Chapter 15 #2
The man blinked several times. His expression shifted slowly as recognition began to settle in. He looked at Abram and me without interest at first. Then something in his gaze sharpened. He snapped his head back toward us and stared directly at me.
His eyes stayed fixed on me, wary and alert. Abram’s hand tightened around mine with immediate protectiveness when the man took a step closer. Thomas’ gaze dragged over me from head to toe, twice. His stare felt like cold fingers sliding along my skin.
“Oh, dear,” he whispered.
My heart clenched at the sound of his voice.
“Oh, gods above,” he muttered quietly.
“For fuck’s sake, old man, quit saying that,” Abram snapped.
The man looked at Abram and grinned. The smile revealed yellowed teeth.
“A god who walks among the mortals.” His tone was strange. It sounded like half awe and half judgment as he watched Abram.
Then he looked at Nate again. “Nate, we should take your friends to my home.” He turned back to him. “Do you remember where I live?”
“No, Uncle, I’ve not been here in gods know how long.”
Thomas sighed as if Nate had personally offended him.
“Fine. Follow me.” He motioned for us to come with him.
He moved up the street faster than I expected for someone so drunk. He slipped between people easily, almost too quickly, as if he suddenly remembered he had somewhere important to be. Nate fell behind to walk with us as we followed his uncle.
“Hopefully, this goes well. He is drunk.” Nate smiled at me. “I’m sure it will be fine though. Maybe because he is so drunk he will share more than he normally would.”
His attempt at reassurance did nothing to quiet the knot twisting beneath my ribs.
All of a sudden, his uncle was gone. We stopped and glanced around.
"Over here, children." We turned to the left, following his voice.
Thomas now stood beside a wooden door tucked into a shadowed alleyway. Just as he opened it, rain immediately began pouring down in a heavy sheet, and we rushed inside the small home. He stumbled in the dark for a moment before a single wall sconce flickered to life.
The space was tiny, barely larger than a single room. A bed sat in one corner, a couch directly in front of us, and a narrow kitchen was tucked against the opposite wall.
"Sorry for the mess. I was not expecting a god today." He turned to Abram with a quick smile. "Please, sit."
He remained standing in front of the couch as Nate dropped onto it. Abram lowered himself beside him and pulled me onto his lap since there was nowhere else for me to sit. His arm tightened around my waist, steady and grounding.
"You have come for information on your mates." Thomas looked directly into my eyes, concern softening his features.
"Yes," I answered.
His gaze shifted to Nate. A sigh slipped from him, weary and resigned.
"I do not normally share too much about this. Knowing too much of one's own fate is a curse in itself."
Abram stilled beneath me. I felt the way his breath caught. He had said those same words to me once, and hearing them again made something inside him lock into place.
"But for you two, I will."
"Oh, this is not for me. This is for Elowyn," Abram said quickly, almost too quickly.
Thomas smiled, as if he were holding a secret only he understood.
"Two threads tangled beyond the heavens' design," he said as he watched us. "Two souls woven into the same thread. Curious indeed."
"What does that even mean?" Abram asked.
"The sun shall soon rise upon you, god of gods. A dawn you did not seek, but one written in the bones of the earth before you took your first breath."
He directed the words at Abram, but I could not make sense of them. Abram stiffened under me. His jaw locked, and his breath came out in a sharp, angry rush. Thomas’ eyes drifted to me. His gaze sharpened as if he saw something deeply hidden.
“And you, little witch trapped in another’s curse… your fate walks a darker path. Yours is not the sun’s warmth, but the storm’s unyielding embrace.”
My breath caught in my throat.
Thomas tilted his head with a grim smile.
“Yet fate is never static, no matter what the heavens declare. Even broken threads can be rewoven if bled upon by choice and sacrifice.”
“What the fuck are you saying, you nut job?” Abram asked.
Thomas’ eyes met mine. “Does he know of your curse?”
“Of course I do.” Abram answered.
“Little witch, did you tell him of your entire curse?”
I stilled on Abram’s lap and hoped he didn’t notice, but his arm tightened on me letting me know that he definitely had.
“Tell me.” Abram’s voice was demanding and low.
“She is cursed to love only once in her life. Should she fall in love with the wrong person, the heavens shall take him from her, leaving her to wander eternity with the memory of what she lost. She will die alone."
Abram’s body went rigid beneath me. His grip on my waist turned bruising.
“What?” His voice was low and dangerous. “What the fuck do you mean take him from her?”
