Chapter 280

“Okay, so, ground rules are clear?” mom says, arms crossed, looking around at us. Fifteen minutes have passed and while we’re all equally freaked out, we’re much calmer and more ready to…call upon a Goddess, apparently.

Quietly, we all just nod, staring at mom, I think all kind of wondering if this is some elaborate prank.

“All right then,” Cora says, exhaling a deep breath. “Ariel and Jesse, why don’t you two…go ahead.”

Jesse and I give each other a glance and then, as we decided a few minutes ago, quietly concentrate, doing as Cora instructed us and calling upon the Goddess in our hearts in our minds, through our magics, mostly…because we want to know if we can.

About a minute passes and nothing happens. I look up at Cora, a little disbelieving now, and sigh.

“Okay,” she says, shaking her head. “My hypothesis was correct – you two…for some reason, can’t call on her yet.”

“Well, what reason could that be?” Mom asks, curious, turning to Cora as if she wants to speculate on it.

“Mom,” Rafe says, sighing deeply, “please, can we not add any side quests right now? And just do this?” I press my lips together as I look over at my brother, because he seems like he’s the most stressed of all of us. Cora looks away from mom and nods, apologetic, when she sees Rafe’s expression.

“All right, sugar,” she says quietly, using an old pet name we haven’t heard in years. Then Cora exhales deeply and shuts her eyes for a moment, clearly…doing the thing.

I frown at my aunt, wondering if she’s over-estimated her abilities because…I mean, I don’t notice any changes. I glance at Jackson, who peeks at me at the same moment, but we both shrug and look back at Cora. When she opens her eyes and smiles I frown at her in confusion because…honestly I can’t figure out why.

Until she turns to the right, her smile growing. “Hey, mom.”

I nearly leap out of my skin as I follow the direction of Cora’s gaze and see a woman standing there – an incredibly beautiful woman, half transparent like a ghost, her form lit up in glittering silver light. I grip the sides of my desk, leaning forward to stare at her in awe.

“Is she here?” mom asks, likewise leaning forward eagerly, touching Cora’s arm. “Can you see her?”

“Hello, daughter,” the Goddess says, stepping forward towards Cora and taking her face in her hands. Cora melts a little at the Goddess’s touch, like it’s the softest, most wonderful thing she’s ever felt.

Still gaping, probably ghostly pale myself, I look back at my mom, who flicks her eyes to me and then laughs when she sees my face.

“Oh, can you see her too?” Mom says, perking up.

I just turn my eyes back to the goddess, completely shocked.

“Oh…oh my god…” mom breathes, looking around the room. “Can you all see her?”

The Goddess laughs a little, looking around at all of us. “Yes, they can all see me,” she says with a happy sigh. “Though these two,” she says, narrowing her eyes a bit like she’s entertained, flicking a finger between Jackson and Tony. “Are not mine.”

Cora turns to mom and tells her what the Goddess said, acting as a kind of translator as she’s done before because – apparently – mom burned up her bond with the Goddess once in a desperate plea to save Rafe when he was just a baby.

As Cora does that, I take a moment to look around the room, to see everyone else as shocked and gaping as I am.

Cora looks at us too and her mouth twists in disappointment when she sees all of our reactions. “You know, I prepped you for this,” she says, frowning. “The least you could do is stop gaping at her like a school of fish.”

As one, we all slowly close our mouths, and the Goddess laughs at us alongside her two daughters. I blink at her, still awed, because…it’s the Goddess. Laughing at us.

“Well?” the Goddess says, perching her hand on her hip and looking around at us impatiently – looking so much like my mom in this moment that makes my mouth fall open again. “You know I don’t like having my limitless cosmic time wasted. So? Did you call me here for a reason?”

“They have questions, mom,” Cora says with a sigh, still looking at us with disappointment. “If any of them can get a word out, that is.”

“Mom,” Tony whispers, still awed. “She…called the Goddess…mom.”

Something about that – the stark way that Tony said that – shakes something loose in me and I look at him with a little grin on my lips. I open my mouth to speak, but Rafe beats me to it.

