Chapter 257 Elliot

Something’s shaking me. Hard. My first instinct is fight. My hand shoots out before my brain’s even caught up,

fingers closing around warm skin, hips–what the hell? My eyes snap open. Macey is kneeling over me, hair a messy

halo, my shirt barely covering her thighs. She’s grinning down at me like the sun itself just decided to sit on my

chest.

“What–what’s going on?” My voice comes out rough, half growl, half panic. “Where’s the threat? Who hurt you?”

She laughs. Laughs.

Her hands are still on my shoulders, shaking them lightly. “Elliot,” she says, all bright and breathless, “you’re

awake!”

I blink. “Holy shit.”

She tilts her head, amused. “That’s one way to start the morning.”

“Holy shit,” I repeat, because my brain still hasn’t caught up with the fact that she’s on me. Every soft curve of her

pressed against me through one of my thin shirts. I can feel the warmth of her thighs against my ribs, the brush of

her hair on my chin. The smell of soap and moonlight. This is not helping my pulse slow down. She giggles and that

little sound does something nuclear to my chest.

“Elliot,” she says again, drawing out my name like she’s teasing me.

I manage, barely, “You–you can’t just–what is-” I stop because my mouth refuses to make sense, and my brain is

currently very busy trying not to combust.

She leans forward a little, her eyes glowing soft silver in the dim light. “I had a visit,” she blurts.

My mind does a full stop. “A what?”

“Two goddesses,” she says in a rush, voice bright with awe. “Selene and Hecate. They came to me, in a dream, I

think? Or maybe not a dream. It felt too real.”

I blink up at her, still halfway between holy shit and oh gods, why is she on top of me while talking about divine

intervention?

“Right,” I manage. “Selene and… Hecate.” I run a hand through my hair, trying to focus on her words and not the

fact that she’s still straddling me. “And they, uh, said what exactly?”

Her expression softens instantly, all that dizzy excitement folding into something reverent. “They told me why I got

my wolf early,” she says quietly. “Why Saphra came before my birthday. It wasn’t an accident, it was a gift. Because I

needed her. Because I deserved her.”

The way she says it–like she still can’t quite believe it–makes my chest ache.

“They said my family’s been through enough pain,” she continues, voice trembling now, “and they wanted to give me

something good. Something… merciful.”

“Yeah,” I murmur, brushing a strand of hair from her face. “You deserved that.”

She gives me a small, grateful smile, and then her expression shifts again–something bright and fierce sparking

behind her eyes. “But that’s not all,” she says. “Hecate gave me a gift, a real one. Something bigger than me.”

I sit up a little despite her still being in my lap. “Bigger how?”

“She said… when you and I complete our bond, we’ll be able to free them,” she says breathlessly. “You a

your souls, tied to the Veil. When our bond’s complete, I can untie it. I can give you back your freedom.”

I freeze. My heart stutters once and then slams into a rhythm I can feel everywhere.

Free.

It’s a word I’ve tried not to think about for years.

“Mace,” I whisper, the sound rough. “You’re sure? She said that?”

Her smile wobbles, but she nods fiercely. “Yes. She said the Veil doesn’t need to be held anymore; it can stand on its

own. You’ve done your part. Mum has too. And when we’re bonded, I’ll be able to release both of you.”

For a second, I can’t speak. I just stare at her, at this girl who looks like she’s about to save the entire world and still

has no idea what she means to me.

Finally, I manage, “That’s… gods, that’s incredible.”

Her smile falters into something uncertain. “You’re not mad?”

“Mad?” I laugh softly, shaking my head. “Macey, if you can really do that, if you can free us, then you’re the greatest

miracle I’ve ever seen.”

Her eyes shimmer, and she bites her lip like she’s fighting not to cry.

“I just” she starts, and then laughs a little through the tears. “I couldn’t wait to tell you. I woke up and you were

sleeping and I thought, I can’t just sit here, so I maybe… jumped on you.”

“Maybe?” I tease, smiling now despite the pounding in my chest.

She grins, cheeks pink. “Okay, fine, definitely jumped.”

“Yeah,” I mutter, glancing down at where she’s still sitting on me. “I noticed.”

She flushes even deeper but doesn’t move, and the air between us shifts, threaded with something I don’t even have

words for.

I reach up without thinking, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “You really saw them?” I ask quietly.

She nods. “They said that the bond will complete when it’s meant to. And then everything will be as it si.

been from the start.”

I let out a slow breath. “You… you have no idea what that means to me.”

Her hand slides down my chest, stopping right over my heart. “I think I do,” she whispers.

We stay like that for a long time, her weight steady and real above me, the faint sound of the Underworld’s hum

outside the room. For once, I don’t overthink. I just let myself feel.

Eventually, she grins again, that mischievous sparkle returning. “You still haven’t said it.”

“Said what?”

She smirks. “Holy shit.”

I laugh, full and helpless this time. “Holy shit,” I agree. “You’re unbelievable.”

“I get that a lot,” she says, smiling wide, and leans down to kiss me again.

Her mouth is warm and sweet against mine, and for a moment, I forget to breathe. Every thought in

Holy Shit.

dissolves, there’s only the press of her lips, the slide of her fingers curling into my shirt, the tiny sigh she makes

when I kiss her deeper and the warmth of her core sitting ontop of me. Gods, I’ve wanted this for so long. She tastes

like sunlight and rain and something that feels like home. My hand finds the small of her back, pulling her closer,

and the rest of the world just… falls away. Then she pulls back, slowly, teasingly, and I’m still chasing her mouth

when she breathes, almost offhand, “Oh, and they said we’re going to take over the Underworld.”

I blink, utterly dazed. “1–what?”

She grins, her nose brushing mine like this is the most normal thing in the world. “You heard me.”

I just stare at her, half laughing, half horrified. “Macey. You can’t just–drop that after you kiss me like that.”

She shrugs, eyes sparkling with mischief. “Well, I didn’t want to interrupt.”

I drag a hand down my face, still grinning like an idiot. “Holy shit,” I mutter again, voice soft now, full of wonder.

“You’re going to kill me, aren’t you?”

She laughs, low and bright. “Hell no, we still have to grow old together first.”