AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"Your feelings will never be a testimony to weakness, quite the opposite," I heard the angel's voice in my head. "Only a compassionate nature is a testament to strength."
The tenderness in his words gave me an insatiable desire to snuggle up to him like a cat. I tried to swallow it down. Unsuccessfully. It's probably because of the stress and loneliness you've endured for too long, I told myself.
Nevertheless, I sent Tanael a grateful look, which he answered with a smile.
"I have an idea." Was it just my imagination, or was he speaking exclusively to me? His golden gaze rested on me as if he could see into me. Not my outer shell nor my inner self, which I knew. No, the depths of my being, which were also closed for me. Confused, I blinked twice, and the feeling disappeared.
"How about we form two teams?" continued Tanael. "One team will continue to search for the missing women, and the other group will visit the three sacred sites on our list to see if the old documents are there."
"I think that's an excellent idea," Chris announced, and the rest of the group murmured in agreement.
"But how do we divide up into the teams?" Lariel wanted to know.
"The two most powerful beings among us should each lead a team," Hecate suggested, although it was pretty clear she meant herself and Tanael.
"I also think that's best. That way, we also minimize the risk of losing someone in an emergency, as we could evacuate everyone quickly through a portal." Tanael nodded to the Goddess of Magic. "Hecate, you take over the search for the missing women, and I'll look for the old documents."
"Then I'll go with Hecate!" Chris called out quickly and turned red at the exact moment. Amazingly, the goddess helped him out of the embarrassing situation.
"That's an excellent idea, priest. The Order belongs to your faith, so you can make connections to particular places where they might be hiding the prisoners.
"I will also join Hecate." Aza formulated this sentence with such determination. I guessed she hoped to make up for her felt mistakes. I wished her success.
Which team did I want to join? On the one hand, I was already deeply involved in the search for the documents, but on the other, I absolutely had to find Charly and be able to take her in my arms. But what if we only found her dead body? Would I even be able to cope after losing Alex? And after John Adam Nash had already tried to kill me twice, was it a good idea to sneak around near or even inside his bases?
"As much as I would like to find Charly myself, I think I can be more useful to Tanael's team." It was hard to say, but this time, I had to decide with my mind, not my heart.
"Are you sure about that?" Jordy's look was confused. He clearly neither understood nor approved of my decision. "I'll definitely help search for Anne and Charly. Chris, I'm in your group." He eyed me with furrowed eyebrows.
"Jordy, I think it's good that you're joining us, but I also respect Myrina's decision," Chris supported me and gave me a reassuring look. Jordy had changed a lot since Anne's abduction. He was no longer himself; I hardly recognized him. Quiet, silent, and lost in thought, he usually sat in some corner, and when he did say something, he was often dominated by anger and bitterness. I forgave him for his angry look and the comment, but my concern for him grew daily. Before we parted company, I had to talk to Chris about it.
Dad would stay in the house in the Hamptons and Zuri in Tanael's underworld mansion. We had one base in the human world, one in the underworld, and, thanks to the Amazons, one in the tent city in Brysalia. The remaining members of our troop were divided between the two tasks. We all decided together that Aspasia should not go looking for the abducted women, as she would get far too close to Mr. Nash.
At first, we suggested that she stay in the tent city, but she wouldn't accept that under any circumstances. So, she joined Tanael's team, along with Sam, Stephan, and Edward. That made six of us. Everyone else would go with Hecate. As the second group consisted of eight people, they could split into two teams if necessary, which could be practical under certain circumstances.
While Hecate smuggled her troupe through a portal into the Hamptons to go over their plans, we retreated to Tanael's study in the underworld. When we arrived, sandwiches and tea were already waiting for us on a table beside the fireplace. Hungry, we pounced on the snack, only for Tanael to run busily from one bookshelf to the next. He kept pulling out books and paper rolls and collecting them on the large desk.
I put four sandwiches on a plate and poured tea into a second cup before going to him.
"You should eat something too," I said, putting everything on the table. Surprised, he paused and looked from the snack to me.
"Thank you," he whispered in amazement and came over to me. I grabbed a sandwich from my plate and sat down on the tabletop. He did the same.
We sat there chewing the dishes between us and the view out of the window into the magnificent gardens in front of us. Like a sunset, the sky outside was bathed in reddish light.
"What actually happens when you are exposed to sunlight?" I asked him more curiously than I had intended.
"It's not a problem for a brief moment, but after a few minutes, the sun burns my skin until it bursts into flames." A fake smile formed on his lips. "Very painful, by the way."
"But, but..." I stammered, shocked at this cruel punishment that had been inflicted on him. "Back in the garden? When you saved me from Mr. Nash? How...?"
"Fortunately, that part of the garden was in the shade of the trees. The sun couldn't hit me directly, slowing the burning process. That's why I managed to get you to your room without leaving any visible marks. Nevertheless, my skin was so badly burned afterward that Hecate had to keep me in bed for several days. The healing ointment stank terribly, by the way!" he told me, grimacing as if he had bitten into a lemon. I knew from experience that the potions of the Goddess of Magic didn't smell good.
"Were you in pain?" I wanted to know.
He nodded silently and took another bite of his sandwich.
"Is that why you didn't contact me after the rescue to ask how I was doing?"
