Chapter Forty-Eight

“Vervain!”

I dont know who shouted my name, but my husbands came running for me en masse. I met them halfway. As we hugged and Viper removed my manacles, the other gods gathered around us. And as they drew in around us, the sides of the pit also drew together and closed.

I jerked away from my husbands as the ground sealed over the poison. Then, as if to say, “Youve outstayed your welcome,” the tracing building appeared in the pits place.

“What the actual fuck?” Fenrir growled.

“Dad!” I ran to hug him. “Youre all right.”

“Of course, Im all right, little Frami,” Fenrir said. “Why wouldnt I be?”

I looked at the Froekn standing behind them. They were all slicing their flat hands back and forth over their throats. Right. He must have just woke up.

“It was just a bad battle.” I cleared my throat and stepped back. “I think its time to leave.”

“No kidding,” Samael drawled as his eyes—the hundreds of them all over his body—closed and sank into his skin.

Ive seen some disturbing things in my life, and Ive gotten used to most of them. But I will never get used to a man covered in eyeballs.

“What about that bastard Katila?” Fenrir asked.

“Hes dead, Dad,” Trevor said. “The human souls killed him.”

“They killed him because the trickster summoned them,” I said.

“What?” Odin swung around, searching the area. “The trickster is here?”

“Yeah. Im sure hes still here somewhere.” I sniffed, trying to find the scent Id forgotten. “I think this is his territory now. He took it from Katila, along with Katilas magic.”

“How do you know that?” Re asked.

“I dont. Not for certain. But just before you were all expelled from the pit, when I thought you were dead, the trickster showed up beside my cage and reminded me about his promise to handle Katila. Then he said he could work with this. And you were all spewed out. How could he do that if he didnt control Naraka? And how could he control the territory without Katilas magic?”

“Spewed out of what?” Fenrir asked.

“Of the poison pit. We were dying, Dad,” Trevor said. “You were unconscious.”

“I was not!” Fenrir roared.

Behind him, the other Froekn shook their heads. Yeah, Trevor should have known better. He was the firstborn son after all. No one knew Fenrir better than Trevor. But Trevor also knew that we didnt have time to coddle Fenrirs pride.

“Enough, Dad,” I said. “Weve got to go.” I grabbed Res hand and hurried to the tracing building. “Meet back at the citadel.”

“I was not unconscious!” Fenrir said.

“Get over it, big man,” Viper said. “I wish Id been unconscious. Getting swallowed whole by a pit of toxic black goo was not the best time Ive ever had.”

“And were still in Naraka!” I called back pointedly. “A territory controlled by a trickster who obviously wants us to leave.” I waved at the tracing building.

“Shes right. Lets get the fuck out of here,” Finn said and didnt wait for any agreement. He just ran for the building.

“Know when to fold em!” Austin shouted and ran after us.

Our mad dash broke the seal of stupidity, and the rest of the gods finally followed. We traced out rapidly, hands slapping the marble wall to get into the Aether. My husbands shoved me before them, making sure that I got out before they did. They were right behind me so I was all right with that. And with my magic restored, I would sense if anything happened to one of my lions. I almost traced home, so big was my desire to be in my territory, but at the last second, I remembered that I had told everyone to meet at the Golden Citadel.

I came out of the Aether running and kept going, keeping the tracing room open. I was met by a couple of citadel knights, part of the security detail Az had left behind. Thank goodness he was smart enough to keep the citadel guarded even when he went to war.

“Any losses?” one of the knights asked.

“I dont think so,” I said as I ushered them back. “Weve got a lot of gods coming through. Can you ask the kitchens to make us some refreshments? Something warm.”

“Yes, of course.” The knights stare went behind me, settled on Azrael, filled with relief, and only then did he rush off.

I cocked my head at that. I knew the Fey knights respected Azrael—he had proven himself to them often enough—but I didnt know they liked him.

“What now?” Machar asked as he joined my husbands and me.

