“Why didn’t you come to me earlier?”
“Well, I never truly died before,” he explained. “So I had no idea that dying takes your memories away. I’m only conscious of them now because a spirit named Helena found me and told me, reminding me that I left you and it was time to return. But even then, I had to wait for you to summon me first.”
Cahira grew quiet, struggling to believe what she was seeing was real. She could have fallen asleep from exhaustion, her consciousness given way to dreams. Then she remembered that godly apparitions were corporeal, naturally able to bend the realms where human spirits could not. “Can I touch you?” she whispered.
He pulled her into his chest. Every fiber of her being surrendered to the sensation of comfort, sighing with relief as she took in his piney scent and relished the warmth of his touch. She knew it wasn’t real, but for that moment, she would pretend it was. “I was going to bring you back,” she murmured into his chest.
He kissed her head, heated lips to her skin. “I was surprised to learn you hadn’t, but Helena explained you were trying to be patient. I have been at peace since I died. I reunited with Odin, the All-Father.”
She lifted her head. “Isn’t he your real father?”
He nodded. “We were wrong to assume Discordia killed all the gods. There are a great number of them who found ways to hide, many by making their homes in the Middleworld. Odin split his soul into four pieces long before she could find him. He put his spirit inside two crows, Hunin and Munin, who told me where to find David and who told David about Morrigan. He also put himself into two wolves, Freki...and Geri.”
“Our Geri?” Cahira said with surprise before murmuring, “I have always known something was off with her. That would explain why she is immortal.”
He nodded.
Cahira grew quiet again, enjoying the sensation of being nestled against him. “I do love you,” she said finally, enjoying how the words felt on her tongue. “I wish I would have said it to you a hundred times.”
“I know,” he murmured, his chest vibrating against her ear. “I didn’t know it then, but I know it now. I am so sorry I had to leave you.”
“How long can you stay?” she asked, suddenly remembering the others.
“As long as you’d like. Though I think right now you are needed elsewhere.” He looked up at the lightning-streaked sky.
She followed his eyes. “You’re not wrong,” she admitted with a sigh.
“Have you forgiven Morrigan yet?” he asked. “She did take down Angelique for us all.”
“How did you know I was angry with her?”
“Because I know you.” His chest rumbled with laughter.
Cahira thought for a moment, realizing the rage she had been holding on to had long melted away, unable to maintain its momentum. “I’ve forgiven her,” she told him.
“Good,” Dan nodded. “I knew you would be upset with us, but I hoped you wouldn’t take it out on her. I bear the painful memories of her fighting the Wolf to protect you. A woman who chooses to mother a child that is not hers and defends her with her very life offers the sort of love that transcends all else.”
Cahira felt a jab in her chest. “I should go back and help her.”
“Before you do, I want to tell you one last story. This one is about a little soul so powerful, she brought the Morrigan to life just by listening to her sing. The goddess became her mother, protecting her until she met a ferocious wolf who the little soul bent to her will. Yet even after she released him from servitude, the wolf made a vow to himself to protect her, even beyond death. Even as the little girl grew physically stronger, she forgot the power inside. That she could move mountains with her mind, bend the realms as she desires, and bring gods to life with her will.”
Cahira stared. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”
Dan gave her a shrug, though he couldn’t hold back his smile. “I’ve never been a patron god before. I think it might be fun to try it out.”
Without another word, she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him, tasting minty pine as a burst of cold air jostled her hair until her braid came loose, flowing freely behind her with his hair still attached to it. His lips were soft behind his rugged beard, scratching her own lips in a pleasant way as his arms wrapped around her, pressing her up against his broad chest. She was lost for a moment before she pulled away, surprised by the sensations that consumed her. She realized no words needed to be said, no spells needed cast, that just the simple kiss had brought him back to her.
“So that’s what it’s like kissing you,” she whispered, fighting against the gentle sway of dizziness.
He looked equally bewildered, but chuckled. “I won’t mind if we make that a habit.”
Cahira stared at him, drinking in his kind, sapphire eyes and wild silver hair. “So you are now my patron god,” she said in wonder. She touched his face again to confirm it, running her fingers through his beard. He was truly corporeal, bound to her like her mother once was. “Will you be coming with me then?”
“This part of the war is not mine to fight,” he told her. “So I will busy myself by preparing for our journey home. You and I belong in the mountains.” He kissed her once more, any hesitation that used to plague their relationship gone. “I will be waiting when you return.”
Still dazed, Cahira nodded, backing away from him with shaky legs. “Is this real?” she asked him again.
A laugh tumbled out of his chest. “I’ve never once seen you doubt your own power. Don’t start now.”
She grinned. “I can’t argue with that.”
“I promise I will be here when you return,” he repeated, recognizing her hesitancy.
She gave a firm nod and wrenched herself away before she lost her nerve, running out of the jungle and back through the path she’d made towards the house. The outer torches were lit, fighting against the turbulent weather that still had yet to settle, though the ocean had finally calmed. She noticed Sandrine was waiting for her right outside, leaned up against the wall, an indiscernible shadow save for the outline of her hair.
“Did you find what you were looking for?”
“Not the way I thought I wanted, but yes,” Cahira stammered, hoping she wouldn’t see her reddening cheeks. “Where is everyone?”
“Waiting inside,” she replied. “But before you go in, I must speak with you. There is something I need to confess. The first time Lesplaies and I came here, there was a reason he was able to unleash the plague without me knowing. It’s because I was distracted. The reason that Queen Hangbe chose me as leader of her warriors is because she forced me to endure a possession. The spirit was a piece of Isis’s soul, trapped in the branch of her acacia tree, stolen from Egypt and brought here. I was the only one strong enough to bear it. I never once used her power; in fact, I pretended as though it didn’t exist. It was my way to rebel against what was done to me. When I came back to Africa as a vampire, I left Lesplaies to travel to Egypt, where I put Isis’s power back into the old acacia that still will not die.”
Cahira was stunned. “That was over a hundred years ago—the power would have long leaked out of its roots.”
Sandrine nodded. “It’s the reason I am making this choice. I left a piece of Isis’s power unattended, letting Lesplaies murder hundreds with his plague. For that, I am responsible. I will be staying here in Africa. I plan to keep an eye on the power that I unleashed and ensure it never gets into the wrong hands, as it did with Discordia. It’s my way of making amends to the deaths I caused.”
“His plague was not your fault.”
Sandrine sighed. “I’ve never quite connected to my life as a goddess, Cahira. I feel drawn to my human life first—my life as an African warrior. This is where I belong, helping the humans I am connected to in my own homeland. I lent myself to your godly cause, but Morrigan has taken down Angelique for good. The discord with the Watchers does not involve me. I think it is best that I move on. Please forgive me for not telling you.”
