Page 119 of The Bones of the Cursed

Ames locks eyes with the king. “Did you get everything I asked?”

My father nods but doesn’t look at me.

“Very well.”

The Fates step forward, taking the candle from my father and placing it at Alanis’s head. Then they grab my father’s dagger, the one passed down through the royal bloodline.

“Now for the missing piece,” Ames states.

Elion steps forward with the Witch. Both slice their hands open and allow their blood to drip into the candle. Ames’s blood red eyes turn to me.

“Now you two,” Ames directs to Viros and myself.

I raise a brow in question. Thankfully the quiet Fate answers me. “Alanis sacrificed what she always wanted in life. Love, acceptance, and a family. To restore her, we must show that what she sacrificed would willingly shed blood in return. Elion as her adoptive brother. Shadow Vale Coven, with Grim blood for her mother and grandmother. Viros, her father. And her mates. When the missing piece is restored to her soul, she will be whole.”

I swallow, quickly slicing my hand. Viros lets his blood flow freely onto the candle and I follow suit. The Fates pause. “Just one more thing. Healer, can you please bring me some of hisblood?”

Laylani approaches with a vial of Kailu’s blood, adding it to the mix. When the blood hits the flame, the room shakes. The Fates nod their heads and disappear. Ryta and Caselia hold hands, chanting through the shaking. Rocks tumble from the walls, dust kicking up and choking me. The Goddesses of Life and Death place one hand on Alanis’s body and one on the light rising out of her. I can only assume that it’s her soul. When their chanting ceases, light explodes from her chest, showing golden tethers that tie to Kailu’s chest and my own. A sense of breathlessness fills me, a lightness overtaking my body I haven’t felt since I was a boy.

Holy shit.

When the light fades, the candle burns out and the room is pitched into darkness.

When we finally manage to light another candle, all that remains are Ames and Viros and a very prone Alanis.

I hold my breath, resting my hand on her forehead.

“She feels warm.” A sob wrenches out of my chest when I see hers rise and fall. I look up at Ames with burning eyes. “Thank you. Please pass along my thanks to the others. I will forever be in your debt.”

The God of Hell raises his eyebrows, glancing to the doorway before smirking. “I think we are even. Tell your little Witch to enjoy her life. Not all of us get so lucky to spend eternity with their mates.”

Ames disappears, and if I’m not mistaken, sadness lingers in his gaze as he does.

My father, Viros, and Elion are the only ones left in the room. We all look at each other before settling our gazes on Alanis.

“Now what?” Elion whispers, as if he is scared to ask.

“Now, we wait,” I say.

- ALANIS -

My body aches and throbs, as if it has been through Hell and back. Which, in a way, I suppose it has. When the Gods and Goddesses removed my soul, I hovered over my body for a minute or two. Malakai’s agonizing screams were more torturous than actually dying. Elion stood utterly still, but I swear I could hear his heart break a little more. And then there was Kailu. The male who rarely showed emotion, brought to his knees as his tears fell like rain. I was there for every second. I saw my friends and family look upon my body, each second harder to bear knowing what I was losing.

I watched Malakai and Kailu hold me, my soul not departing until they stood to take my body home. Something funny happened, then. I flew through the air. I thought I might get to see the Eternal Vale, but instead found myself trapped in a dank, dark dungeon. Throughout the time my soul was trapped, I was able to gather a sense of what the hell was going on. Iclas made sure to gloat quite often, my soul rolling her eyes at him frequently.

Now, my brain scrambles to catch up. My body is sore. My heart pounds an erratic rhythm.

My body. Holy shit. They did it. I’m back in my body.

My fingers twitch against cool sheets. The heavy scent of rain lingers in the room.

“Come on, sunshine. Open those big blue eyes.” Kailu’s soft voice washes over me.

My brain replays everything that’s happened. Watching my grandmother die. My surprise that not only were the Gods and Goddesses there to help me, but the Fates themselves. The anger at what Iclas has done not only to those I love but to theworld. The fear my soul felt as it watched Iclas come so close to destroying everything.

Something in me shifts at hearing Kai beg for me to wake up. My body trembles, Malakai’s grasp on my hand tightens. I hear a gasp, or maybe a few.

“What the hell is going on?” I try to pinpoint whose voice I hear, but can’t quite tell over the sound of a freezing cold breeze. The bed beneath me shakes, wetness falling to my skin while heat surrounds me.

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