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“I sent notices back to all the gods who refused to attend to meet at the summit,” my father says, turning back to face us. “The four of us will go there, and I’ll explain the developments to the gods who think this is a request and not an official summons.”
“You don’t want us to come with you?” I ask, my brows furrowed. “I’m sure there will be others like Ajax there. We can help keep everything running—”
“No, Olivia,” my father stops me, smiling. “You’ve been a part of this from the start. You deserve to be able to explore your home without having to worry about politics or stubborn gods.”
“But—”
“I’m the leader of the light gods. It’s my responsibility, one that I’ve had to face for centuries before you were born. I promise you, if anything happens, I will let all five of you know.” My father claps his hands, not allowing any further argument. “Go explore the city and get to know your new home.”
“Thank you.” Some of the tension seeps from my shoulders.
“We’ll see you soon,” Octavia says, her dark-blue eyes shining with warmth.
“Lucky,” Titus groans, stomping off behind my father and Octavia. Kallen follows behind them silently, with one last glance over his shoulder towards the gates.
I can’t help but look there too, only now noticing the guards placed on either side.
“Are we concerned at all about him reporting anything about the city back to Romulus?” I murmur.
“We already took care of it,” Mateo says, low enough that the others can’t hear us, strolling up the hill.
“Exactly, angel. There’s a lot more by that gate than meets the eye.” Adrian winks. “Now, let’s show you around.”
We spend the next hour walking around the city, and the guys show me a few of their favorite places. We walk up the hill to the summit where the majors have their meetings and the gods gather for announcements. Kyros shows me the ancient library, housing a copy of every single text that has ever been written. Adrian shows me the theater where they perform nightly plays. My heart swells at getting to know more about my mates and seeing the place they call home. It speaks to my soul, like intrinsically, I know I was always meant to be here. It makes sense why I never felt at peace in my life in the mortal realm, and why I was always pulled to places that were built to resemble this city. I can imagine our life here; I can picture going to the theater with Adrian, and going to the library with Kyros, picking out a book with him and walking to one of the quaint coffee shops. I can even see myself visiting Mateo at the summit, and really learning how this world works, helping them make this realm and the many others they travel to even better.
“Where to next?” I ask and clasp Maximus’ hand, swinging it with each step we take down the cobblestone road. “You haven’t shown me your favorite place yet.”
“We were saving the best for last.” He squeezes my hand in return, his lips tilting up in his barely perceptible smile.
“Hmm, let me guess, is it a volcano?”
I earn a huff of exasperation for my guess.
“How about a black leather jacket store? You really seem to like those.”
“You’re hilarious, princess,” he grumbles, stopping abruptly.
I jolt backwards at the sudden stop, nearly losing my footing on the uneven stone if it wasn’t for his firm grip holding me upright.
“It’s the view from up there,” Maximus says, turning to face the building in front of us. “From our home—and your home now, too.”
I look up at the towering building before me, nestled amongst the shops and restaurants that make up the downtown. It resembles a townhouse in the human world, reaching five stories high. Yet unlike a townhouse, there doesn’t seem to be any buildings directly on either side of us.
“Most of the gods and demigods choose to live on their own, many of them having their houses on top of their shops or a bit further from the city center,” Kyros explains, stepping up to my other side.
“But we all chose to stay together,” Adrian says, striding over to the front door. He places his hand on the handle and the bronze knob glows beneath his palm.
“What do you think, little mate?” Mateo asks from his place beside Kyros. His lips twitch slightly, clearly already seeing the answer written across my face.
Glancing back at the house, I can’t help but stare at it in awe. We’ve spoken about what will happen after the academy, after we defeat Romulus, but seeing this house, the symbol of our future, makes it all feel real.
“It’s perfect,” I breathe, grinning at each of them. My chest warms at the relief in each of their expressions. “It’s home.”
“Well then, let me give you the tour,” Adrian says, swinging open the door to our new life and our future.
“We were thinking of making this top floor yours,” Kyros explains, placing his briefcase on the large, white, ornately carved table in the living room. “Unless you want to have your own floor and keep this as the communal one.”
“We originally planned to have only four floors, but when we built it, it just felt incomplete,” Adrian says, spinning around the open-concept living and dining room. “It’s like we knew you were always meant to be with us.”
