Page 38 of A Song of Saints and Swans
The goddess was clearly trying to call his bluff—not just with his physical limitations, but with what he was hiding in his head. Her actions could have been seen as cruel, but Marena wasn’t the type to antagonize unnecessarily.
While everyone had the right to their secrets, it was clear whatever was going on with Jarilo was hurting her too—because of how he’d shut her out.
How many people have I done the same to?
Jarilo’s golden eyes lifted to the mountain peak high above us—so high it was obscured by the gathering storm clouds—and something like panic flashed over his features. By the time his gaze met Rena’s again, he’d buried the emotion beneath his signature mask of haughtiness.
Justtellher, Jar.
Tellus.
“Fine,” he airily huffed, as if he were simply humoring his sister’s request. “We can have your silly race, andifI lose, my mind is an open book.”
Interesting…
Rena also looked surprised by this answer, but she simply nodded in reply before the competitive glint returned to her eye. Both gods dematerialized into their incorporeal forms, but continued to hover, as if waiting for a signal.
“Um…” the Gamayun cleared her throat, her beady eyes darting between the shimmering ice and flickering flame. “Three, two, one, go?”
In the blink of an eye, the gods shot straight upward, quickly disappearing from sight. I gaped after them, blinking rapidly as rain started to fall, plunking against my forehead in heavy drops.
“You’d better catch up, Anthia,” the Gamayun chuckled. “This isyourtale, after all.”
Realizing the rain was already coming down in sheets, I quickly shifted, pumping my powerful wings as I raced after my mates.
Mates?
Hmm… I suppose they are…
“Try not to get struck by lightning!” the Alkonost cheerfully called after me, but it sounded less like a warning and more like wishful thinking.
I’ve got a message for you to deliver, you feathered busybody...
A powerful gust of wind brought my attention back to my task. I’d flown in bad weather before, though never while aiming myself skyward, toward the eye of the storm. But I was nothing if not as stubborn as my twin gods, so I flapped harder, determined to witness the outcome of the race.
And possibly stop the fists from flying…
Luckily, there was nothing but blue skies overhead when I broke through the cloud cover—making the last leg of the journey much easier. My relief turned to horror, however, as I reached the summit and found Marena huddled over Jarilo’s crumpled form.
“H-he… collapsed when we landed, ‘Thia,” she sobbed, gingerly sweeping the curls off his forehead with trembling hands. “And he’s not responding—just like after he came back from the Facility’s lab. Goddess, I amsuchan asshole, goading him the way I did.”
“Shhh… I’m sure he’s all right,” I soothed, even though I was panicking right along with her.
Marena sniffled but nodded, and I took her hand as I kneeled beside the fallen god. As soon as I landed next to him, Jarilo stirred and mumbled incoherently, but he didn’t wake up.
What can I do?!
I wracked my brain for how to coax Jarilo out of his unresponsive state. “Let me try… kissing him again. That worked the last time, right?”
The truth was, I had no idea how I’d helped that day in London—if at all—but I couldn’t just sit here and do nothing. Not when both gods needed me.
A fairy tale kiss it is, then.
Just as I lowered my lips to Jarilo’s, a terrifying voice boomed behind us, seeming to echo off the sky itself.
“What thefuckis going on here?”
Secrets Revealed
