CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

A gentle caress on my cheek is what woke me, sparks igniting under my skin. I forced my heavy lids to open, my eyes swollen from all the crying I had done throughout the night.

“Good morning, princess,” Elias spoke gently, calmingly. I slowly pushed myself up into a sitting position, but severe pain caused me to groan. Elias flinched slightly as I brushed my fingers against the burn marks that wrapped around my arms.

A low growl caused me to look up. Elias’s eyes darkened into something lethal.

“I will kill her, Aura. I promise you that.”

“And you have every right to,” I answered. I reached up and pulled back the collar of his tunic, revealing a burn scar that was poking through. My heart shattered at the thought of what Elias had to go through. I was tortured for only a few minutes. Elias was tortured for weeks at a time…for the last three hundred years.

A tear slipped down my cheek, and Elias frowned. “It’s all over now,” he said reassuringly, but I still felt sick to my stomach.

“Aura, your uncle…his body won’t be well preserved by the time we reach Rimor.”

My fists clenched and my throat suddenly felt dry. My uncle was dead. He was only protecting me, and it got him killed. He would have won his battle with Volund – did win , and even had Volund discard his knives. But Sarai torturing me distracted Balor enough that he didn’t check Volund for hidden weapons, or strike him down. He was too focused on saving me, only for Volund to throw a knife at his back. The fucking snake.

I shook my head, trying to clear the memory. “Maybe we can take him back to the village. Maybe Willow can slow the…decay.” I nearly choked on the word.

“Even if we made it there quickly enough, I’m not sure Daegon will welcome us,” Elias answered.

He was right. The chieftain barely allowed us in and was more than happy to see us go. If we showed up with a dead body, I was certain we’d never be welcomed back.

There was a long silence between us before Elias spoke again.

“I think we should bury him here. We can always come back later and then bring him home.”

When he’s nothing but bones , I thought, and my chest tightened. But even then, Balor still deserved a proper Rimorian burial. Would my father even allow it?

I sighed heavily. “You’re right. At least we know he’ll be safe here. Unbothered.”

Elias dipped his head.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered.

The lycan’s eyes narrowed. “For?”

“I know it’s not just the physical pain you can feel. I know you’re drowning in my sorrows too. I wish I could hold it in so you don’t have to suffer through it with me.”

Another tear fell down my cheek and Elias brushed it away with his thumb. “I will endure anything and everything if it means I get to have you as a mate. You will never have to endure anything alone again.”

I gave a weak smile which was soon met with Elias’s lips. I melted into them, wanting nothing more than for him to take away all the pain. All the heartache. And I knew he would if he could.

When we pulled away, Elias left to start digging the temporary grave, leaving me to roam my thoughts in silence. I sat there for a moment, trying to take everything in. I focused on single memories of my mother – ones that used to come to me in a haze. Now they were more vivid, with no missing pieces.

Every interaction with her where she used a spell, where I used my powers, or where we talked about anything immortal-related was completely hidden from me until yesterday. I felt as if I was learning who she was all over again. Who I was. And it felt both exhausting and devastating.

Of course I understood why she did it – why she decided to wipe my memory and bind my powers. But it still felt like a betrayal. A piece of me was missing for over a decade because she hid it from me. I had always felt it in my soul and yet could never make sense of it. I couldn’t help but resent that.

“People can’t know what you’re capable of, my darling Aurelia. They will want to use you for your powers. Use you as a weapon.” She told this to me often. I was not allowed to use my powers outside of castle grounds.

The day that I did, I was found. And my mother was killed.

I choked back a breath. I still didn’t know who took her life, but now I was starting to realize it definitely had something to do with me.

“Aura,” Elias’s voice broke through my thoughts. He peered his head around the entrance of the hut. “Are you alright?”

I swallowed. “I’m okay,” I lied. And he knew it.

“I’m just about done. Come out and join me.”

I exited the small hut and followed Elias to the gravesite. “How are you almost done? It’s only been a few minutes.”

The corners of his mouth drew upwards. “It helps when you have claws.”

Then right before my eyes, the handsome man before me began shifting. The transformation looked painful – the way his bones and limbs contorted into an entirely new shape. But it was over in seconds. Then the huge wolf trotted over to the large hole in the ground and continued digging.

It was still hard to believe that the wolf I had been seeing in my dreams was real. Not only real, but he was my mate. If someone were to tell me months ago that this would happen, I would have laughed in their face.