Thomas only sighed, like he was exhausted by the burden of knowing too much. “A punishment laid upon her bloodline. Love was stolen from another… so love shall be stolen from her.”
My chest ached so violently I thought I might collapse into myself. Tears burned behind my eyes, but I refused to let them fall here, in front of them.
“Is there a way to break it?” Abram demanded.
Thomas’ gaze flicked to him, lingering with cryptic pity. “Some curses are broken by sacrifice. Some by surrender. And some…,” he paused, his watery blue eyes finding mine again, “…by accepting that fate’s cruelty was written for a reason.”
“Tell me how to break it,” Abram growled, his red eyes glowing, rage rolling off him like a storm about to break.
Thomas tilted his head, studying him with eerie calm. “Perhaps you should worry less about breaking curses… and more about what dawn approaches your own fate, god of gods.”
“What dawn?” Abram spat, but his grip on me tightened as if he already feared the answer.
Thomas only smiled. “The sun rises soon. And with it, the truth of what your heart has always sought. A choice will need to be made.”
My heart twisted painfully in my chest. The truth of what his heart sought… his mate. Abram’s hands gripped me tighter. He had wanted his mate for his entire existence, and she would appear soon. Which meant I wasn’t his.
Thomas turned to me, his voice softer now. “Little witch… beware the storm within your soul. It will demand its due. It will save you when she is needed.”
Nyxthra.
I sat frozen on Abram’s lap, his hand still clutching my waist with desperate strength. His breath was harsh against my temple.
“Abram…,” I whispered.
His chest heaved beneath me. “You little drunk bastard.” He stood up, setting me on my feet so he could step toward Thomas. “I’m the God of Fates, surely I can change her fate.”
“Her mother stole a love that did not belong to her, and now her daughter will suffer the fate of loving only to lose it. The heavens will not let you undo what has been done here. Your paths cross and weave together, and it is hard to tell which thread of fate belongs to her and which is yours, but make no mistake, she is not your mate.”
Abram’s hand ran through his hair as he turned back to me.
My tears finally fell, because even though I wanted him more than anything… loving him meant losing him. And I wasn’t sure I was strong enough to survive this fate. Abram’s eyes were wild with rage and confusion.
“We're leaving.” Abram turned toward Nate and I. “Now.”
“God of Fates, I have a message for your best friend.” Thomas stopped Abram immediately.
Abram turned to him. “My best friend?”
“Yes, the red-headed one that never stops talking.”
“Ezra?”
“God of Souls, yes.” Thomas looked at him. “Tell him with love comes deception. But with deception comes the truth.”
Abram turned toward me and grabbed my hand.
“Oh, god of gods.” Thomas stopped him again. “You cannot change her fate. Even you are bound by the heavens’ cruel design. But you knew that as soon as you read it in the Book of Knowledge. You chose to ignore the warning because you didn't want to believe that Elowyn was not yours.”
Abram started at Thomas with so much hatred that it almost rippled in the air. But I dropped Abram’s hand and stepped toward Thomas so I could say something to just him. My gaze met his, and I saw his pity for me. My tears fell silently.
“I already love him,” I whispered.
He grabbed my hand and gave me a look of pity.
“I know you do, child. I saw it as soon as I saw you.” His hand squeezed my hand. “It was always going to lead to him. Even if you fought it harder, you would have always found yourself choosing Abram.”
“Will you tell me anything that can help me?” I begged.
“Your heart was always going to be broken by Abram. There is no escaping that fate. You will love, just to lose it. Your curse has already started to begin, but you knew this already.”
I closed my eyes as tears fell down my face.
“Your heartbreak will bring together a bond that needs to be forged,” he said.
My eyes searched Thomas’ for meaning, but I knew what he was saying.
I was leading Abram to his mate.
“Will Abram be happy in his future?” I asked.
Thomas looked over my shoulder before looking back at me. Pity took over his features as he watched me fall apart silently.
“Yes.”
I nodded and swallowed hard. Then that was good enough for me.
“Thank you.”
I turned toward Abram, and he was watching me closely. His eyes searched mine, wondering what I had said to the old man. But I just took his hand and led him outside into the storm that was raging. I looked up at the rain and wished he hadn't talked in such cryptic riddles.
We stepped onto the street and were about to leave when Abram stopped. His body was rigid, like he was scared of something. I glanced around but didn’t see anyone lingering except Thomas watching us. Nate looked concerned as he stepped toward Abram.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.