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But I did understand the law of divine magic, and it was never given without something being taken in return. It demanded a price.

If I fed the throne what remained of my divinity, I'd become nothing more than a Mortal husk... If I lived.

But the world would be whole again, and perhaps, Rythos would be too.

I stared across the black water, crimson moonlight bleeding over its glassy surface.

After so many years without my power, I should have been terrified by the thought of losing it.

Instead, my foolish fucking heart had already decided.

If the throne demanded a god, I would feed it mine. Her happiness overshadowed my drive for the throne.

I took one last peek through the bond to check on her, and my fingers stilled over the buttons of my trousers as something unfamiliar bled through the turquoise tether between us.

Beneath the guilt and love was something colder.

Fear.

The ship pitched violently over a wave, throwing me against the wooden railing with a crack. I caught myself with one hand as the ocean rose beneath us, its glassy surface shattering into violent swells.

Fuck.

Chapter Thirty-Eight

Reunited

Lyra

Tears welled in my eyes, and before I could stop it, a fractured sob clawed out of my throat like a resurrected corpse.

I closed my eyes and curled against Rythos’ chest, his strong arms gripping me tighter as if he could stop me from falling apart.

“I'm sorry,” I choked out, tears spilling freely down my cheeks and gliding against his rotting heart. “I’m so sorry.” I wanted to tell him that it was my fault. Everything was my fault. But another sob broke through me.

The ship lurched beneath us. Timber groaned as another wave crashed against the hull, throwing us sideways.

“You need to calm yourself, love. Now that you are stronger, the ocean is reacting with you. If this boat sinks, only three of us will survive it.”

I stilled in his arms. I was putting Aldric and Solas at risk because I couldn’t control my emotions.

I dragged in a shuddering breath and closed my eyes, reaching beyond the creaking planks beneath us for the presence of the ocean.

Calm, I commanded. Though I wasn't sure whether I was speaking to the sea or myself.

Neither listened and another wave struck.

The ship pitched violently beneath us, tossed across the water like a toy the ocean had grown tired of playing with and finally decided to break.

“Something you can feel, Sunshine.” His voice slipped into my mind with that familiar, mischievous cadence, and warmth followed it through the bond.

“Rythos,” I murmured, eyes still squeezed shut. My eyes remained squeezed shut as I focused on the impossibly slow beat of his heart beneath my cheek. The steady movement of his fingers along my spine. Suddenly, my breath came easier.

“Now something you can see. Open your eyes for me.”

I obeyed.

The dim cabin swam into view, and immediately my gaze caught on the black veins pulsing beneath Rythos’ skin. Fresh tears blurred my vision.