Chapter 36
THIRTY-SIX
Think, Minnie, think. What else had Wyn said?
Blood will tell .
Does that mean red? Red like blood?
I glance at the reddish thread, but then there’s also the pink one and depending on the angle the light hits, the first one becomes more pink and the second one more red.
Fantastic. How in the Source can I tell them apart—if red is even the one I should be cutting.
I should go back and ask Lord Groyo to tell me which one to cut. But as I glance at my timer, I realize I’m rapidly running out of time, and I need to spare at least a minute to make sure Groyo forgets all about our interaction today.
With no other choice but to gamble, I take a deep breath and materialize my ice dagger. The blade hovers between the pink and red threads, which shift from one color to the other almost in a hypnotizing manner.
I conjure up Mine’s face and the warmth of his body against mine, and as I glance again at the threads, I see a stronger flicker of red.
I cut.
The snap is soundless. At first, the thread breaks in two. But within moments, those half-threads twist and turn in the air before heading straight to me. I stumble back, accidentally hitting some other threads, but I’m not too quick to react as the shimmery half-threads hit me in the chest simultaneously in the same place, just above my heart.
My breath is knocked out of my body and I fall to my knees, wheezing as I struggle for air.
The pain is sharp and lingering.
I press my palm against my chest and a tingling sensation starts spreading all over my body.
Images flash before my eyes, swift and relentless, but I can’t make sense of any of them. There’s only a sense of dread developing deep inside my chest. Panic rises within me until I’m a chaotic mess of fear and anxiety.
A deep breath, and it’s gone.
I exhale slowly, still reeling from the attack. The thread I’d cut is gone, and so are the other tiny connections tying it to the other threads.
I struggle to get to my feet, but I sway from side to side, barely able to get my bearings together.
Something else shimmers behind me, a foreign thread that I’d bumped into and that now coils around my arm in a suffocating vise.
I look around, but I cannot detect its origin. It’s not like the others, clustered together and intertwined with each other.
This one is solitary. A deep blue seeps into my skin as it continues to vine over my shoulder and around my neck.
Suddenly, it tightens, cutting my air flow.
I grip it with both hands in an attempt to wrench it away from me, but it only grows tighter and tighter.
I cough and wheeze as my breath slowly leaves me. With all the energy I can muster, I focus it around the thread, freezing it.
With a small pull, it shatters all around me, falling to the ground in a myriad of icicles that dissolve into dust.
I’m lightheaded. My throat aches from the pressure. But as I note the ticking clock by my side, the sobering realization that I have mere minutes before the rune runs its course springs me into action.
I flash myself back to the hallway.
Lord Groyo is still on the ground, unmoving.
His eyes widen when he sees me.
“You will forget that I went through that door and interfered with the fates. You will only remember that I came to bring you food as gratitude. You ate the food and enjoyed it and then I was on my way. You will not remember that I did anything forbidden.”
“Yes,” he answers, his eyes blanking.
As the time elapses, he regains mobility of his body and he stands up. He blinks as he looks at me.
“Thank you for the food, Lady Minerva. I enjoyed it.”
“I am happy to hear that, Lord Groyo,” I add with a smile. “I will be on my way now. Good day.”
“Good day to you too.”
I turn my back and leave, doing my best to stay calm even though my heart is racing in my chest.
Only once I am safely out of the House of Moirai can I let my guard down and let out a sigh of relief.
I did it.
I cut the thread.
I…
The enormity of what I did hits me with a staggering intensity. Doubts crawl inside my mind as I ask myself if I did the right thing.
I took the words of a stranger as gospel and in my desperation to rid myself of this unwanted fate, I did the unthinkable, the forbidden.
If word gets out about this, I will not only be imprisoned but most definitely sentenced to death.
Did I just gamble away my future? Or did I free myself of the past?
Yet even as these thoughts plague me, the reality is that what is done is done. I cannot undo it.
If I’ll be punished for it…then so be it. As long as I can be with Mine for the rest of his days—and beyond—this is a risk I am willing to take.