But now, it made so much sense. The wolf chased me through the forest in an attempt to devour me, just as Elias was sent to kill me. But then, at the last second, the beast hesitated. And what I thought was a human stopping the wolf from ending me turned out to be Elias stopping himself. What a cruel joke from the gods, to give me such a subtle hint of my fate.

I watched in awe and admiration as Elias pawed at the earth, creating a hole big enough for a body in such a short time. When he was done, he shifted back, his claws replaced with fingers that were now caked with mud and dirt.

He went and carried Balor out of one of the broken buildings. Elias had wrapped him up in an old sheet which was now stained red with my uncle’s blood. But I was grateful that I didn’t have to look at his wounds again. Or his eyes that were now permanently closed.

Elias lowered Balor into the grave, and I said a few short words, promising my uncle’s spirit that we would be back for him one day so he could be buried where he belonged. And with that, we left Zolmara.

It took way less time to get through the wards on the way out. The spells from the witches pushed us away from Zolmara more quickly, like they were happy to see us go. I wondered how easy it would be to get back in now that I had my powers back.

Or did I? As we walked through the Forest of Torment, I tried to use my powers to slice through thick foliage – tried to ignite my hands in energy flames like I had just done the day before. But I couldn’t conjure my magic again.

I remembered the waterfall, and how a flame sparked deep beneath the water. At the time, I thought it was the gods, but I was beginning to realize that my powers had surfaced then, if only for a brief moment. It shouldn’t have been possible with my mother binding my powers. But maybe my love for Elias was stronger than the power of her spell. Or maybe the gods had intervened after all. It seemed I would never truly know.

“Your body is readjusting to the magic,” Elias told me after I continued to try, and fail, to reconjure my powers. “Give it time.”

And time I had, now that I knew I was going to live forever.

“You are immortal, not invincible.” Another assurance from Elias. “You can still die, you just won’t age. At least, not for a long, long time. Remember that.”

I huffed. It wasn’t like I was going to go around and test my newfound immortality. I wasn’t planning on staring death in the face any time soon. I had had enough of that recently.

Immortality… such a strange and baffling concept. How long was I going to live, exactly? At what age would I be considered old? How could I possibly live through all of my human friends aging around me? Rose. Max. Even Magda and Nadia and Gabriel. They’d grow old and gray while I remain the way I am. And then they’d die from that old age. It wasn’t fair.

I didn’t want to think about it anymore. But at least I would still have Elias through it all. I wondered what his thoughts about his immortality were when he thought I was human. I would have grown old without him. Would he have given up his immortality like my mother had for my father? Would he need a witch’s help to do that?

My parents truly were in love with each other. I would give up immortality for Elias in a heartbeat, granted I’d barely gotten a taste of it. But thinking of what immortals would do for love had me considering Sarai’s admission. She thought Volund was the reincarnation of her dead husband, Malakai.

“Elias?” I asked as we walked. “Do you know anything about Sarai’s past? Before she went to Sprath?”

Elias paused. “I do remember some things,” he said. “Her story was actually somewhat well-known at the time.”

“What happened?”

“She came home one day to find her husband in bed with another woman. And in a jealous rage, she killed them both.”

My eyes widened. “What??”

He nodded. “She regretted what happened. They say it drove her mad. The elders decided to exile her, rather than execute her. I think they felt bad for her. She was very much in love with the prick. I can’t remember his name. I think it was…”

“Malakai.”

Elias froze. “How do you know that?”

“She told me, right before she almost drowned me. She told me she cursed his soul so it wouldn’t cross over, and instead be reborn. Then she forced a prophet to tell her who he would become, and they said Malakai would someday come back as a king of Sprath. She said when Volund was finally born, she knew it was him.”

Elias’s eyes darted in contemplation. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. She’s powerful enough to live through a curse.”

“What do you mean?”

“Curses are extremely dangerous for witches. Even if performed in numbers, the power needed to conjure a curse could, and most likely would, kill the witch or witches that perform it. Only the most powerful of witches could complete a curse and survive.”

“What differentiates a spell and a curse?”

“The soul,” Elias answered. “Spells can be used for harm. But only the magic of a curse can directly affect the soul.”

“Whoa…” was all I could think to say.

Elias nodded. “It all makes sense now. Why she fled to Sprath and worked with the other kings. Why she never acted as obsessed with them as she did Volund. I…I had no idea.”

“And now I’ve taken her husband from her. Again.”

