Chapters (35)
“If we fail, we die either way,” Rosamund said. “Whether that’s in Hel, in the liminal world, or down here on the ground, so to speak. No matter what happens, we die if we fail. So I don’t really consider it risking my life. More like not twiddling my thumbs as the apocalypse comes knocking. Besides…” He smirked. “Seppo has told me all about your adventures together during the Hunt. I’m kind of happy the world’s ending if that means I get to also go on a similar type of adventure.”
I raised my eyebrows. “Literally?”
“Literally.”
“Okay, I was making sure.” Whether I was making sure Rose was up to the task, or whether I was making sure Rose had a bizarre definition of “adventure” could be left up to interpretation.
“I’ll have the best chance of successfully opening a portal in two days,” Diaval said. “During the new moon. So, we have two days to gather what we need and prepare.”
“Two days, then,” Soren agreed. “Any objections?”
Landon’s face contorted like he’d eaten a rotting fish, and Ivar didn’t necessarily look happy with the idea, but neither of them said anything about it.
“All right,” Soren said, placing his hands on the tabletop and standing. “Meeting adjourned. Get ready.”
As people began to file out of the room, my stomach began to do twists and flips inside of me. Two days. Two days until I had to face him in something more than my dreams or a flash in the mirror, more than the occasional voice in my head. I wanted to say I was strong, that after the Hunt, he no longer held any sway over my emotions, that I no longer feared him. But that wasn’t the case. My stomach still turned. I still had phantom scars in my mind.
But I wouldn’t let my scars control me. I couldn’t.
Soren and Tanya lingered behind after everyone had left. He clasped his hands together in the front, one thumb rubbed the top of the other hand. “Tanya,” he said. “Did you … did you know? About me? About my mother?”
Tanya smiled softly at her nephew. “If it was something your mother knew about herself, she never disclosed it to me. I met her later on in life when our mothers happened to be in the same place at the same time.” She put a hand on his shoulder. “No one could’ve known, Soren. Even then, I still say you were the right choice for the Permafrost. You were chosen for a reason. This isn’t your fault. No one could have known.”
Soren nodded, though his eyes grew dark. The link between our minds buzzed as his thoughts spilled over into mine. No one except Lydian.