Is it terrible that I forgot about Machar? I hadnt even noticed him in the army. But there he was, his cap bleeding but his skin whole, no worse for wear. And so far, the gods coming through the tracing room were all the same. The damage inflicted by Naraka was already healed. Well, mostly. Some of the demigods were still healing, but when Teharon and Jesus came through, they instantly went among the injured and sped up the process. I was grateful for that. Kirill looked exhausted, and I would have needed to consume some fire to heal nearly ninety men. But the sight that melted my heart was that of Anubis carrying one of his jackals out of the tracing room. The others staggered out behind him, shaky on their four spindly legs, and noses hanging to the floor. Gello brought up the rear, making sure they were all accounted for.

“Youre going to be all right,” Anubis said as he laid his wounded jackal on the floor.

It whimpered and turned its pointed black head toward him. The other jackals shuffled over and collapsed near their god. They werent like other shapeshifters. Anubiss jackals had a prime form that was animal, not human. They could shift into men, but they always had an animal mentality. The opposite of most shapeshifters.

“I just need a moment longer, my friends,” Anubis said. “Then I can help you heal.”

“Anubis,” Jesus said gently, his expression as tender as mine must have been. “Allow me.”

Anubis looked up and his oil slick eyes were wet with tears. “Thank you, Jesus.”

“Call me J,” Jesus said and laid his hand on the most injured jackal.

The jackal shuddered and sighed, and then Jesuss magic spread to the others. The pack snuggled up against Jesus and Anubis and went to sleep.

To think that I had once feared those creatures. Now, I was happy to see them healed. I had feared their god even more, but now I was ten times stronger than him. Maybe even more than that. Was that why my past with Anubis didnt bother me? No. It was because Id seen his pain and knew that he went through a lot to get past it.

“Queen Vervain?”

“Huh?” I looked over at Machar.

“I asked what were going to do now?” Machar said.

By then, everyone had come through the tracing room. The crowd filled the wide corridors and spread down them. And every one of the gods looked at me when they heard Machars question.

“Not that its my decision alone,” I said. “But I think we should take this as a win and leave the trickster be.”

“You want us to just forget about what he did?” Hades demanded.

“Isnt it better to forget willingly?” I lifted a brow at him.

“Are you suggesting that we arent strong enough to fight this god?” Samael asked. “We killed Jehovah.”

“And all of you nearly died today facing Katila,” I said. “All while I crouched in a cage with my magic cut off.”

“Thats only because we were in his territory,” Brahma said, his arm around his wife.

“He fared pretty well before he lured you there,” I shot back. “And the trickster, whoever he is, is stronger than Katila. I think he has Katilas magic now, in addition to whatever he had originally.”

“So, were certain he isnt Ekwensu?” Samael asked.

“Pretty certain.” Odin pointed and everyone followed his finger to a pair of citadel knights striding up with a chained man between them—Ekwensu. “If Vervain saw the trickster in Naraka, that cant be him.”

“What should we do with the prisoner, Your Majesty?” one of the knights asked Azrael.

Azrael looked at me. “Youre certain he was there?”

“I didnt hallucinate him freeing you from the pit,” I shot back.

“All right.” Az motioned at the knights. “Escort him back to the Wet Whistle and let him go. You have our apologies, Ekwensu.”

“Thats it?” Ekwensu huffed as the knights removed the manacles.

“Oh. Return the manacles to Taran,” Az added.

“Seriously?!” Ekwensu shrieked.

“And tell him Ill pay Ekwensus tab.” Az paused, then quickly amended it with, “Tonights tab.”

“Yes, Sir,” the knights said.

“Good enough?” Az asked Ekwensu.

“I guess,” Ekwensu muttered as he looked around. “You look like youve been through some shit. I suppose thats enough.”

“He chose your face for a reason,” I said to Ekwensu. “I dont believe for one second that you are completely innocent. So, take the win.”

Ekwensu grimaced, then turned and walked away. The knights went with him.

“We dont know anything for certain,” Odin said as he watched Ekwensu leave. “But from what we have to go on, its a reasonable assumption that the trickster took Katilas magic.”

“How did he do it?” someone asked.

Im not sure who asked the question because I was focused inward. Something was bugging me. The gleam at the tricksters throat. What was it? Right. A crystal point. And it looked familiar. Why did it . . .

“I know how he did it,” I whispered.

“Whats that, Minn Elska?” Trevor asked.

“I think I know how the trickster took Katilas magic.”