My mate frowned. “She’ll be hellbent on revenge, Aura,” he said, and my heart stuttered. “But I will protect you, I promise. And we’ll stop her together.”

“Together,” I repeated. I only hoped he was right.

As we exited the wards, Elias led me to the closest road. Now that I didn’t have to fear being found, we could take the traveled roads and trails and cut our excursion by more than half. We would be in Rimor in less than two weeks. Even faster if we had the money to purchase a horse.

I joked about riding on Elias’s back in his wolf form. Of course that wasn’t an option, with the chance of someone seeing us being quite high. But if we could, I would bet we’d be back in Rimor within days.

I wondered if my father would be in Rimor waiting, or if he was still out looking for me. Maybe we could stop in Chatus for a room on the way back, and I could put a word out that I was heading home. Or maybe we’d bump into Rimorian soldiers before then.

But as the days went by, we had only come into contact with fellow travelers taking the roads between kingdoms. If only they knew about the fifth kingdom that hid in the shadows. What would everyone think?

I quickly decided that no matter when, where, or how I encountered my father next, I would tell him everything. I wasn’t going to keep secrets from him like he did from me, albeit he was spelled to do so. Even then, I had a feeling he would have kept everything from me anyway. I would do better. Be better. And I would not be the secluded daughter anymore. I would not let my father hide me away again.

I also wondered what was going to become of Sprath. Their king was dead, by my own hand. And he had no heir. Was there someone next in line for the throne? There had to be. I wondered who, and if they would be as despicable as their predecessor. And would Sarai go back and tell the kingdom that the Princess of Rimor killed their king? Would there be a war because of me?

“Aura.” Elias’s deep voice startled me out of my thoughts. We had been walking since dawn, and had just stopped for a short rest. As we sat on a fallen log just outside the trail, I became lost in thought.

“What’s bothering you?” Elias was sitting next to me, his hand on mine.

I attempted a smile, but it wasn’t genuine. “The same things that have been bothering me since we left Zolmara,” I admitted. “Mostly I’m nervous about seeing my father. Telling him about Balor. ”

I was still grieving. Would my father grieve over the brother he exiled?

Elias moved his arm to wrap around me. The energy and warmth from the closeness eased every tension I had been holding. He was incredibly gentle, careful not to brush against my still-healing burns. I wished all immortals had healing abilities, not just lycans.

“You will not have to face him alone,” my mate assured me as he gently stroked my hair. My body relaxed at the pleasure it brought me.

“I know,” I answered back, leaning my head on his broad shoulder.

Elias turned, and a strong, calloused hand gently pressed against my cheek. I looked up to meet his golden eyes, and he pulled me in for a kiss. The taste of him on my lips was a luxury I would never take for granted.

When we broke away, he smiled. “Who knew I would fall in love with a mythic?”

I grinned. “You mean the mythic women of your era weren’t your type?”

“I didn’t think I had a type until I met you.”

“And what type would that be?”

Elias pulled me into him so fast, a small squeal escaped me. Next thing I knew I was straddling his lap, our faces only inches apart.

“Smart. Courageous. Adventurous. Strong. Stubborn.”

I smacked him on the shoulder with that last one and he laughed – a beautiful, angelic noise that I would never tire of.

“And needless to say, absolutely breathtaking.”

Heat filled my cheeks, and I kissed him. We continued that way for a while, enjoying the taste of each other. Enjoying the ecstasy each touch created due to the mating bond.

Elias pulled away, the taste of him still on my tongue. I opened my eyes to see him looking at me with such intensity in his golden irises, I thought I did something wrong.

“We will figure this all out, Aura. Your father. Your powers. Sarai. Everything we have to face in this life, we will face together.”

I bit my lower lip anxiously, still tasting his sweet breath. “How do you know?”

Elias’s mouth turned up and his eyes tightened. “Fate.”

A laugh burst out of me that I wasn’t expecting. “The damned gods and their fate.”

Elias pulled me in and kissed my jawline, my neck, my collar bone. I shivered.

“Fate brought me to you, remember?” he said, continuing his trail of kisses down my shoulder.

“And you think fate will keep us together?” I nearly gasped between words as each kiss brought little eruptions of hot energy that flowed through my skin.

He paused. “We don’t need fate for that. I am yours and you are mine, from now until the end of our days. But I think fate has a lot more in store for you and me than we ever imagined.”

I contemplated this for a short moment. “And we’ll face all of it together.” I repeated his earlier words.

My mate, the man – and wolf – of my dreams, smiled. “Together. ”