Page 133 of Grave Revelations

Were they truly preparing to leave? To move on to whatever awaited them? For him, it would be Primoria, and he had experienced that world once already. Once was enough for ten lifetimes.

He hovered at the back, watching Rebecca as she bit her lip, a distant look in her eyes. She didn’t care for this place. He could tell from the tense line of her shoulders and the way she kept looking out over the crowd as if she couldn’t wait to finish this task and leave Sheol behind.

When Asher and several other soldiers jogged up to her, they spoke low and moved into three lines. The other creatures in his retinue began sorting souls into each. In the first line, souls were herded into the river, and as they splashed into the water, their faces went blank. Soon, they were trudging forward, just as they always had.

Rebecca had plodded through the water several times, but it hadn’t affected her. Even now, her heel was resting half in and out of the water, but her eyes were clear, if a little distant.

A boat approached, and the river swelled, catching more souls in its thrall.

As souls were loaded onto the ship, Yai-Yai, silent until now, released Simon’s arm and stepped forward. She seemed to glide on an invisible wind as she moved to the longest line, waiting to be escorted onto the boat with the others.

Sophia left Rebecca’s side, finding her grandmother, and clasped her hands. “I’ve missed you.”

Her Yai-Yai reached one withered hand up and patted Sophia’s cheek. “It was my time, Pythia.”

Sophia’s eyes misted as she leaned down, wrapping her arms around the woman. She whispered in her ear, and from this distance, Simon couldn’t hear what she said. He thought then that he should have said something to her and wished her well, but he hadn’t known until this moment that he wasn’t going with them.

Rhea squeezed his arm, bringing him out of his thoughts. “It’s time for me to go, Simon.”

He nodded, releasing her.

She glanced at Rebecca, then back to him. “You needed her as much as she needed you, I think.” The way she said it in the past tense—as if she already knew theirs wasn’t a love that would last forever—sent another sharp pain through hischest. His heart ached, and the sense of betrayal lingered, but he loved her; those feelings were his own.

Rhea turned, not waiting for a reply. She stepped into the line behind Yia-Yia, and the two women held hands.

Just before she reached the river, Rebecca’s gaze solidified on Rhea, and she halted her, gripping her around the shoulders. “Are you leaving?”

Rhea’s soft brown eyes peered up at Rebecca, and she found her hands holding them. “It’s time.”

Rebecca made a small whimpering sound, wrapping her in a tight embrace. “I love you.”

“I love you too, honey.” Rhea stepped forward as Rebecca released her, and she swayed with the others, moving toward the boat.

A group of souls, including Cassia, huddled at the river's edge, and the guards moved to circle them.

“There’s room for the next line on the boat, I think,” Rebecca said, shielding her eyes to look over the boat’s deck.

One of the guards stepped between Rebecca and the smallest group of souls. “Damned” was the only word Simon understood before he pushed one of the souls back from the water.

“Oh.” A vee formed between Rebecca’s brows as she gazed over them. “Where will they go then?” The guard said something else, and Rebecca said, “But I thought no one could stay here forever.”

Sophia, Helena and a witch Simon didn’t know were standing apart from the others. Sophia came forward.

“We want to go back,” she said. “To fight with our sisters.”

“I don’t have that kind of magic, Sophia,” Rebecca answered.

“She does.”

She must have been there all along, but small as she was, in such a large crowd, Elizabeth had been hidden among them.

Simon stumbled backward, nearly tripping over the people standing beside him.

Rebecca passed him, walked through the crowd, and knelt, taking her sister’s hand.

“Hello, Elizabeth,” she said. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”

Chapter 89

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