Page 4 of Salt & Blood

She dropped her hands with a growl of frustration as panic welled up inside her. What if he died? What if they couldn’t find help in time?

“Mona,” whispered another voice.

Mona jolted, her heart slamming into her rib cage as chills worked their way across her body. She glanced around in the suffocating darkness and found the shadow of another figure standing nearby.

“Do you sense it?” the voice asked.

After a long, terrifying moment, Mona finally placed the voice. It was Trivia—or rather, Pandora.

Her sister.

The person behind the destruction of the Underworld and Elysium. The one responsible for Evander’s injuries.

And yet… her sister.

Mona had vowed to stand by Pandora, despite her crimes. Because they shared blood.

But that didn’t mean she trusted her.

“Mona,” Pandora said, more urgently.

Mona blinked and inhaled deeply, trying to awaken her new goddess senses. She still hadn’t fully acclimated to them. Closing her eyes, she searched within herself, hoping her magic wasn’t permanently blocked.

“I—I can’t,” she hissed, her head throbbing from her efforts.

“Here.” Pandora took her hand and squeezed. As soon as she did, power burst in Mona’s chest. Awareness flooded her, heating her blood and quivering over her with violent intensity. She shuddered, and a powerful, stirring presence shifted nearby.

Her eyes flew open, and she was on her feet in an instant. Someone was here. Someone powerful.

“Where are we?” she asked Pandora.

“I don’t know. I’ve never been here before. But this magic feels… odd. Different.”

Mona stretched her arms and wiggled her fingers, trying to get a better sense of her surroundings. Pandora was right; the air here was different. The magic had a strange scent to it, like earth and embers. But there was something in that smell that called to Mona’s memories, resonating within her.

She dropped her arms. “Witches,” she murmured. “There are witches here.”

They weren’t earth witches, though. Mona knew that magic well. She hadn’t often encountered other witch covens. In Krenia, where she’d grown up, the island was isolated, populated only by earth witches and mortals. Occasionally, other covens would visit by boat, but that had been rare.

“So, we are in the mortal realm,” Pandora mused.

“Yes,” Mona replied. “The other two realms are gone.”

She felt, rather than saw, Pandora flinch beside her. There had been no venom or blame in Mona’s voice, but she knew the guilt of everything her sister had done sat heavily on her.

The mortal realm. Technically, this was Mona’s home. But it felt more foreign to her than ever.

To her, home was a lush forest with a babbling river nearby and a soothing melody swelling around her.

Home was the Underworld with Evander.

Footsteps echoed nearby, and Mona shifted so she stood in front of Evander, blocking him from view. His raspy breathing behind her indicated he still lived, and she clung to that fact. The demon magic within him should have killed him. He wasn’t supposed to survive in any other realm.

But he was here. He had survived Elysium. And he was still alive.

Amber light flooded the area, and the lengthened shadow of a woman appeared against the rock wall. As Mona’s eyes adjusted, she realized she stood within a large cave. To her left was a metal archway with intricate carvings and designs. It looked similar to the portal in Elysium.

As more light poured into the space, Pandora drew closer to Mona, her shoulders stiff and her chin lifting. The two sisters stood side-by-side as the stranger came into view. She held a ball of fire in her hand that illuminated the thick black hair spilling around her face like a mane. She was tall and lean with brown skin and gold eyes that flared brighter than her flame.

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