When he comes back, Griffin strips out of his boots and lies down next to me, gathering me close. “Still cold?” he asks.
I shake my head even though I am still chilled. Curling into him helps.
Gruffly, he says, “You scared me to death.”
“Me too,” I mumble drowsily. I sink deeper into my cocoon of safety and warmth, knowing Griffin will keep my monsters at bay.
“Sleep,” he says, his arms tightening around me. “When you wake up, I’ll make love to you and give you as much life force as you can take.”
I grin against his chest. I can’t wait. “How smug do you look right now?”
“Very,” he admits.
“Feed me first.”
He chuckles. “If I have to.” After a slight pause, he adds, “And then you and I are having a conversation. No more mysteries, Cat.”
I stop smiling. For that, I can wait.
*
A whispered argument wakes me up. “Eight years with me and one broken arm because she was overambitious with the acrobats. A few months with you and she almost dies! Repeatedly! What in the Underworld is wrong with you?”
Selena.
“She’s fine,” Griffin grumbles.
“Because you found a healer who doesn’t hate you! And you’re not even keeping him at the castle. You’re sending him to Ios!”
“We’ll find one for the castle.”
Selena snorts. “Most healers don’t give a Cyclops’s eye about healing Hoi Polloi.”
Griffin’s voice turns deceptively casual. “I could always keep you.”
My eyes fly open. I’ve never seen perfectly groomed, perfectly poised Selena lose her temper, and I don’t want to miss it. What I see is startling. Her long braid is a mess. Her ageless face is flushed with anger, and her blue eyes flash with that otherworldly light I can never quite nail down or see the other side of. She looks as vengeful as the Furies, and just as ready to light Griffin’s hide on fire.
“I wouldn’t have gotten here in time. This is over!” She slices her hand through the air with finality. “I’m taking her back.”
“Over my dead body.” Griffin steps in front of me, crossing his arms.
Selena stares him down. “That can be arranged.”
My heart jumps into my throat. She’s not bluffing. “No one’s killing anyone,” I say, my voice hoarse from sleep. “And it’s a sorry day for the realms when I’m the peacekeeper. The world must be about to implode.”
Actually, that’s not funny.
“Cat!” Selena flies to my side like she has wings. She lands next to me, taking my hand in hers. Her eyes are unnaturally bright.
“Thank you for coming,” I murmur.
She throws a dark look over her shoulder at Griffin. “I didn’t do anything. I would have been too late.”
I squeeze her hand. “You would have found a way.”
She turns back to me, her face etched with worry. “Even I can’t bring back the dead.”
“Then it’s a good thing I’m not dead.” My attempt at a joke is shaky, and no one laughs.
“Tell me truthfully, Cat. Are you happy here?” It’s not a simple question, but there’s a simple answer.
“Yes.” My eyes find Griffin’s. My voice softens. My whole body does.
“I see.” Selena’s lips purse. “Aetos and Desma will be disappointed. Vasili, too. Everyone misses you, especially Cerberus.”
I grin. Cerberus couldn’t care less. “I’ll visit soon.”
“When you’re stronger,” Selena says briskly, her expression smoothing into its usual cool lines.
“I miss you,” I tell her. “I miss everyone.”
“And we miss you.” She leans close and whispers the ancient word for family in my ear. Its power electrifies me like a lightning bolt, and magic whooshes through my veins. I gape at Selena as my body settles. She’s hiding more power than I ever imagined.
“Real family works both ways,” she says with an enigmatic smile. Then her eyes narrow on my willowy frame. “What happened to your curves? You look like you did when I found you.”
Funny. I thought I’d found her. “They’ll be back. I’ll be struggling with certain pants again soon enough. Some people are just made that way, and spice cakes don’t help.”
She sits back, straightening her rumpled clothing. “Do you want me to stay?”
I shrug. “Yes. But you have a circus to run, and I’ll just be sleeping for days.”