Goddess of Death (Death #8)

Chapter 1

LILY

Callum guided me through the underworld, staying off the main trails through the forest as we approached mountains I couldn’t see. Whenever someone passed nearby, we ducked for cover and remained silent until they were gone.

His grip on my hand never lessened, as if the danger still wasn’t over.

We stopped several times before I felt the incline beneath my feet, felt us travel upward as the trees thinned. Callum seemed to know the way by heart because he navigated the terrain without the aid of any kind of light.

Then I spotted the flames of a small torch in the distance.

“There,” Callum said quietly. He guided me into the cave entrance and grabbed the torch from where he’d left it leaning up against the mountainside.

He held it high as he entered the cave, illuminating a narrowed passageway farther into the rock.

The cavern eventually widened and heightened, turning into a spacious place.

Then I spotted it across the space—the door made of bones.

He approached the door and gripped the handle. “We have to sneak behind the skull rock. No talking.”

I nodded.

He opened the door, and immediately, the light of the sun poured through…along with the sea air and the breeze.

In that single breath, I felt alive again.

He stepped through first and pulled me with him before he shut the door behind us. Then he led the way again, placing his finger to his mouth so I wouldn’t speak.

I nodded in understanding.

He moved out of the mouth of the skull first, and his boots hit the sand.

Then I saw Viper standing there in his full armor and uniform, his cape catching in the breeze, eyes focused hard on Leviathan in front of him, like he was doing his best not to look at us.

“I’ve considered your deal, and I think it’s unfair,” Viper said without a hint of emotion.

“Aw, that’s too bad,” Leviathan said with full mockery. “Makes me so sad you feel like you aren’t getting a good deal.”

Callum grabbed my hand and pulled me with him to make sure I didn’t lag behind.

I had no idea why Viper was there or speaking to Leviathan.

Their conversation faded as we crossed the line of torches and moved farther behind the rock.

Callum pulled me close, and we remained still, waiting for their conversation to finish.

His intense eyes were glued to my face like they used to, staring at me as if he was thoroughly entertained just by my expression.

His hand was still in mine as his eyes roamed over my features with a bout of emotion that was as clear as words on a page.

Footsteps were audible a moment later, like they were retreating from the rock, not toward its center.

Callum nodded before he pulled me with him, sticking to the trees in complete silence. We walked for ten minutes before he turned and made his way toward the center of the island, as if he and Viper had agreed on a meeting place before he’d come to the underworld to retrieve me.

I spotted his black armor through the dead mist that hovered around the trees. Felt his uncomfortable and desperate energy even a great distance away. We drew closer, and then his face came into view, his eyes panicked but trying to hide it at the same time.

The sight of him launched a thousand tears. “Dad…”

His eyes shifted to me when he heard my voice, and they were still for just a second before they mirrored mine. Glossy and emotional and tinting red at the edges.

I broke away from Callum and sprinted to my father, his arms opening to catch me when I landed against his chest.

His arms immediately enveloped me, and he squeezed me the hardest he ever had, sucking in the most painful breath I’d ever heard him take.

“Zunieth…” Even through his chest plate, I could feel the expansion of his lungs because of how labored his breaths became.

His tears were audible for a moment, like he was grieving at my funeral rather than rejoicing at our reunion.

“Lily…” His voice broke when he said my name, the tears in his throat.

I felt terrible for what I’d done to him. Felt terrible when he’d already lost a daughter once. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever be able to forgive myself for torturing him like this, when he’d already been such a great father to me. “I’m so sorry.”

He clenched me harder and continued to cry.

“I’m sorry for everything I said to you.”

“You never have to earn my forgiveness, Lily. It’s always freely given.” He pulled away to look at me, his cheeks stained with tears he was unafraid to show. “And I should have listened to you. I’m sorry I didn’t.”

“You don’t have to earn my forgiveness either, Dad,” I said through my tears.

His eyes watered a little harder at that, and he pulled me in to press a kiss to my forehead. “You’re my world. My sea, my sky, and my sun.” He let me go, drawing a sharp breath to bring his emotions back to the ground. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Dad.”

His eyes looked me over, seeing me in the black dress and the crown. “You look okay.”

“Yeah, I’m unharmed. I’ll tell you about it later.” I turned to see Viper join us. He didn’t express his emotions in his stare the way Callum and my father did, but his relief was palpable in the air around him.

I walked up to him, unsure how I should greet him, considering he and Callum were both in the same place…at the same time. A hug felt too intimate since I’d slept with him in the past. “Thank you for your part in this.”

“I’m glad you’re okay.” He didn’t seem offended that I didn’t touch him or show him a grand display of tears. “I wasn’t sure if this plan was going to work, and I’m relieved that it has.”

“A more extensive conversation will have to wait,” Callum said from behind me.

“We need to get off this island as quickly as possible in case we draw attention from Leviathan. Let’s go.

” Callum took the lead and directed us toward the opposite end of the island, where my ship had landed all those months ago.

Zehemoth’s voice was loud in my head when I approached. Sunieth. He started to tremble and shake, a dragon’s form of crying.

I ran to him and cupped his snout with my palms. “I’m so sorry, Zehemoth.”

Tell me you’re okay.

“I’m absolutely okay.” I dipped my head to his and pressed a kiss to his hard scales. “But we have to go. We’ll catch up when we get back.” I climbed onto his back and then watched Callum climb behind me like he’d ridden a dragon many times.

My father and Viper shared Khazmuda, and we launched into the sky, leaving the dead island in the middle of the dead sea where it belonged.

