Page 81 of Gods of Prey
As dawn approaches, we stay on the rooftop, not touching but somehow more connected than ever before. Whatever comes next—Sebastian’s return, the Divine Council’s judgment, the balancing of realms—nothing will be the same between us.
For tonight, I let myself imagine a different future—one where Death and Life find harmony not just in the cosmos, but in each other’s arms.
22
Sienna
Ifind Sebastian on the rooftop of his penthouse the following morning, staring out at the skyline. There’s something about these gods and their basal need to be in open air. I feel it too—this constant nagging feeling to stretch my wings, even when they aren’t there. Though it’s not as suffocating in this form as it is being trapped in a mortal body.
The wind whips through his overgrown dark hair, but doesn’t disturb him. Now that he remembers who he is, mortal elements affect him differently. I remember the feeling, like wearing a costume that doesn’t quite fit right.
I can only hope he doesn’t sense Revel’s essence on me. Maybe being a ghost masks it.
“Took you long enough,” I say, materializing beside him.
He doesn’t look at me right away, clearly unsurprised by my intrusion. “How long have you known what was happening?” The question comes out sharp, like he’s accusing me of something heinous.
I never know what mood I’ll find him in anymore, though it’s usually volatile whenever he’s faced with time alone with me. In fact, he appears to only be in agoodmood when Jovie is around. Every other minute of the day is spent brooding.
“That you were manipulating timelines? Since the moment I woke up in the mortal plane instead of Umbraeth after our thirty-third death.” I hover just above the concrete, the chill of the night air passing through my spectral form. My tone remains carefully neutral as I refuse to engage with whatever fight he may try to start over this. “That you had forgotten who you were? Shortly after, I returned to Umbraeth and didn’t feel your presence. I gave you the benefit of the doubt for a while. Thought maybe you were just...saying goodbye.”
Sebastian turns to me then, his usually bright eyes filled with the weight of all the worlds. “But then you realized I wasn’t planning to return at all.”
Nodding, I look out at the skyline before us. “You know what that means for the balance.” It’s not a question.
He leans forward against the railing, tucking his face into his chest as he rakes his fingers through his hair. “I know. I just...I couldn’t leave her, Sienna.”
I drift closer, studying my twin’s face. For the first time in centuries, I see fear there. Not the kind we’ve faced in our mortal lives—not the fear of death or pain—but something deeper.
For the first time in centuries, he has something to lose again. Just as I did before our punishment. He stood by my side then, his loyalty unwavering.
I suppose it’s my turn now.
“You tried to tell me, didn’t you?” he says suddenly. “In the last timeline. When you first appeared to me.”
I’m shocked by his willingness to speak of what he’s done so casually when the consequences of such a thing are so dire. The memories of our time together wash over me. Materializing inhis apartment after my brutal death at the hands of The Order. Watching him plan their deaths with meticulous precision. Following him as he tracked Jovie from afar.
“You were too consumed with revenge,” I say softly. “And too busy stalking the woman living in your playhouse. Which, by the way, was a gross use of the vacation home I spent months obsessively renovating.”
A smile ghosts across his lips when I glare at him. “I wasn’t stalking her.”
“Sebastian, you followed her around like a lost puppy. You even watched her sleep.”
He finally allows his full smile to play on his lips for the first time since me and Revel arrived here, and that’s when I see it—the love that made a god forget himself.
“I was drawn to her even before I knew why. In every timeline, in every version of events, something pulls me to her. I can’t help but wonder how many came before this one. How many times have I found her, just for Myelle or anyone else on the Divine Council, to rip her out of my arms again and erase all signs of us?”
I sigh, floating to sit on the edge of the roof. “I would have to hope they wouldn’t abuse their power like that.”
“You’d be a fool,” he mutters bitterly, and even though it feels sacrilegious to admit, I have to agree.
The Divine Council has been playing games longer than any one of us has realized. Treating us like puppets existing solely for their entertainment. Except maybe Erebus, who has slowly and deliberately been placing distance between himself and them for quite some time, now that I think of it.
How long has he sensed their corruption?
“I tried so many times to make you remember. I kept telling you about Aurelys, about our real lives. You thought I was delusional.”
“I thought you were a hallucination,” he admits, his voice lifting with humor. “A manifestation of my guilt for not protecting you better.”
