Hermes recognized the conflict and guilt. He had left Iliana alone despite knowing how stubborn Iliana was. And Hypnos fought the knowledge that the wife he’d once loved had attacked the human he was supposed to protect.
“Hurry, Pan,” Thanatos pleaded.
Hypnos finally moved, pressing his hand against Iliana’s ankle and holding onto her as if she were the only thing keeping him anchored to reality.
Hermes turned away, unable to watch his own guilt reflected at him. Instead, he closed his eyes and listened to Iliana’s heartbeat stutter and falter.
“I know!” Panacea snapped.
Hermes forced his eyes open, not wanting to lose a moment of seeing Iliana alive. Her skin was too cool, but he held her as if his grip alone could keep her in this world.
“Little one.” Anubis pressed a gentle kiss to the back of her hand. “I know you are tired, but fight. Do not let them win.”
Hermes should’ve found the image humorous and pointless. Five gods begged a mortal to live, but there was nothing funny inside him. Humans died every day, their brief existence giving them far more passion and fight than many gods. But Iliana wasn’t just some human.She was theirs.She was the girl who stood up to him. Refused him. Who fought against a curse, and now, a goddess.
He refused to let her die.
Her soul clung desperately to her body. A faint smile came to his lips. Of course, she was fighting. Even her soul was stubborn, refusing to give up.
Hermes wasn’t sure when this human had begun to mean so much to him, but she did. As he looked down at her face, still so damn alive, he knew. He was falling for her, and that terrified him.
Iliana’s soul loosened its grip slightly. He fought against the tugging within his chest. His restrained instincts demanded action as her soul—
He clamped down on his powers, refusing to take her.
That one second seemed to last for an eternity, filled with hope that she’d win her fight against the inevitable.
Movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention. He glanced over. They had an audience. A watcher. A Kabeiroi. He blinked, and it was gone.
Then—
He sensed it. Her soul fully latched onto her body, strengthening its connection.
The witness forgotten, he focused back on the woman in his arms as every god’s tension lessened, and Panacea’s hands finally fell away from her.
“She’ll live,” she said, relieved and exhausted.
Hermes finally exhaled. Thanatos crumpled forward, burying his face in his hands. Anubis bowed his head. And Hypnos pulled his hand away, his face impassive.
Panacea continued, “But she’ll be unconscious for a while.” The goddess looked toward Pasithea’s lifeless body. “That will be hard to explain to Zeus.”
Hermes didn’t flinch. She was silently asking where Iliana had gotten the god-killer.Hermes said nothing, returning the dagger to his stash of secret weapons with a thought.
Well, they could keep wondering. Let Zeus question him. They’d never set limitations on how the gods in this cave were supposed to protect Iliana, and he’d be damned if he apologized for keeping her alive.
“Can I move her?” Hermes asked. “I want her to be comfortable.”
Panacea nodded, but she looked uneasy. “Yes, she can be moved.”
He might’ve asked her about that emotion if his focus hadn’t been on Iliana. Hermes stood, cradling her against his chest, pulling her away from Thanatos and Anubis. He shot a look at Hypnos, who was standing but staring at the dead goddess with mixed emotions. Hermes whistled, making the devastated god look up and meet his eyes.
“We need you to keep her asleep while she heals.”
Indecisiveness shone in Hypnos’ eyes, but Hermes didn’t wait for him to make the obvious decision, knowing Hypnos wouldn’t leave Iliana’s side. Hermes carried her back into the god’s home, and Panacea hurried after him down the hall.
At the bedroom door, Anubis blocked Panacea with an arm across the entry. “What could you not fix? What else is wrong with Iliana?”
“I felt something else inside her,” she said sadly.
