Chapter Eight
“Are you ready?”
Zander wrapped his arms around Kami from behind as they stood between the parted waterfall on the cliff outside their lair. She loved the view from up there since it allowed them to see the entire island.
In truth, he had missed seeing the In Between in all its glory while he had been cursed. Admiring the quiet beauty of the island was one of his few joys in life. But now, it was even better being able to share it with his mate.
Kami let out a heavy sigh. “I guess so.”
He was well aware that his mate had mixed emotions about their impending return to the Fae Realm.
On one hand, she eagerly anticipated reuniting with Jackie, Micah, and Crispin.
However, beneath her excitement was a sense of apprehension about the inevitable flood of questions that awaited them upon their arrival.
They were going to have plenty of questions about him.
He was prepared to deal with that. What he wouldn’t tolerate was anyone coming between him and his mate, though.
Of course, they would be a little uneasy about him being mated to Kami.
That was a natural response considering who he was and what had happened to bring about his return.
But he didn’t want anyone to undermine her choices or belittle her feelings.
That would be a grave mistake.
Zander understood that his presence would stir curiosity, suspicion, and perhaps even resentment amongst her family and friends. He didn’t care about the rumors and whispers that inevitably followed in his wake. That was to be expected considering his rather ominous reputation.
Some might question his intentions, while others would fear the consequences of his bond with Kami.
A few might even harbor old grudges or prejudices from the time before the curse.
Yet, he was more than willing to face the barrage of inquiries and confront the skepticism head-on in order to prove his loyalty to Kami and her family.
However, what he refused to accept was anyone undermining their relationship.
Kami’s happiness and well-being came before all else.
As far as he was concerned, the only thing that mattered was their bond and the future they intended to share together.
But he understood that she was more sensitive to criticism and censure.
She might pretend it didn’t bother her, but that wasn’t true.
She just protected herself with a shield of indifference and humor, even if it meant hiding her pain.
But now, he would protect her.
He would be her defender, her shield, and when needed, he would be her sword.
The problem was, she was more worried about his feelings than her own. She flew into a rage just thinking about someone insulting him. As his mate, she was ready and willing to go to war for him, and it was humbling to realize he had a fierce little protector of his own.
Life would never be boring with her by his side.
For their visit to the Fae Realm, Kami had dressed him in a pair of black jeans, a black shirt, and a long camel-colored cardigan sweater.
He also had on a pair of comfortable black combat boots, which were his new favorite footwear.
With his shoulder-length black hair pulled back in a stubby ponytail, she said he looked more like a cool professor than an ancient god.
Zander wasn’t sure what that meant, but as long as it pleased her, he would wear anything she chose for him. He knew she was trying to make him look less intimidating for his visit with her family, but he feared there was little chance of actually accomplishing that.
Kami had originally dressed herself in a black turtleneck and jeans with her own pair of red and black combat boots.
When he realized she had deliberately covered up the mating mark on her neck, he’d scowled about it through their morning meal.
He didn’t say anything, but after she noticed his reaction, she’d immediately changed into a different sweater that showed off the mark.
Keeping his tone deliberately light, he said, “You don’t have to worry about someone saying something that offends me.
I know your family and friends are simply watching out for you.
They are bound to be a little skeptical at first, but they will soon realize you are safe with me and that they no longer need to protect you.
That is my exclusive privilege from now on. ”
Leaning back against him, she sighed again. “I know, it’s just…we’re a loud, emotional, sometimes obnoxious bunch. People are used to treating you with deference and respect—”
“That’s fear,” he corrected dryly.
She laughed. “Okay, fair enough. I know I’m being silly. I have an active imagination, and I’m getting myself worked up over nothing. Just ignore me.”
“Never.” Leaning down, he pressed his lips against her temple.
Over the past few days, their relationship had grown by leaps and bounds.
While they did little besides make love, eat, and sleep wrapped around one another, the rest of their precious time together was spent talking, laughing, and sharing secrets.
He knew she was still a little worried about the generational differences between them, but the rest of Kami’s concerns didn’t seem to be posing a problem.
While they had been otherwise occupied, Mali and Rufus had been busy using a scrying mirror to collect the information Zander needed about his enemies.
He had been fairly disappointed to learn that most of the people who had been involved in the curse were already dead, but the ones who were still alive wouldn’t be for much longer.
Six powerful supernaturals had been needed for the spell to break the seal.
The apex alpha jaguar shifter, the fairy, the witch, and the fae prince who had participated in the ritual were all dead.
The shifter, witch, and fae prince had died instantly, their bodies burned to ash by the intense backlash of the curse.
The fairy was lucky enough to survive, but that didn’t mean he escaped unscathed.
The powerful spell had drained his magic, leaving him nothing more than an empty husk.
He thought being the queen’s cousin would keep him safe, but he was very wrong about that.
Once the Fairy Queen discovered what he’d done, she executed him.
Zander had to admire fairy justice for being swift and impartial.
The last two supernaturals who had participated in the ritual were a reaper named Amon, and Somni, the God of Slumber. Although those supernaturals were powerful in their own rights, they had merely been greedy pawns used by Famine, the main architect of the plan.
According to the reports, Amon and Somni were doing a pretty good job at laying low.
After their plan had failed, Amon had disappeared.
Since then, there had only been a few sightings of him.
Some people thought he was dead, while others claimed he had decided to move to the Human Realm to live as one of them.
It was more difficult to get accurate information from the Celestial Realm. There were rumors that the God of Slumber had fallen asleep for centuries before any of his fellow celestials had even noticed he wasn’t around. Zander suspected that was simply an excuse for him hiding somewhere.
Both of those bastards were living on borrowed time, but Zander was going to rectify that very soon.
If the ritual had worked the way it was meant to, all six of the supernaturals would have died when the seal was broken.
Obviously, they hadn’t been told that part of the plan.
Since four of the six had died, their blood sacrifice had been enough to trap Zander and the other reapers in a magical slumber for centuries.
Zander was relieved that he and the other reapers had been able to complete the transfer of the seal to the In Between before he had succumbed to the curse. He was also grateful no one else had figured out another way to break the seals while he’d been gone.
Not a lot of people knew about what had happened back then.
Hellfire, most people didn’t even know the seals existed, which was probably for the best. Kami had mentioned that even the story of the missing reapers had faded with time, becoming little more than a myth amongst the older supernaturals.
Zander understood that some secrets were better left buried, especially when the consequences of exposure could put countless lives at risk.
From the information Mali and Rufus had gathered, there had been no sign of Death or Famine in all the time Zander had been away. That made him highly suspicious. Two Horsemen couldn’t just disappear without a trace.
He would find them. No matter what, he wouldn’t rest until he figured out what had happened to them.
Even after all this time, he wasn’t sure what to think about Death’s disappearance.
At this point, he could be a victim or a perpetrator.
That wasn’t clear yet. However, Famine was guilty.
There was absolutely no doubt about that.
And when Zander found him, there would be a reckoning.
Since word had spread about his return, Mali and Rufus had already started receiving tons of invitations to events, congratulations on his mating, and requests for audiences.
He’d told them to ignore everything for now.
The only things he cared about were spending time with Kami, tracking down and dealing with his enemies, and making sure the seals were secure.
But first, he needed to meet his mate’s family.
While Kami was worried that Jackie, Micah, and Crispin would have a difficult time accepting him into the family, he wasn’t the least bit concerned. Even if they didn’t approve, if they loved Kami, they would learn to tolerate him.
“I want to show you something before we go.”