I had everyones attention again.

“Odin, did you ever check on your valuables?” I asked.

“My valuables?” Odin scowled. Then his expression smoothed. “No. I didnt check on them. You were taken, so I rushed home before I looked.”

“I think youll find that the magic condenser is missing.”

“The magic condenser,” Odin whispered. Then, “Damn it all!”

“Whats a magic condenser?” Anubis asked.

“It belonged to Nuada once,” I said. “A gift from High King Cian. It unites god magic. Bres used it to free the Fomorians.”

“But you have it now?” Lucifer asked Odin.

“Not if Vervains suspicions are correct,” Odin muttered as he headed for the tracing room. “Ill be right back.”

“This condenser, it can give one gods magic to another?” Samael asked.

“No, thats not its purpose,” I said. “It unites magic. But if the trickster was uniting their magic at the time of Katilas death, I imagine Katilas magic would flow into him. Magic doesnt want to die.”

“So now the trickster has Jehovahs tablets, the Pasha, a fey magic condenser, Katilas magic of going ghost, and all the power and magic Katila stole from the Yamadutas of Naraka,” Blue summed up.

Several people cursed.

“But you have your dagger back, right, Anubis?” I asked.

“Yes.” Anubis tapped the dagger strapped to his thigh. “And Im not letting it out of my sight.”

“Oh, well, if he has his dagger back, then its all fine,” Horus drawled.

Before I could respond, one of the citadel knights slipped through the crowd, calling out, “Your Majesty! Azrael! Queen Vervain! You need to see this!”

The way parted for the knight. Azrael and I went to meet him halfway.

“What is it, Gress?” Azrael asked.

“Theres a massive crowd at the outer gates, Sire. Humans.”

Sire and Your Majesty. That still made me grin. The Fey dont use honorifics for their royals. Nothing beyond “King” or “Queen.” But the knights serving Azrael had taken to giving him those titles as a way of showing him the respect he deserved as their boss, but still differentiating him from their true royals. To me, it sounded as if Az got more respect than me, but thats not how they looked at it.

“A mob?” Azrael growled. “What terrible timing.”

“No, Boss. Not a mob. Theyre supporters. Theyre here because of the attack on the charity event. You should come too.” The knight said to Machar. “They want to see your son. They want to know hes safe.”

“Humans want to know if Alexander is safe?” Machar asked in a dubious tone.

“We are not all bad, Machar,” I said. “And your son is part human too.”

“Fine.” Machar grunted. “Ill fetch him. But only because I want him to see that he doesnt have to be afraid of humans.”

“Good.” Azrael smacked Machars arm, then took my hand. We followed the knight through the citadel and outside.

My other husbands joined us, so we had to take two SUVs.

“Hey, what about us?” Pan called from the doorway. “We havent finished talking about this.”

“Theres nothing we can do,” I said. “Returning to Naraka would be a mistake, and we dont know who the trickster is. We cant even track him. All we can do is wait and hope hes done with his games. If he starts up again, we can revisit the conversation.”

I climbed into the passenger seat without waiting for an answer. Because I was right. And because I didnt want to keep a crowd of human supporters waiting. We had so many people against us. Fostering good relationships was important.

Pausing with the drivers door open, Azrael said, “Youre all welcome to join us.”

My Intare whooped and ran for the road, not bothering with a vehicle. It wasnt that far to the embassy, and they always enjoyed a good run. Seeing that, the Froekn took off after them, and the jackals whined. They could probably sense the Wild Magic in the woods.

“Go on then,” Anubis said to his jackals. Then he shouted, “Dont kill anything, you scamps!”

I snorted a laugh as Azrael climbed in. And then we were off, Azrael driving us through the woods and to the inner gate. To either side of us ran shapeshifters, grinning ear-to-ear. I smiled back at them, my heart lightening to see their happiness but also to be victorious yet again. Sure, the trickster was still out there, but he had also saved our lives. I dont like attacking people who have saved my life, no matter what theyd done previously. The trickster had done some horrible things. He had stabbed Viper with a pitchfork. That was an image that would haunt me. But it was nothing compared to the memory of seeing my friends and loved ones drowning in a hellish pit of poison while I couldnt do a damn thing to save them. And the trickster turned that memory into a victory. He gave me back my life when it hung on the brink of destruction. As long as he left us alone and didnt fuck with the world, we were square.

