“Oh, for fucks sake! Do you even know what that felt like motherfucker? Bonding with your mate fully and then just being thrown out like trash because you wanted her all to yourself?!” I yell, throwing my hands up in disbelief.
“Let me finish, Dax!” He yells. I look over at Killian and he shrugs his shoulders and rolls his eyes.
“I have no regrets about my decision because I envisioned my first experience with Dani as a moment just for the two of us. You both reinforced your connections with her while the rest of us were present, and that’s for you to wrestle with. I anticipated feeling disappointed after our night together, convinced that there was no possibility my demonic rune would ever manifest on her skin… yet it did. It fucking did.”
Killian and I exchange wide-eyed glances, disbelief washing over our faces. “Woah, are you serious, man?” Killian asks, his voice laced with incredulity as he strides forward, closing the distance between himself and Adonis, curiosity sparking in his gaze.
I’m still fucking annoyed with him…
Adonis nods. “Yeah, it’s very faint, but it’s there. You both were right.” He grits his teeth, tension radiating from his jaw as if each syllable is a monumental effort.
“I’m sorry, can you please say those words again for the record?” I tease Adonis and he gives me a look I know all too well.
“Alright, well… this is good, but dammit, Adonis, you knew exactly how we would feel about leaving her after we bonded ourselves to her. You understand the gravity of that bond—what it truly means once we complete it with our mate—and yet you’ve cast us aside like we don’t matter,” I say, the weight of betrayal heavy in my voice.
“I know, I know, and I’m sorry I did that to you both, but I hope you can understand where I’m coming from. I promise you guys, I will make it up to you,” he says with his best cheeky smile, and I roll my eyes because it worked.
“Dani needs a little bit of time to think about everything. This morning, I laid it all bare for her—the weight of the curse that looms over us, the intricate ties that bind us, her ultimatum on choosing either the town or us.”
“I’m sorry, what? What do you mean, choosing us or the town? Isn’t it just one curse? She breaks it and everything is free from Octavia’s curse?” Killian speaks up. Adonis said that last part way too casually.
“It’s in the grimoire… In the spell. Octavia made this spell, hoping that whomever summoned us would choose to free the town of its silly rain curse and keep their soul rather than free us and all who dwell here.”
What in the actual seven realms of hell.
“Keep their soul? What does that fucking mean? And why didn’t you ever tell us any of this! Don’t you think that information is fucking important for us to know?” Killian is now furious. He grabs Adonis by the shirt and pushes him away.
I chime in, “I’d like to know that answer too.”
“Well…” Adonis sighs. His shoulders fall heavy with what seems like shame. “What I didn’t tell Dani, or any of you, is that if she chooses to free us—which I’m still certain my rune won’t fill in on her because of—”
“Your missing soul,” Killian and I say simultaneously. “Yeah, we know. Quit being a baby about it, dude.”
Adonis gives me a warning glare, but I keep my pissed-off expression. “If Dani decides to grant us our freedom by performing the spell, she must understand the weight of that choice. There would be… consequences. In doing so, she would relinquish her soul to us, in exchange for our freedom. Meaning she cannot remain in this realm. It would be as if she were making a profound sacrifice, effectively selling her soul to our cause. This decision would usher her into the afterlife alongside us, severing the ties she has to her current existence and leaving behind the world of her loved ones forever.”
“She would fucking die? Are you serious right now?!” My blood is fucking boiling finding all of this out now after centuries, CENTURIES, of Adonis withholding this information.
Amelia walks in, “I take it this is a bad time?” Her eyes dart between the three of us.
“Yes,” I say sharply, never taking my eyes off Adonis.
“She is going to choose us. I know this. She hasn’t said it yet, but I can sense her intentions. She is already incredibly bonded to us three and feels deeply, especially for you two.”
I sigh.
I don’t want Dani to die. I want her to live. To be free. To make a life for herself. And I selfishly want to be the one by her side during it all along with Killian and Adonis.
“You know, you all have the option to choose not to enter the afterlife if you’re freed, right?” Amelia’s bright, cheerful voice cuts through the heavy silence, drawing the attention of everyone in the room.
A hush falls over us as we turn to her, expressions of shock and disbelief etched on our faces. The weight of her words hang in the air, and for a moment, we are frozen—struck dumb by the unexpected possibility she just introduced.
“Wow. You all really are morons, aren’t you?” She giggles and continues, “You all need to read a book… In fact, you need to read the grimoire. Anyway, yes Dani would have to give her soul up and become a demon like you all— become immortal. But, you all would have a choice. The afterlife is all about strict laws and cosmic balance, and we were all confined here due to our misdeeds in the afterlife. Well, not so much me. I was meant to accompany you clowns on this enlightening journey.”
She can be insufferable sometimes…
“Get on with it!” I growl at Amelia.
“Alright, alright, geez. The liberation from the afterlife was not merely a vengeful act against demons, gods, creatures, and angels; it was, in fact, a profound decision that mirrors our unique natures and the far-reaching repercussions of our actions. Each of you is now presented with a remarkable opportunity—should you choose to embrace it—to delve deeply into your intentions and desires in ways beyond your reach in your previous existence. This is a chance to navigate the labyrinth of your choices, to confront the shadows and illuminate the paths that lay before you, as you seek to understand the essence of who you truly are.”