A while ago, I agonized over a small rule break. Now look at me, disregarding all rules. And though I’m afraid of the consequences, I cannot bring myself to regret my decisions.
Ultimately, they all led me closer to him.
Mentally and physically exhausted, I return to my room at the palace, surprised to see my brother waiting for me.
He’s with his back to me, staring out the window, his hands at his back.
“What do you want, Kai? I’m not in the mood to argue.”
“I did not come to argue,” he states.
“Why did you come then?”
He turns, his eyes meeting mine.
“Are you…all right?”
My brows go up in shock.
“What…do you mean?”
“I’ve spoken with Father and he seems to favor a union with Cerenios. He thinks you’ve caught his eyes.”
“No,” I immediately reply. “That is to say he is mistaken.”
“Is he? He seemed quite sure. The Duchess of Sigmore even invited you personally to her banquet.”
“I think it’s a misunderstanding. What could Cerenios see in me?” I attempt a laugh.
He doesn’t share my amusement. His eyes are icy cold as he regards me intently.
“You would do well to stay away from Cerenios, Minerva. Theron is a good enough match for you.”
I blink in shock.
“Good enough? What is that supposed to mean?” I blurt out.
“You are misunderstanding me, Minerva.” He sighs.
“There is no misunderstanding. What, you think Cerenios is too good for me?” I step closer to him, folding my arms across my chest. “That the only male I’m worthy of is that pompous Theron?”
His lips flatten.
“Theron is safe,” he adds cryptically.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You should stay away from Cerenios, Minerva,” he starts but suddenly stops. “Knowing your nature, telling you to stay away from him will make it even more likely that you’ll do the opposite.”
“Damn right.”
His lips curl in a slight smile.
“Let us leave the rebellion for a moment and not antagonize every word I say. Think you can do that?”
“Depends on what you say.”
He curses under his breath.
“Cerenios is dangerous. The way he and Commander Azerius showed interest in you does not sit right with me. If he seeks you out, please try to avoid him, or only see him in a populated area so he cannot do anything.”
“By doing anything you mean…”
“I do not know yet. But something is strange and I do not like this sudden interest he has in you.”
I happen to know all too well what Cerenios wants, but to see my brother worried about me tells me the matter must be even more dire than I imagined.
“I see. I will take care. I happen to dislike him immensely.”
“Good. He is…not all bad but not good either. Despite working under Commander Azerius for so long, I still do not know much about Cerenios. The only other person he interacts with other than the commander is Aethon.”
“He was the other general in the room when I spoke with them, no?”
He nods.
“You don’t have to worry about Aethon. He is an honorary general who lends his skills in battle when there is need. But he does not like to get involved in politics or conflicts. He keeps to himself.”
“Thank you for the warning, Kai,” I add softly as I reach his side and press my hand against his arm. “You’re a good brother.”
His features tighten.
“Not as good as I would like to,” he whispers, his voice conflicted.
I open my mouth to assure him that I know he struggles drawing a line between duty and family, but I cannot utter a word because I feel a tight pressure in my heart.
My skin prickles with awareness, and a whoosh of air wafts past my ears.
I blink.
The moment my eyes open again, I am no longer in my room, nor is Kai next to me anymore.
It is dark. It’s never this dark in Aperion.
The ground is laden with heavy snow, the temperature in the air in the negatives—far too cold for humans to be out and about, especially in flimsy clothes. Yet that is exactly the case of tens of human males who work on clearing a path of snow, their clothes tattered, their boots almost soleless and full of holes.
I look around. There are barracks on each side of the ground, and in the distance there are security towers littered all around the area.
Light shines from the towers, the only glimmer of light in the otherwise dreary environment.
What is this? Where am I?
Barbed wire surrounds the barracks, a sign this is an entrapment of some kind.
I don’t even know what date it is in Anthropa or how long I’ve been gone. But by the looks of it, the war is far from over.
