Page 50 of Eternal Mate

It would have been impossible not to be impressed, honestly. Lucia was amazing.

As we reached our old room, Bim bid us farewell, promising to check on us later and ensure our comfort. I thanked him for his guidance and gently insisted he not return tonight.

Now that the adrenaline had left, I was utterly exhausted—and we hadn't heard from any of the others yet to tell them about the change of plans.

Though I had nothing but faith, Ashe was probably already struggling to figure out what was happening. It would shock me more if he didn't pop up in the dead of night to check on us.

Sariel and I stepped into our bedroom, the familiarity of the surroundings bringing a sense of unease. The room was still as pretty as the first time we'd had to stay here, but that didn't help the uncomfortable memories.

I hoped it wouldn't always be this way. It would be rough coming to spend time with our new family members if I couldn't even sleep here without my skin crawling.

We sank onto the plush bedding, the busyness of the day catching up with us. Sariel glanced at me, his eyes reflecting his relief.

"Well, that's one more thing off the bucket list," I joked.

Sariel laughed as he started to strip. "Now we just have to get rid of Lucifer."

That was probably our most daunting task yet, and it was extremely unlikely that anyone could do it for us like this.

Nodding, I followed his lead, hunting through the stocked closet for something comfortable to sleep in. "Any idea where the others are?" I asked.

Sariel shook his head, grimacing. "No, but I told Lucia who exactly was here so that everyone knows they're a friend if spotted. Hopefully, they don't attack first and ask questions later."

I scoffed. "Auren? Not thinking something through?"

He smirked at my teasing tone as we crawled beneath the sheets, immediately tangling our legs together. "You never know with him anymore."

His fingers carded through my hair, and I leaned into the feeling. "I don't think so," I hummed, shutting my eyes. "Elias and Ashe are with him, anyway. I’m sure they’ll be fine."

19

CROWNING ACHIEVEMENTS

SARIEL

They were, as it turned out, not fine.

Ashe's mischievous eyes met mine as he greeted me with a playful smirk. I couldn't help but shake my head in amusement, glancing at the others currently standing in the throne room.

Elias and Auren were on either side of him, looking exhausted. The news of Lucia's ascension to power had not reached them like we'd hoped, and they'd spent the evening hiding out in the empty dungeons while they tried to come up with a plan to escape.

"I'm glad you guys are okay," I said, my voice filled with genuine warmth as I hugged Auren tightly.

Returning the embrace, Auren's voice carried both exasperation and exhaustion. "I just wished we could have slept somewhere other than the cold, filthy floor."

Ashe snickered at his mournful tone—earning a glare from my brother—then clapped a hand on my shoulder, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "I hope you and Aria enjoyed a nice, peaceful rest while we were out risking our lives and assuming the worst."

I chuckled, shaking my head. "In my defense, I told her we should try to find you. Aria was the one who was confident that you were all fine."

My mate's look of betrayal earned laughter from everyone but Elias, which she didn't take it personally. Understandably, he'd been more stoic than usual ever since we lost Jack.

We told them the events of the evening before, summarizing what had happened between Lucia and her sister.

"Now," I said, "Lucia is setting up for the coronation. Apparently, she gave birth to Mikaiah sometime yesterday and needs time to recover before she goes public."

Aria frowned. "She looked exhausted yesterday. I want to go check on her, actually."

"We're going to head home since things seem pretty settled here," Elias grumbled out. "We need to make sure that nobody has gone after the encampment while we were gone."

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