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My eyes burned, and I took a deep breath, murmuring a final goodbye to my previous life.
Then I slipped my feet into flip-flops, shoved my hair into a messy bun, and followed my mate downstairs.
Epilogue
Kyla
Getting to Tikal was no joke.
It involved a portal to the Middleground, another portal to Antigua, a small colonial town in Guatemala, a chicken bus to Guatemala City, and a flight—on a plane that was little more than a lawnmower with wings—to Flores.
By the time I landed, my wolf was pissed. She hadn’t enjoyed any part of the trip, and I couldn’t exactly blame her.
After all, neither had I.
As soon as I landed in Flores, I focused on filtering every scent I came across. I had no doubt this place was filled with mages, keeping an eye out for any other paranormals who might be looking into their activities.
My wolf wanted to run to Tikal. I wanted to do the same. But we didn’t have the time. Instead, I booked a private transfer. The driver’s name was Juan, and he spoke much better English than my bad Spanish. The drive went faster than I’d anticipated, thanks to his history lesson about the Mayans, who’d inhabited the area from the sixth century BC to around the tenth century AD. Apparently, a good chunk of the archaeological remains were still underground.
While I’d assumed the demigod would’ve been buried beneath one of the huge temples, I was actually headedawayfrom the temples. Juan dropped me on the outskirts of the site, clearly concerned about leaving me.
“I’ll wait for you,” he told me.
“No thank you. I’m meeting some friends.” A lie, but relief crossed his face and he nodded.
“Enjoy your time here.”
And then I was alone. Glancing at the map I’d lifted from Lennox Rees’s little information room, I got my bearings, shoved Angelica’s ring into my mouth, and took off at a steady jog.
The mages had stationed guards in nondescript clothing all over the area. Several of them were wearing giant cameras around their necks, while a few more wore fanny packs and baseball caps. A sad attempt to fit in with the tourists, but I could see—and smell—their magic a mile away.
Their presence reinforced that I was in the right place.
The demigod was located outside the national park, deep in the forest. He’d originally gone to sleep far beneath the earth but was now in the cave that had been created when the McCormick coven raised him from his coma-like sleep.
It took me an hour to hike to the cave, keeping my footsteps light. Finally, I heard voices.
I caught sight of twenty or thirty mages, all armed with guns. I had no doubt they were also armed with that stolen power. I crouched, watching the area for a few hours, while I stored away everything I noticed about the guards, their shifts, and just how much attention they were paying to their surroundings.
I couldn’t just check out the security. I had to know what we were working with.
My wolf liked that idea, and I padded toward the cave. I’d expected it to be warded, but that likely would’ve stopped them from being able to access their stolen power.
I crept into the mouth of the cave, and my eyes adjusted to the dim light.
I’d once seen photos of the Reclining Buddha in Thailand. The demigod was large enough that he reminded me of those pictures. Only he wasn’t gold, and he wasn’t reclining with his eyes open.
Even with him lying down, his shoulder ended far above my head. His feet were as long as my body and crossed at the ankles, while his wrists were encircled with what seemed like miles of Naud chains. My wolf snarled at the sight.
I couldn’t even attempt to soothe her. I wanted to rip out these mages’ throats in the worst way.
The guy had tried to take a nap for a few thousand years and woke up in chains, surrounded by humans who were feasting on him. I was betting he waspissed.
Unfortunately, as much as I wanted to do a little slaughtering, this was supposed to be a reconnaissance mission. Even if I hadn’t promised Evie that I’d just come to spy, I was massively outnumbered by these fuckheads.
Soon, I soothed my wolf.
We’d once been trapped just like this. A soundless growl left my throat.