“Sorry,” he says, I think working hard to be polite and not knowing precisely what level to strike. “But, um…what did you mean when you said that?” He points now towards Tony and Jackson. “When you said they…weren’t yours?”

“Oh, look at you, little godling,” the Goddess says, moving across the room towards Rafe so fast that I don’t know precisely how she got there. Did she…flutter? Or float? Still, the unearthly way she did sends shivers down my spine. But quite suddenly she’s standing before Rafe, cupping his face in her hands. “So handsome,” the Goddess says, glancing over her shoulder at our mom with her eyes crinkling up with joy to see him, “and so like his father.”

Rafe just gapes up at our grandmother, I think forgetting his question.

“Yes, he’s good looking,” Cora says, after translating for mom who – of course – looks quite proud of Rafe and pleased that the Goddess recognizes it too. “But if you could get to his question, mom?”

“Oh,” the Goddess says, dropping Rafe’s face and giving a tinkling little laugh. “Those two,” she says, gesturing again towards Tony and Jackson. “I didn’t give them their gifts. No, I’d remember that.”

She takes a step closer to Jackson, who I don’t think has blinked once since the moment she arrived. To my shock, the Goddess seems to…sniff the air above him. Then she moves to Tony in the blink of an eye and does the same.

“They have the smell of my ex-husband about them,” she says, narrowing her eyes a bit, perching her hands on her hips. “But not…quite strong enough to suggest that the gifts came from Ole Darkie himself…” she considers for a moment, her lips pursed as my eyes go wide to hear her nickname for the God of Darkness.

Then the Goddess turns her head to the side and turns back to Rafe. “Probably one of his children gave these two their gifts? So, undesirable provenance but,” she shrugs, grinning between them and wrinkling her nose, “still useful gifts. And also,” her smile deepens as she looks between Tony and Jacks, “you’re both very handsome, which is more important.”

My mouth drops open a bit further as the Goddess calls my mate handsome, but my expression changes – my face bursting into a desperate grin - when I see that Jackson is blushing.

“The God of Darkness’s…children…” Cora says, speaking slowly, trying to put the pieces together, her arms still crossed. “But not your children?”

“Oh god, no,” the Goddess says, waving a dismissive hand and looking around at the rest of us with clear pleasure. “Not those brats. One of his many affairs, which is why I dumped him in the end.”

I just stare at the beautiful Goddess before us, shocked because, I mean…I didn’t expect her to be so…casual. So chatty.

But…I guess our moms had to get it from somewhere.

“And you!” the Goddess says, suddenly turning towards Jesse, quickly crossing to him and making his eyes go wide.

“What’s happening?” mom whispers to Cora, who fills her in as the Goddess takes Jesse’s face in her hands next, beaming down at him.

“Is that why we can see her?” Tony asks, leaning forward towards Jackson. “Because…another God gave us our magics?

Jackson just shakes his head, either not knowing or not willing to respond as he keeps his eyes on the Goddess, nearly unblinking.

“My treasure!” the Goddess says, leaning close to her second grandson and wrinkling her nose at him. “You are very special to me,” she says, laughing, leaning forward and pressing a kiss to his forehead. “I crafted you as my special protector which…” she peers closer to him and then laughs a little, “yes, which you’ve discovered, haven’t you?”

“Y-yes,” Jesse sputters out, still staring at her.

“Well, it’s a good gift,” she says, quite cheerful, straightening up again and patting his cheek. “And a flashy one, which I think suits your personality. Enjoy it.” The Goddess looks around now, apparently done with him.

“Wait,” Jesse says, leaning forward, trying to catch at her glowing skirts with the tips of his fingers, but they just pass through his hand, insubstantial. The Goddess turns back to Jesse with interest. “Did – do you –“

My eyebrows go up as I see Jesse searching for words, because he’s usually the most eloquent of us. He gulps hard and then tries again as the Goddess nods to him, encouraging.

“Did I…need to find my mate?” he asks, a little desperate. “To make my magic develop like that?”