I pivot, cloaking my presence to the normal eye.
If I was teleported here without notice, there can only be one explanation.
He used my sigil.
“Mine?” I call out. Since he can see the spiritual world, my voice should be for his ears only.
More males move around the courtyard, some taking up shovels to clean the snow while others return to the warmth of the barracks.
“Mine?” I shout again, looking all around me.
So many people. All males. Even more inside the barracks. And they all look the same—haggard, tired, and cold.
Fear that Mine would be experiencing a similar fate grows in my breast, and I run around the area, my only purpose to find him.
As I go around one of the barracks, I finally come face-to-face with him. Or rather, with his blood dripping onto the white snow.
He’s wearing only a shirt, one of sleeves folded up his arm to reveal a bleeding wound—my sigil carved in his flesh.
My eyes instantly move up his body, scanning him for other injuries. He’s dirtier than I’ve ever seen him, smudges of coal all over his once white shirt, his collar, and face.
Yet, as he takes me in, his features suddenly light up.
I don’t waste a moment as I run toward him. He doesn’t waste a moment to open his arms.
And there I am, held tightly in his embrace, feeling him against my body.
He’s alive. That’s all that matters.
“Ouch,” he groans in a low voice. “Easy with my ribs.”
“You’re hurt?”
“Bruised. It will heal. Now that you’re here, nothing else matters.” He gives me his signature dashing smile that would usually have me melt on the spot. At this moment, however, I find myself rather put off with him.
“Why wouldn’t you call me earlier? What is this? Where are we?”
“Prisoner camp. My plane got shot down,” he adds casually.
“What? When?”
“A few months ago.”
“A few months ago?” I repeat in disbelief. “What did they do to you? Show me!”
“It wasn’t as bad as you’d think. A few beatings here and there,” he adds sheepishly.
“A few beatings here and there?” I echo. “Who? Show me who dared to lay a hand on you and I will make them regret it, Mine.”
“Easy, easy, Minnie. They’re human, remember? You can’t hurt humans.”
“I’ll make an exception,” I mumble.
I scan him from head to toe several times over to ensure that he is as I left him. Hear that! Someone dared touch my human? Hurt him?
Unacceptable.
“Why did you not call me until now?” I ask in outrage.
“I didn’t want to disturb you.”
“You…” I shake my head at him. “How could you even think that?”
“There, there. You’re here now, no?” he asks sweetly. “And just in time for the worst of it.”
“What do you mean?” I frown.
“There are rumors that the Soviets are heading toward us. They’re going to evacuate the camp soon.”
“Evacuate where?”
He shrugs.
“I don’t plan to be here for that.”
“You should have planned to not be here at all. Seriously, Mine, did the plane crash addle your brain?”
“Not the plane crash,” he murmurs, burying his nose in my hair. “Your absence. I’ve become an idiot since you left me, Minnie.”
“I can tell,” I mumble drily.
His chuckle vibrates against my ear.
“But I’m your idiot, no?” he adds in a suave voice, thinking that will diminish my anger.
“Of course you’re my idiot. Who else would have you?”
“You’re so magnanimous, tiny darling. Only you could deign to overlook my glaring faults.”
“At least you recognize your good luck,” I mumble.
He holds me even tighter in his arms, and I use my powers to shield him from the cold, covering him in a cocoon of warmth.
He sighs happily.
“I gather your powers are back?”
“Obviously,” I huff out. “And I am here to cure you of that idiocy. And save you, of course.”
“Of course. What would I do without my powerful goddess?”
“Good that you know it. Now we should leave. Come, I’ll teleport us to the base.”
I pull on his hand, but he remains frozen to the spot.
“We cannot. What will people think when they see me suddenly appear there?”
“That you were smart enough to escape?” I roll my eyes.
“Smart enough?” He raises a brow, the corners of his mouth curling up. “Until a few seconds ago, I was an idiot.”
“You’re both smart and an idiot, all right? And that’s all because you seem to lack any type of self-preservation. Which is why I am here.”