Azrael flicked his hand and the inner set of gates opened. We passed through, leaving the Wild Magic lands to enter the buffer ring of land where our employees and the families with Wild Magic children lived. The neighborhoods were alight, people filling the streets. They cheered as we drove past, then followed in our wake, everyone heading to the outer gate. Id always thought of the outer gates as our first line of defense. Anyone attacking would have to go through them and then the embassy before they could reach the Wild Magic lands.

Tonight, we didnt need the protection.

I got out of the car and shot Az a surprised look. We were in the back of the Fey Embassy, a whole building between us and the outer gate, but we could already hear them. Not that anyone was shouting.

“Are they singing?” Viper asked as he stepped up beside me.

“Oh, my god,” I whispered and immediately started to cry.

“Carus?” Azrael took my hand.

“Sorry, this song gets me every time.”

“What song is that?” Re asked.

“Its “Baby Mine” from Dumbo,” I said, swiping at my eyes. “His mommy sings it to him. She tells him not to cry about all the people who are mean to him, that once they get to know him, theyll love him too.” I covered my mouth with my hand, then ran into the embassy.

“Whyd it have to be Dumbo?” Trevor huffed as they ran after me. “That movie always makes her cry. Fucking Disney. They love to kill mothers.”

“Holy shit, youre right,” Viper said. “They kill all the mommies. Bambi, Dumbo, even baby Grogu is an orphan.”

“Thats Star Wars,” Odin said.

“Disney owns Star Wars.”

“Huh.”

The Embassy was empty. All the employees were at the outer gates, staring out through the bars. Although I really wanted to, I knew we couldnt open the gates. It was too dangerous with that many people outside. Even though they were there to support us, there could have been some crazies hiding among them. So, I raced past the embassy employees who held hands and swayed to the music, and ran up the steps to the top of the wall. Once the crowd saw me, the song dwindled off and the applause started. I stared across a sea of humans, candles lifted in support of my family, and it was just too much after the day Id had. I broke down and wept.

How many years had I fought for them? How many terrible things had I faced? And no one had known. Then Id gone bad, and Azrael had gone badder, but we turned it around. We helped to fix things. We reintroduced faeries to humans and brought magical advances to Earth. And we protected the unwanted children, those scorned by their own parents. We did what we could to make up for our mistakes, and we had our supporters. Hell, some humans were obsessed with faeries, but this was different.

Alexanders abduction, his rescue by Azrael and me recorded and plastered everywhere, and then the attack on the charity dinner to benefit Wild Fey children—those series of events had been exactly what was needed to turn the tide in our favor. Those scorned children were now real to the world. Babies instead of monsters. Innocent children who could be taken from their parents. Parents who would tear the world apart to get their babies back. That was relatable. It was human. And just when the world was starting to relate to those magic children and see them as special instead of horrifying, someone attacked us. It riled the masses. It made those children theirs. They belonged to the world now.

And the world had come to show its love and support.

The applause softened into silence as the Faerie God stepped out on the wall walk.

Azrael joined me and took my hand. “You have made my wife cry,” he said to the crowd.

The humans went still.

He continued with, “But in the best way possible.” Az put his arm around my shoulders and folded me in under his wing. “Im deeply moved as well. People have come to show their support of us before, but never in these numbers.” He waved his free hand out to the sea that went on and on, visible only because of the candles that lit the night. “As you must know, one of our special little ones was taken from us recently. Thank goodness, he was found.” Azrael waved his hand out again, this time to our right.

Machar, Slainidh, and Alexander stepped out on the walk, Machar holding Alex in his arms. Alex cringed back from the humans, but Machar whispered something to him and the boy looked out at the crowd dubiously.

“He doesnt understand that youre here out of kindness, not hatred,” Machar said in his booming voice. “Humans have not treated us well. We are not your kind of beautiful.”

Oh, what perfect words to say in the most perfect way. A ripple of sympathy ran through the crowd. Those there who had ever been looked down on, felt ugly, or just not enough, responded to that. People called out Alexanders name. They waved their hands and signs that read things like, “All children are love,” “Children are Miracles, not Monsters,” and “We love you, Alex!”

