Chapter 424

“Gabe,” my mate says, shaking his head at me and working hard to sit up. “Please, call me Gabe.”

He groans, though, and falls back.

“Easy, easy,” I say, glancing up at Ben, who nods to me – letting me know that he finished administering the antidote via IV and that it all went well. “Your body is still recovering from…well, from when I poisoned you.” I grimace. “Sorry about that.”

“I’m not sorry about it,” Gabriel sighs, turning his head to me and shaking it. “I’m so grateful to you, Ariel. I was completely lost to that darkness – me and my wolf both. And I’m so, so sorry.” His eyes take on a true, deep sadness and guilt as he looks over my face, his eyes lingering on the bruise on my jaw.

“Gabe?” Elias asks, hesitant, coming to kneel by my side, Pippa following. “Is it…I mean, is it you?”

“It was always me,” Gabriel says, shifting his eyes to his brother. “As shameful as it is, I can’t pretend I was body snatched or something. It was me, grasping and jealous and hungry for power. But everything just looked so…different, from inside the darkness.” He shakes his head, tears starting in his eyes. “I’m so sorry. Pippa – I,” he sighs as she reaches out and takes his hand. “Pippa, I was so horrible to you.”

“You were a real brat,” she says, laughing a little, her voice thick with tears. “But I forgive you, Gabey-baby. I’m just glad to have you back.”

Gabe laughs at what is clearly an old nickname, his eyes fluttering shut in relief and exhaustion.

“Are you…sure he’s fixed?” Jesse murmurs, looking anxiously between Jacks and I, Midnight still tucked protectively behind him. “He’s not just faking it?”

“He’s cleared of the darkness,” Jackson murmurs, his voice grumbling as he narrows his eyes at Gabriel. “But like he said – he did all those things, even if his free will was…tainted. I’m not sure he gets to land solidly in the ‘good guy’ category just yet.”

I click my tongue at Jackson, giving his shoulder a little shove, but he just turns his steady gaze on me, shaking his head, letting me know he still doesn’t like the guy. And I smile a little because…well, because Jacks is biased against anyone who is my mate and has punched me in the face. And I rather like that about him.

“Do…do you still have your magic?” Midnight ventures, taking a step to the side to peek around Jesse, looking interestedly at Gabriel. Jesse smiles at her, encouraging, and slips an arm around her shoulders.

“I don’t know,” Gabriel says, looking down at his hands.

As we all watch he begins to experiment with it, creating the sparks of magic that are the part of his skill that he lends to me and then flashing up a shield all around him. Jesse tries his shadows against it and finds that they can’t get through.

“Um,” Gabriel says, apparently trying something else and failing. He glances at Midnight. “It looks like my powers are what they were before I made a deal with Darkness, which significantly expanded them. Before I could start and stop magic – urge other magic to begin, or create a personal shield against it, but now…” He glances around at all of us. “I can’t protect the Castle anymore – that big barrier was only possible with Darkness’s influence. And I probably can’t shift to this world either.”

I sigh, and nod, sorry to have taken power from him. But still – this has to be better, right? My memory flashes back to his poor wolf, drowning in that oil. And to Gabriel’s hot temper and avarice – I mean, he killed his cousin so that he could take the throne, happy to be Darkness’s puppet there.

Midnight steps back behind Jesse, tucking her face against his back and wrapping her arms around his waist, looking incredibly anxious. My heart goes out to her because – what do her powers look like without Darkness’s influence? Does she even know?

“Look, this is all very cute,” Jesse sighs. “Family reunion with the newly non-evil brother. But…”

Suddenly Jesse’s face goes pale and his words fade as he stares at something behind me. I gasp even as Jackson grabs me to him, pulling my back flush against his chest as he, too, turns. But then my eyes go wide as I shriek with fear at the darkness turning there just outside of my cage, slow and furious.

I watch in terror as a man steps from the darkness, his face livid, his eyes fixed on me.

“You dare,” the God of Darkness growls, his eyes flashing, “to take my servant from me?”

He waves a hand and the walls of the cage around us crumble to rust, collapsing to the ground. My heart pounds in my chest as I panic, searching my heart and my mind for something to do – a way out –

Immediately I want to shift back to Atalaxia – but I’m only touching Jackson – I can’t leave everyone behind –

Darkness stalks slowly forward, glaring at all of us. Midnight’s terrified sobs echo through the air as the god turns his eyes to Gabriel, who sits up with Ben’s help.

“Submit,” he snarls. “Take back your covenant or suffer death for your betrayal.”

“Ariel!” Jackson snarls in my ear. “Go – go back –“

“No!” I cry out, leaning out of his lap and reaching for Pippa, for Ben, for Jesse – for everyone – “I can’t leave them!”

“You will!” Jackson commands, pulling me back. “Go!”

“I will not submit,” Gabriel says, glaring up at the dark god, shaking his head slowly. “I agreed to your bargain once and found the rewards wanting. I won’t do it again, even if it costs me my life.”

I cry out at this – horrified at the idea – even as Jackson commands me again and again to shift, to tilt, to go –

“Stop,” Jesse snarls, stepping forward towards the God, even as Midnight sobs and begs him to come back. She flashes away and back again and again, apparently trying to vanish Jesse with her somewhere safe –

But somehow – I don’t know how – he resists –

The God of Darkness refocuses his eyes on Jesse, who slowly starts to stalk around Gabriel, heading for me. I reach for him, wanting his hand – wanting to touch everyone so I can take them out of here.

“You fool,” the God of Darkness intones. “You think to command me? I am not some half-soul in your little Castle school anymore, boy. Your meager powers hold no challenge for me – not in my own land.”

Jesse holds Darkness’s gaze as he comes to my side. “What you seem to fail to grasp,” Jesse says, slipping his hand in mind and flashing his eyes to me for a single moment, giving a shake of his head. I still, not understanding. “Is that it’s not just my powers you have to contend with. Not anymore.”

My eyes go wide as Jesse squeezes my hand. And I spin my head to the God, wondering –

Can it be true?

But a memory flashes through my mind – the Goddess, in our little magic classroom, beaming at Jesse, calling him her protector –

Because his powers, and our bond…

God, we were made for this, weren’t we?

Suddenly I grasp Jackson’s hand tight in my own, even as I squeeze Jesse’s. “Gabriel!” I shout, extending a leg out to him. “My ankle! Now!”

He turns his shocked face to me, not understanding. But he obeys – which is all that really matters, his fingers curling around my bare skin.

And when Jesse begins to let his shadows unfurl, flowing from his hands and his skin in great waves, he summons not only his own power.

But mine too. And Jackson’s, and Luca’s, and Gabriel’s.

So that at the heart of each curl of shadow is a blue flame.

The God of Darkness takes a single step back towards the darkness from which he emerged. “No,” he whispers. “Her fire – how is it…”

But it’s too late.

In a single swell of shadow, Jesse’s magic surges forward and envelops the God whole.