“I missed you, Minnie,” he whispers, his eyes locked on mine.
“You could have missed me less if you called me earlier,” I retort.
“I wanted you to have enough time to put your affairs in order. I hope you kicked that fiancé of yours to the curb.” Though still playful, his voice has a tense edge to it.
“It isn’t in my power to do so,” I start, and his body immediately tenses. “But consider him not only kicked to the curb but also thoroughly kicked in his curb,” I add proudly.
He blinks.
“Kicked in…his curb?” he repeats.
“Yes! You should have seen his face.” I let out an evil laugh.
“Do you mean you kicked his ass?”
“Same thing.” I wave my hand. “The ass is curbed.”
“It’s curved, Minnie, not curbed.”
I frown.
“Whatever. I kicked his curved ass. And it felt good.”
“I’m happy for you, tiny darling, but I’m not sure how I feel about you saying he has a curved ass. That would imply you looked at it and?—”
“What? Never!” I blurt out.
His lips tremble with mirth.
“Right, right.”
“Enough conversation about curbs and curves and whatnot. We need to leave.”
“Not back to the base, Minnie. I can’t afford to suddenly show up there. They will think I may have betrayed them and gotten help to get back. They will ask me exactly what route I took and how I got back and I will not be able to answer.”
“Then what do you propose we do?” I narrow my eyes at him.
“We wait until the evacuation—” Right at that moment, a loud alarm blares in the air. “Well, that was rather fortuitous.”
German soldiers demand that every prisoner come to the courtyard. The instructions are simple: they will march west and abandon the camp.
“They will call my name since I am a ranked officer. But when the march begins and we find ourselves close to the woods, I will give a signal and we can stealthily move out of the line.”
“Why can’t we just do it the simple way? That’s so complicated, Mine,” I cry out.
“I have a reputation to maintain, Minnie. Surely you of all people should understand that.”
I grind my teeth in frustration. He does have a point.
“So how will we return back to the base, then?”
“We won’t. We will make our way to France where my parents are and I will report to the U.S. officials there.”
“Damn it, Mine. You know I can only teleport to places I have been to before.”
Unless someone uses my sigil like he did, I can only go to places I have visited before.
“Once we get rid of the Germans, we’ll be on our own. Think of it as a road trip.”
I purse my lips as I consider his words. I don’t know how I feel about this so-called road trip .
“It will be just the two of us. No one will know our identities. We can be anyone we want.” He pauses, his eyes glinting dangerously. “We can be a married couple, husband and wife. No one will question your reputation.”
My eyes widen at his outrageous suggestion.
“What? Your wife? When did you even ask me? You are getting ahead of yourself, Mine. And don’t think this will give you liberties with my person,” I tell him sternly.
“I would never think of that, Minnie. God forbid I take advantage of you.”
“Good on you to know,” I say and cross my arms over my chest.
He drops to his knees in front of me on the cold ground, his eyes on mine.
“Will you have me, Minnie? Will you have this idiotic, feeble human who gives you so much trouble?”
My lashes flutter in surprise.
“Wha—”
“Will you have me as your male? I vow to always love and cherish you, to always put you first, above anyone and everyone else.”
“Mine, that is?—”
“Those two months elapsed, Minnie. Did I not win your heart? Even a little?”
I look away, a blush going up my cheeks.
“You did,” I whisper.
“Then be my female. And let me be your male.”
I gulp down. Slowly, I sink to my knees and join him on the ground.
Placing my hands against his cold cheeks, I cradle his face in my palms.
“You silly, silly male. I’ve been yours from the moment you called me Minnie,” I murmur, for that had also been the moment I started calling him Mine.
Leaning in, our breaths mingle for a split second before his lips are on mine in a kiss that makes my heart weep: of joy but also of sorrow because my love for him might be infinite, but our time together is not.
Yet even knowing the heartache that is to come, the punishment I’ll likely face, I cannot bring myself to part with him again.
Never again.