Then someone started singing. They sang that damn song to Alex, and I bent forward with the rush of my tears as I watched Alex stare at the humans in shock. Then he started to sway to the music. Then bounce. He patted at his fathers shoulder until Machar put him down on the walls ledge. Alexander, that little boy with a Goblins face, started to dance slowly and sweetly.

The humans lost their minds over it.

Phones were already filming this, but I noticed some professional cameras among the crowd and knew Alexs dance would be all over the news. With perfect timing, the other Wild Magic children came out on the wall walk—some with their parents and some with their temporary guardians. We got most of the abandoned Wild Fey kids adopted by faeries, but new ones arrived all the time, many just left at the gates. Those kids were the wariest, staring at a crowd of strangers who looked like the parents who had abandoned them.

You gotta understand; the Wild Magic kids were older now, so it wasnt like a mother leaving a bundled-up baby at a hospital. These people had tried to raise their kids and, for whatever reason, decided they couldnt. The kids were left, usually in the middle of the night, with a suitcase, staring off after their fleeing parents with the dazed look of someone who had been tormented by nearly everyone they ever met. Now those same children were faced with a horde of people who were not shouting nasty things at them. They were the most endearing. The kids waving at the crowd were sweet, but it was those hanging back, the scared ones, who made the biggest impact. I could see it on those human faces. Cameras focused on those kids. Didnt they always? Why photograph a dancing child when you could get a shot of a wounded one?

Azrael winked at me, then slid away to gather those shy ones and bring them forward. With his wings around them, he addressed the crowd again. “These are our newest additions to the family. Weve got them a little later than the others, so theyve known only scorn from humans. They didnt have us to raise them and teach them that theyre special. So, I hope you understand their fear.”

A woman in the front started to cry. It spread like wildfire until people were waving and weeping, calling out words of love to the rejected children, words those kids should have been hearing their whole lives but hadnt. The outpouring of kindness was enough to bring the children forward. One, a boy with vines growing out of his skin and hair, peered over the wall and waved tentatively. The crowd cheered for him, and his vines trembled.

“Thank you,” I called out. “Thank you for seeing them for who they are at last. They are magical children. So special and beautiful. There will be no others like them ever again. And that can make them feel alone, but tonight youve shown them that they arent alone. That the world isnt against them. You are with them!”

The crowd cheered, and the children smiled. I glanced over and saw my husbands come up the stairs, Odin among them. His expression was grim. They joined me as Azrael took over again, milking this for all it was worth. Were we exploiting these kids for peace? Yup, but it was for their benefit too. And peace was worth a little exploitation.

“So, I was right?” I whispered as the men reached me.

Odin nodded. “Its gone. Nothing else was taken. Only the condenser.”

“Well, at least theyve given us this.”

“What are you talking about?” Re asked.

I blinked. “I . . .” Then the memory surfaced from the confusion. “The trickster,” I whispered. “He told me he was doing this to advance the human race.”

“Yeah, you said that,” Viper said.

“No, she didnt,” Odin leaned in. “She said the trickster was doing this for the humans, not to advance the race.”

“Big diff.” Viper rolled his eyes.

“It is,” Odin said. “Go on, Vervain.”

“He said that Id thank him when it was over. That we wouldnt have human groups bothering us anymore. Theyd see that we were strong but not a threat.” I nodded out toward the crowd. “And here we are. He was right.”

“Damn,” Kirill said. “It vorked.”

“What worked?” Viper asked.

“The games.” Trevor smacked Viper in the arm. “The trickster led us around and stole from us, but he also won us the sympathy of the world.”

“Not all the world,” Viper huffed. “It cant be all the world.”

“No, but more of it. Hopefully, enough of it,” I said. “I dont think we have to worry about humans anymore.”

My husbands drew in around me and stared out at the thousands of people who had come all this way just to sing a few songs and wave at the children. This was big. And they were only the people who could get to Lexington on short notice. All around the world, public opinion on Azrael and everything he stood for was changing. Just like the trickster promised.

But I couldnt help feeling as if there was something important I still hadnt remembered.