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“Maybe because I made her bleed first, mother.” Galen’s words echo in the quiet room. “Besides, it’s not just forher. It’s for all of us.” He’s not looking at me with apology in his eyes. He’s looking at Callie apologetically. I don’t know if I trust his words, but his intention is clear. He wants Callie and everyone to know that he’s repentant for his crimes. At least, that’s what I surmise. If he were truly repentant, he would use actual words to start.
Callie doesn’t look Galen’s way. She doesn’t acknowledge him in any way, but I can see the barest movement of Tink taking her hand under the table and squeezing. I hope for both of them that her husband didn’t see that. There might be no love for their pair, but Galen has always been the jealous sort.
“Is any of this bleeding even necessary? We still have one God Killer blade and I refuse to give up another piece of my heart for the weapons,” Octavia whines.
Zara jumps in, ready with the answer. “Rather than the blade being forged to kill Posey, this blade will strip her of her powers. We don’t need any more pieces of your heart, just your blood.”
Finn grumbles under his breath, “Finally an answer to the question I’ve been asking for the last thirty minutes.” Bria squeezes his hand.
“Can you convert the purpose of the stone to hold her power?” Essos asks, leaning forward.
“Maybe we can?” Sybil hedges.
“If you can work with me on it, I’m happy to try to develop something,” Tink offers.
Zara grins at him. “Help is always appreciated.”
“We still have the problem of needing another Titan,” Dion says.
Galen turns to his mother. “Call him.”
Octavia’s lower lip juts out in a petulant pout. “No,” she whines.
The back-and-forth between mother and son gets old quickly, but I’m not the first to lose my patience. Essos slams his fist on the table, causing a crack to split the wood. Everyone stares at it for a moment before I place my palm on the surface, fixing the damage.
“Yes,” Essos pushes back. “You demanded that Galen be resurrected and he was.”
“Only because I took it upon myself to do so.”
“Mother, you swore up and down that you knew how to defeat Posey and Galen was your bargaining chip. You brought back the man who murdered my wife, and I didn’t immediately put him down like the animal he is becauseyoudemanded it. I have held up my end of the bargain. I have no trouble reversing that if you find you cannot uphold your end of our bargain.” Essos’s voice is lethal. Octavia shrinks back like he’s slapped her, but Essos has no patience for her. “Call him,now.”
Octavia purses her lips. “Everyone should close their eyes.”
Begrudgingly, everyone does as she asks. Bracing for the reason that Octavia had us cover our eyes, Essos’s hand finds my face, further darkening the world on me. Magic fills the room in a nearly suffocating amount, accompanied by a blistering heat. Just as quickly as the warmth came, it is gone. Dave whines under the table.
“You can open your eyes,” a deep voice instructs.
I still hesitate to open my eyes, afraid of what I might see. When I do, I’m stunned by the man before man. He has rich tan skin and striking golden brown eyes with dark hair that’s tied back with a simple frayed ribbon. He’s remarkable and impossible to look away from.
Octavia spins in her seat and launches herself into Lairus’s arms. He buries his head in the crook of her neck and breathes deeply. He’s casual in his stance and dress. He’s got on a faded T-shirt, shorts, and flip-flops. Where Esmaray looked like the ethereal embodiment of the moon in a gossamer gown with light panels flowing around her, Lairus looks like everyone’s favorite dad, dressed and ready for summer vacation.
Galen gets to his feet, a slight tremble in his limbs. There is trepidation in how he holds himself and on his face while he watches his parents’ reunion. When Octavia presses her mouth to Lairus’s, Galen looks away, his gaze finally meeting mine. I refuse to be the first to blink, so when he does, shame coloring his cheeks, I count it as a victory.
“Lairus, this is your son.” Octavia clutches the shoulders of both men, tears glistening in her eyes.
Essos rises, taking my hand, helping me up. There is nothing subtle about how he places his body between Lairus and me. We might be counting on him for help, but we don’t know who he is or what his intentions are. Esmaray’s warnings regarding Lairus and his love for Octavia linger in the back of my mind.
“Can we dispense with this episode of Maury and focus on the real issue at hand?” Xavier’s cool voice calls. Everyone else in the room has gotten to their feet, and Lairus finally looks from his son and his lover to survey the room. Kai moves to step in front of Helene, but she stops him with an icy glare.
“I’m sorry, is meeting my son for the first time inconvenient for you, child?”
Xavier bristles at the insinuation that he is inexperienced and youthful.
“My brother doesn’t mean to be rude. We’re on a time limit and would deeply appreciate your assistance,” Essos interrupts, trying his hand at diplomacy.
Lairus’s golden eyes flick to my husband then to me before falling on my stomach. My reaction is instinctual. I smooth a hand over my belly protectively. I will not go down without a fight. It’s the similarity to Galen’s eyes that chill me to my bones.
“What is it you want from me? I was told to let the God and Goddess Supreme reign and that I was to only fulfill my job, ensuring that the sun rose and fell, and now you call me here, before the weaker share of the Fates, to ask for, what? My favor?” Condescension drips from Lairus’s voice. I might hate him.