Viper had ridden behind me in the past, and he hadn’t touched me, even though we’d been close together in the saddle.

But Callum hooked his thick arm over my ribs and held me close to his chest, while his other arm held the horn of the saddle, keeping me caged in like he was afraid I might fall off… but he just wanted to hold me.

He would dip his head and press a kiss to my shoulder from time to time, whenever the wind flapped my hair in the other direction.

At full speed, the air was loud and it was difficult to talk, but we somehow made love in fully clothed silence, his mouth kissing the shell of my ear or my exposed shoulder when the strap of my dress fell down.

I couldn’t believe I was on the back of a dragon with Callum…and we were both mortals…and now we would live out the rest of our lives together like we had only allowed ourselves to dream.

When we landed in the courtyard, my mother and brother were already waiting for us, Khazmuda probably sharing the news on the journey.

Khazmuda landed first, and my father and Viper dismounted. When Zehemoth tried to land, my mother ran up to us and nearly got herself crushed underneath Zehemoth’s massive claw in her desperate attempt to get to me.

I barely made it down Zehemoth’s side when she rushed me, grabbing me hard in her arms and sobbing into my cheek. “No wife or mother should ever suffer what I’ve just suffered.” She squeezed me tightly before she let me go, her eyes filled with the same tears my father had just shed.

Hawk walked up to us, his eyes looking me over for injuries and bruises before he seemed to relax. “You okay?”

“Yeah.”

My mother let me go, her hand stroking down the back of my hair.

“I’m glad you’re back.” He moved into me and gave me a hug, something we did far more often in the last few months than we had our entire lives. He gave me an awkward pat on the back before he let me go.

“Thanks. Me too.”

“I’m so glad this story is over,” my mother said. “We can be a family again. Have dinner together, watch the sunsets, mourn who we’ve lost.”

I was glad to be home and reunited with my family, but there was only one person I wanted to spend my time with right now.

My eyes moved to Callum, who stood off on his own in the distance, like he didn’t deserve to be part of the conversation.

Viper also kept his distance, but in a whole different area.

Callum and I had never really been together, and I’d actually spent more time with my family than I had with him.

But I knew they were anxious to see me and be with me, and it felt wrong to leave them to spend time with someone else.

My father, of all people, deserved my company more than anyone else.

But I watched my dad glance over at Callum before he looked at me again. “You’ve been through a lot, and I’m sure you need some time…so let’s have dinner tomorrow.”

My mother looked over at Callum like she understood as well.

“With all of us,” he said. “Callum included.” He looked at my mother and gave a slight nod before he walked toward the castle.

She went with him, and after my brother exchanged a nod with Callum, he walked away too.

Now it was just Callum, Viper, and me.

The three of us.

Alone.

Callum silently dismissed himself and headed to my old villa, correctly assuming that was where we’d make our home. He passed the potted olive trees and the garden and then disappeared behind the edge of the building.

I moved to Viper, completely unsure of what I should say in light of our circumstances. “I’m not sure how you got mixed up in this…”

“Your father needed someone to distract Leviathan, and he feared if it were someone Leviathan were more acquainted with, it would raise suspicion. So I told Leviathan I wanted to free you for a price, engaging with him long enough for Callum to get you out of there. The other option was to open the portal, but Callum said this was the better idea.”

“Yeah, it was.” There had been no casualties, and I’d slipped out of there before Leviathan even knew I was gone. “They flew all the way to your kingdom?”

He nodded. “Asked for my help—and of course, I agreed.” Now that it was just him and me together, he was more himself. A slight smile in his eyes, a comforting aura in his presence. “I was disturbed when they told me you were down there. I can’t even imagine what it was like.”

“Yeah, it wasn’t a picnic on a beach.” I crossed my arms over my chest, feeling the tinge of cold wind blow over the cliffs now that the sun was gone. “I appreciate what you did. Truly.”

He nodded. “I’d do anything for you…but you already know that.”

“I’m not sure what I’ve done to earn such loyalty from you.”

He smirked slightly. “It’s definitely not loyalty that you’ve earned from me.” He stared at me with a slight playfulness in his eyes, but it slowly faded. “I still think I’m the right choice. And I think you should reconsider. I saved you out of love—and he did so out of obligation.”

“I think he did it out of both, Viper.”

“You shouldn’t have traded places with him. You didn’t deserve that—”

“It’s him, Viper.” I was gentle and kind in my rejection because Viper had been a great ally and a great friend.

He’d risked himself to save me more than once now.

He deserved my respect and gratitude for the rest of time.

“You’re a great man and a great lover and I’d be lucky to have you, but he has my heart. ”

With a stony expression, he accepted my words without a hint of disappointment. “I understand.”

“I’m forever grateful to you.”

“You owe me for sending three hundred ships to your aid because it came at a great personal cost.” He shook his head slightly. “But you don’t owe me for this.”

“Viper…” I didn’t know what else to say. I’d had men come and go in my life, but I’d never had two perfect men at the same time. “Any other time, I would have been so excited to have two sexy men fighting for my attention, but I think those days are behind me.”

He smirked at my words, pulled out of the seriousness of the moment by my little joke. “I don’t think those days are behind me. Not by a long shot.”

Now I smiled and I meant it, because when he felt better, I felt better.

“You know where to find me if you need me…or if anything changes.”

“I know.”

He seemed like he was going to move in and hug me but quickly changed his mind. “I’ll leave in the morning. Been traveling a lot the last few days.” He turned around and began to head back to the castle. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight.” I watched him go, watched his cape shift behind him as his muscular shoulders moved.

When he was almost at the castle, I turned around and headed home.