Page 36 of Wolf Embraced

"The point of her trip isn't to fight," I said. "She knows that. She has to know that.”

“Regardless,” Lucian grumbled. “The fact that she went to the underworld alone will surely tempt the Demon King into trapping her. Maybe that'll be the price he’ll ask for helping us. Because he does nothing unless it benefits him in some way."

Did the Goddess know that?

Who was I kidding? Of course, she knew what the Demon King was like. So why would she do this, knowing she couldn’t get help without losing something in return? She was the werewolf Goddess. Why would she give up like this?

I chewed on my lip at my stupidity. I shouldn’t have let her go.

I'd known something was off, but she was the Goddess. I couldn't exactly object to her doing what she wished. She was going to sacrifice herself.

“Shit!” I palmed my face. “I didn’t know.”

"We have to send a few gods after her," Brian said.

But Lucian shook his head. “Then we’ll be doing exactly what we couldn’t do before, sending away the forces we need to face Cedric,” Lucian countered.

Brian and I shook our heads simultaneously. “I’ll go after her,” I suggested.

Lucian growled. "No," he said pointedly.

I stood up, then teleported, appearing behind him to prove a point. "I can be in and out in a heartbeat. And since she's already there, I can find her easily. After all, I'm a chaos user. Let me go instead of sending gods that might die." I pulled up my sleeve to reveal my arm, and Lucian’s fists clenched. "I'm overflowing with power here, remember? I've got this. I let her go, so let me get her back."

“And allow the Demon King to get his hands on another goddess?” Lucian asked. “I’m talking about you, Natalie. He’s drawn to women like you—beautiful, unique, like the Goddess and her sister. You're an Enchanted, and a chaos user mated to a white wolf and a dragon-god hybrid. You'd be like a walking delicacy for the Demon King.”

“What do I care about another man's interest?" I touched his cheek. "I need to save one of those mates, so I have the motivation to battle anyone. And if I've faced Cedric, I should be able to deal with the Demon King too."

I held his face with both hands. “I’ll bring her back, Lucian. I'm going to kill Cedric, so Rumir will lose his father, but I won't let him lose his mother, too. Okay?"

A clap of thunder rattled the windows, drawing our attention, and from across the room, I could see the changing sky. My hands fell from Lucian's face, and we walked over to one of the windows together.

“What were you saying about running out of time?” Brian asked, pushing the window open.

The visions I used to have of the God Realm's skies becoming as red as rubies were now a reality. The bright sunny sky changed to red and cast a burning shadow over the city, while gods poured out of the various buildings to look up at it.

It was like I was in the Red Realm with Tedara.

"Cedric," I snarled.

"Whatever you're going to do, Natalie, do it now. Because I’m pretty sure you’re going to be needed here." Brian turned away from the window to leave, and I held Lucian's arm.

"I love you," I told him, and he sighed. “I have to go.”

He cupped my cheeks with both hands and kissed me deeply. I hugged him, crushing his body to mine, and when our lips parted, he pulled my collar away to kiss his mark on my shoulder.

“Come back, Natalie,” he whispered. “You and the Goddess have to come back.”

I nodded, and we placed our foreheads together. I closed my eyes when he did, and I inhaled and held his scent.

“I’ll be like I never left. I promise. Stay safe until I get back.” Then I teleported, Lucian’s words leaving with me, in a burst of red mist.

"I love you," he'd whispered.

Unique or not, the Goddess had become more than my creator during this journey. She was my family. And I wasn't going to let her die or be trapped in the underworld. Yes, we needed help, but not at the price of her life or freedom.

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