AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“That better not be the poison ivy branch.” Tink swats at it. “Essos told me that my expertise as a craftsman was needed, so here I am.”
I withdraw the vine, smiling as it shrinks back into place. “Your timing is perfect.” I slip off the gloves and set them aside. “Thank you.”
“Yes, well, I’m glad to finally be of assistance. It wasn’t fun, being on the outside.” His mouth turns down slightly at the corners.
“You being there was helpful. Having someone here who knows what she’s planning going forward is helpful.”
Tink blows out a slow breath. “It doesn’t feel like it.”
“I’m guessing I’m not the only reason you’ve left Team Posey?”
Tink gets to his feet. “No, but Finn won’t let me in. He says he’s not seeing anyone at the moment. His exact words.”
I can’t help snorting at Finn’s dark sense of humor. “This isn’t something that he can get over, and even if you have something in your bag of tricks to help him, he’s not going to be the same.”
“No, but I can do better than just giving him eyes back. I can increase his sight like you wouldn’t believe. He would be himself but with so many more abilities.” Tink sounds frustrated, and I get it. We’re gods; we have all the power in the world, and yet we’re powerless to help our friend.
“Don’t meddle, Tink. Let him come to you. At least you’ll be ready for him, but for now, he needs to process what happened, and pushing him won’t help. It will make us feel better, but that’s all it will be—for us.”
Tink lowers his head and runs a hand through his hair, the only acknowledgement I’ll get that I’m right.
“I’m the only one who can truly understand what he’s going through, but he won’t let me help.”
I can’t help it; my gaze drops to his leg. He was born without a limb from the knee down on the left. He toyed with prosthetics over the years, different styles and making them with different materials. I remember him once coming to a party at Helene and Kai’s with an eyepatch and a peg leg. He’s been good-natured about it for so long that I forget at one time he hadn’t been. His prosthetic now looks so real that, at a quick glance, it’s hard to tell the difference, but looking at it, I can see the slight shine to the skin-toned metal that slims into a moveable joint. To prove his point, he lifts his foot and rolls what would be his ankle.
“I think, since you understand best, you know that I speak the truth.”
His sigh is heavy but full of confirmation. “Your husband is looking for you,” Tink tells me before slipping out.
“He knows where to find me!” I shout at the door as it closes behind him.
Waffles pokes his head up from the couch, where I hadn’t noticed he was sleeping. He lets out an annoyedmeowbefore glaring at me and plopping back down.
I needed solitude when I retreated to my office after eating. There was too much going on, too many voices clamoring to put forth their ideas. My trust in Essos is firm. I may be hurt and disappointed that he didn’t tell me about seeing Ellie after the ball, but I know him—I know our relationship—and I know she will not be the thing that divides us. Death couldn’t even do that. I don’t think some nymph with her sights set on Essos will achieve what my murder couldn’t.
Essos must sense that on some level because he may be looking for me, but he doesn’t seek me out. He knows precisely where I am, and he doesn’t find me. I’m grateful for my space, even more so when he doesn’t stop me when I finally step out to get some fresh night air. I feel his eyes track me as I pass him in the living room. When I glance at him, he gives me a devil-may-care wink before looking back down at his own paperwork. I can’t say I blame him for seeking a change of scenery.
I crave solitude and walk out to the beach, where darkness reigns. There is no moon tonight, only the brilliance of the stars lighting my way to the water. I discard my sandals as I go so my feet are completely submerged. I let go of the sky-blue dress I’m wearing, letting the hem get soaked.
“I’m going to get us out of this,” I whisper to my stomach, rubbing it. Ever since finding out we’re having a girl, a small part of me has started to worry about what comes next. I can protect her now, while she grows inside me, but what about after that? I’ve seen the terrible side of men and life. I’ve seen what disadvantages a girl can be at, and I can only hope that I raise her to be strong. If we’re right—if what happened to Galen when he tried to claw his face off truly was her powers at work—she will be a force to be reckoned with. She hasn’t shown any sign of using her powers again, but there hasn’t been a threat to me like there was that day.
“I’m sure you will,” a soft female voice says from behind me. I spin around in a panic, gathering my powers. When I locate the voice, the surge of power clashes.
“Esmaray?”
The woman is petite with iridescent white eyes that glimmer against her pale skin. Her hair is a rich mahogany with a single streak of silver, styled in a single braid down her back. The likenesses of her in books don’t do her justice.
“Yes, my little flower. In the flesh. Come out of the water before you catch your death.” The smile she gives me is peaceful, and all I want to do is comply, but I don’t move.
“What are you doing here? You haven’t been seen or heard from in…I don’t know how long.” I’m too stunned to move, but I hazard a glance around to see if anyone else is witnessing what I am.
“I’ve heard you plan to seek out my husband. I wish to help.”
“Help,” I repeat dumbly, and she grins at me.
“Yes. As the Goddess of the Moon, I’m able to see all. I may be hidden in the dark, but I am always there, always observing, like I did when you were a child.” Esmaray walks to me and lifts my chin.
“When I was a child?” I sound like a parrot, capable only of repeating what she says back to her. Like Octavia, she has power thrumming through her body, potent and old. Somehow, it feels familiar, and I wonder if that’s because Esmaray and Lairus have similar magic and I’ve been around Galen. I think back to when she’s referring to, but I don’t remember a childhood. I remember emerging fully formed from a flower. I went to school to learn how to hone my abilities, but I was never a child in the traditional sense.
