’re no different than the people in The Crossroads, honestly. Blacksmiths. Bakers. Generations of families just taking care of each other, trying to make a living. They look up to you. Respect you. It’s just . . .”
“Not what you expected,” he said, finishing my sentence for me and I nodded in agreement.
“Not even close. I saw community and a functioning society,” I said, gesturing to the town behind us. After a long pause, I sighed. “Thank you for bringing me to the village. For introducing me to the people here.”
Caius reached down, taking my hand in his and lacing our fingers together. “Of course.”
Today was supposed to be for show. Let everyone know I was Caius’s mate.Wewere mates. All to keep me safe. That was the goal. No hidden agendas. I was uncomfortable with the idea at first, surely thinking my inability to lie would be written all over my face. It ended up not even mattering. I wasn’t lying when I was out there talking to people. I was just Reagan.
Every single thing I’d been told by the elders was a lie. A fabricated misrepresentation of Caius’s beliefs and how he treated people. Falsehoods passed down from generation to generation.
The King of Monsters, they’d called him.
The Soulless One.
What I’d seen today was nothing of the sort. I saw the ruler of Tartarus, laying in the dirt and covered in happy, drooly, dog kisses while he laughed and smiled. I saw him carry a basket of fish from the docks to the market stand so for one trip, another man didn’t have to. I saw him play with the baker’s kids, letting one of them sit on his shoulders without a second thought.
Jo had said we believe what we are told to believe when we are young, and I’d believed every word, repeating it faithfully just as each of my ancestors had done.
If he wasn’t the King of Monsters, and he wasn’t the Soulless One, what else had I been wrong about?
Chapter27
Caius
Nightmares plagued me.
Dreams of fire and ash. Blood and poison. I twisted in my sleep, my legs tangling in the silky sheets. I didn’t have to sleep, but I preferred to. Immortality, true immortality, was long without it. Sleep served to reset the mind as much as it did the body. After waking for the third time that night, I surrendered to being awake.
Darkness greeted me.
The fire had died to mere embers in the hearth. I sat up, the sheet pooling at my waist. My mate had insisted I keep my bed. As much as I didn’t like it, I didn’t want to argue over such a trivial thing. I’d rather we just slept together, but that wasn’t an option yet either.
Over the top of the loveseat I could just make out Reagan’s sleeping form. Her hair fanned out across her pillow, and she’d kicked the blankets away, leaving her in those ridiculously tiny pajamas that made me want to bend her over.
I scrubbed a hand down my face, trying and failing to push that thought from my mind. Silently, I dropped my feet to the floor and padded across to the bathroom and washed my face with cool water. In the past I might have gone for a run, or even a swim if I knew Styx wasn’t in her kelpie form and riled up. No good came from being in the water when she was upset. People had died from such a thing. Lightning tended to do that.
Instead, I re-entered the bedroom and gathered the documents Pol had brought me last night to look over. Most of it was monotonous. Towns asking for more land. Emissaries from provinces wanting to visit now that news of my mate had spread. One piece of parchment stood out among the rest.
Dear Caius,
I hope this letter finds you well. My name is Dannika. I am Reagan’s cousin, and Queen of Blood and Beryl, one of the nine Houses that rule on Earth. We were recently informed that the portal to Tartarus has been open for several weeks, and though it remains well-guarded, there is great curiosity surrounding it.
The king and I would like to propose a meeting on neutral grounds to discuss the intentions and management of the portal.
It’s my understanding you have declared Reagan as your mate and that she has crossed over with you as well. I’ve heard a few versions of the story so far, as you can imagine. Our family is quite large, and we are protective of each other, but Clara has assured me you are treating her like a queen. One day I hope to welcome you to the family.
Please give Reagan my love. Her father misses her terribly, as we all do.
Warmest Regards,
Dannika Laskaris, Queen of Blood and Beryl
I set the letter down and scratched at my five o’clock shadow. The stubble was thicker than I usually liked, but my days were filled with work and Reagan. I had no regrets. A beard was hardly the worst thing to happen.
As I was pouring over how to respond to the letter, Reagan appeared in front of me. Her body was shaped like she was sleeping, her eyes still closed. She hung mid-air for a brief second before she dropped onto the bed.
Her warm skin brushed against mine. Breasts pressed to one thigh and ass hanging over the other. I stiffened in shock as her eyes flew open.
