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Calliope shook her head. “All healed. Everything on the outside is healed. ”
“Still hurts. ”
“It will for awhile. You almost died. ”
“Twice. ”
“Yes. And getting shot certainly didn’t help you deal with the open neck wound. You’re very lucky the wolf king was willing to feed you. ”
“He’s a king?” Brigit interjected. “Cool!”
Calliope gave Brigit a frustrated but patient look. The young vampire sat back in her chair and stayed quiet. The Oracle was on the end of the bed, her hand gently resting on my foot.
“I’m sorry he couldn’t be here with you. He wanted to be. He and his lieutenant both. They’ve been waiting all day in the coffeehouse for you, ever since you arrived. I send Brigit there every so often to tell them you’re okay, but I don’t think they’ll believe it until you’re with them again. ” She lowered her eyes. “You know the rules, though. It could be very—”
“I know. It’s dangerous. ”
“But someone is here to see you. ”
I pressed my unharmed cheek into the pillow and smiled in spite of myself. “Holden. ”
Calliope frowned, patting my leg with maternal comfort. “No. Someone else. ”
If it couldn’t be my wolves and it wasn’t Holden, I was out of guesses for who could be waiting to see me. I didn’t think Keaty could come to Calliope, seeing as he wasn’t afflicted by any sort of supernatural ailment.
“Send them in?”
She reached out for my hand, giving it a firm squeeze. “You have to go to him. I won’t invite him in. ”
It was night in the courtyard. Time could exist in parallel ways in this realm. The sun and the moon could share one sky, and it could be daytime in one room and night in another. The sound of cicadas filled the air and stars sparkled overhead in constellations that had never been seen from the New York skyline.
Calliope led me to an overstuffed loveseat and eased me back into a more
comfortable position, me wincing every inch of the way. Calliope claimed I was healed, but I’d never felt less whole in my life. I felt like I was one sneeze away from breaking into pieces.
“Where is Holden anyway, if he’s not here?”
“He brought you here and left shortly after that. He didn’t tell me where he was going or if he’d be back. ” She stood close to me, hand resting on the top of my head.
“Then who came?”
“I did. ”
The voice was soft and even, coming from the darkened edge of the courtyard. Calliope and I both looked in that direction, and she took a few steps away from me. A figure emerged from the shadows, and Sig walked with long paces towards where I sat.
It was rare for me to see Sig outside of the Tribunal, and to find him in Calliope’s realm was an extra shock. Overdressed in comparison to how I’d last seen him, he now wore black dress pants and a black T-shirt tailored so perfectly it looked like it was painted on. He was still barefoot, though, and I wondered how he managed it living in a city like New York.
He stopped in front of Calliope, ignoring my presence for the time being.
“Oracle. ”
The corner of his mouth twitched with a smirk that vanished so fast I might have imagined it. Calliope’s face was stony.
“Good evening, Sigvard,” she replied with cold detachment, crossing her arms over her chest.
It was my turn to suppress a grin. Sigvard?
“Thank you for bringing her to me. Are you sure we cannot have this discussion inside?” This time the laughter in his tone was unmistakable.
