by Kelly Keaton
With the pad of his fingers he brushed her tears away and said, “I am real. I’m here, with you.” He repeated those words many times until she finally shifted and settled her watery gaze on him. “I will never leave you again. I love you, Ari. So goddamn much.” Tears stung his eyes. “And I will never leave you again. I’m so sorry.”
One of his tears splattered on her arm. She blinked, surprised. With a frown, she glanced at her arm and the wetness that lay there.
“I am real,” he said gently once more.
Pain filled her eyes as she stared at him.
God, he had to get through this, had to make her understand.
“Mel. It was Mel.” To say what he had to say, to tell her why he was here, and the sacrifices made, was hard. “She went to Thanatos...” He swallowed. “She said to tell you, a life for a life. That you’d understand. She wanted you to know she considered you a friend.” Mel’s gift was a pain all its own, and it would stay with him always. He remembered her face, her strange skin, her eerie eyes that held warmth and conviction, bravery. She’d bartered with death for weeks and had given him his life back, but at a terrible price to herself.
Ari’s face screwed into a painful, confused frown. “What?” her voice broke on the one word.
“She’s in Tartarus now, chained next to some huge Titan. She’s gone. Ari. Do you see? She traded herself, a life for a life. She saved me. Gave me my life back.”
Okay, so he was crying now. He couldn’t stop it. He’d rushed through the Underworld with a swift Sybilin Lady as his guide for much of the way, his only thought to find Ari and Archer and get them home safe. But what he’d found was chaos in a black palace and a quick death.
He hadn’t been able to help himself, much less her.
He bowed his head.
And wept.
The pads of Ari’s fingers hesitantly touched his arm. Slowly, so slowly, she tested, feeling his skin, making sure he was real.
Eventually, her hands slid up his arms and went around his neck. And then she pulled him down to her. His face went into the crook of her neck and he breathed in life and love and home.
Her hands went around his head and into his hair and she held him tighter and started to cry, the sound heartbreaking and raw. He held on, his tears falling against her skin as their bodies rocked in grief.
He swore to himself he’d do whatever necessary to see her through the trauma of his death.
They’d make it through this.
And he knew, with conviction burning through his heart and soul, they’d come out the other side forged in the toughest steel.
A steel no god or vampire or war could break.
EPILOGUE
EVERY MYTH. EVERY LEGEND. EVERY FOLKTALE. They all hold truth, born from something witnessed, an event passed down from one generation to the next, something so fantastic and unbelievable that it stayed in the minds of men, shaping their religions, mythologies, and even their cultures and civilizations.
But they aren’t the whole truth, just versions and tiny pieces spliced together by mankind, twisted and built upon by one ancient writer after another.
To know the truth you either had to be there, in the time when gods ruled and interacted with mankind.
Or you had to live in the here and now of my world.
See, I live in the truth.
My world is the real world. It's a world many will never see. And that's a damn good thing because my world is a place of gods and monsters. Heavy weights, too. Supreme deities, primal gods, Olympic-sized egos, and terrifying creatures that aren't impressed by any of them.
And I'm okay with the truth.
In fact, now that I know the gods of mythology and the monsters they'd created exist, I'd never wish or want to go back to my old life.
Not even when facing down an army of harpies with claws so sharp they can slice a two-by-four as easily as tissue paper. Or hunting loups and revs and turnskins in the ruins of Midtown. Or stabbing a crazy witch in the eye. Or facing the god of death and walking away with my soul intact.
Not even when doubts get the best of me.
Not even when love scares me to death and makes me question everything.
With love comes worry, responsibility, fear. Fear so great it grips my heart in a godlike fist and squeezes until I can barely breathe. When you love, you fear for those you love. Simple as that. And when you live in a world such as mine and threats exist around every abandoned corner and every dilapidated Garden District mansion, you have to accept the fear, invite it in and let it carve out a nice, dark corner in your mind. Always there, always keeping you alert. Helping you protect those you love.
I have a family now. I love. And I'm loved in return.
Me, former outcast and misfit, the lost girl who never fit in anywhere in the human world, has a home, a family, a father, friends, and even a relationship--a solid, powerful, crazy-good relationship, one forged in steel as my man likes to say. And often.
I'm still a bit of a misfit, but I figured out that's not such a bad thing. I learned to accept and even like the things that make me different. I'm a rebel, a blunt talker with a hard exterior I wear for those outside my close-knit circle. I'm socially awkward, have a rebellious streak, and me and authority don't get along very well. I hate being in the spotlight, though the events of the past year have thrust me there regardless.
The point is I'm not leaving. I belong here in New 2. It's a place full of beings like me, the misfits, the awkward and powerful, the one-of-a-kinds...
I was once cursed to become a hideous monster, a gorgon like my female ancestors before me. Now, I have all the power of the beast and none of the curse. I am, as Artemis put it when she freed me, the checks-and-balances of the gods.
Now I know what that means.
It means I am free from one curse. And assigned to another. Though, this time, the choice is mine. A choice fueled by my good friends, love and fear.
And after the events of the last few months, I understand the gravity approaching my world. I know the part I must play. I know I must restore a goddess from her Underworld prison, and give her back the life she deserves. And I must find a way to wake a child, a beautiful courageous child, from eternal sleep.
Because I love them.
And the world will need them.
See, war is coming. My world and the human world will collide. And it won't be pretty. It’ll be messy, and bloody, and destructive. The gods will divide. And blood ties and friendships will be tested.
And I’ll be there for it all. On the front lines. Maintaining balance, and fighting alongside those I love (and should anyone out there think to harm my family, or use them to get to me, well, I’ve got a pedestal ready to go with your name on it).
Just sayin’
Dear Readers,
Thank you so much for purchasing a copy of HEART OF STONE. I’m so pleased to bring the book into the world, and hope you’ve enjoyed this latest installment. Continuing the series via Indie publishing has been an exciting new direction, and I credit the enthusiasm and support of the Gods & Monsters readers for helping make this endeavor a reality. If you’ve enjoyed the story, please help spread the word by recommending it, talking about, and rating it. And if you’d like to keep up with all the latest news and forthcoming titles, Join My Newsletter. I’d love to have you.
To find me online: www.kellykeaton.net * Facebook * Twitter
Warmest Regards,
Kelly
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
To my beta readers: Kameryn Long, Audrey Gay, and Damaris Cardinali. Thank you for dropping things to read on the fly. Your words, insights, and encouragement were invaluable. Love you gals! And to Jonathan, Audrey, and James: I could not have finished the book without your support and help. Thank you doesn’t begin to cover it. As always, much love.
GODS & MONSTERS
Darkness Becomes Her
A Beautiful Evil
The Wicked Within
Heart of Sto
ne
OTHER BOOKS BY KELLY:
Embers in a Dark Frost
AS KELLY GAY:
The Better Part of Darkness
The Darkest Edge of Dawn
The Hour of Dust & Ashes
Shadows Before the Sun
Carniepunk: Hell’s Menagerie
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
KELLY KEATON is the author of the young adult series Gods & Monsters, which includes: Darkness Becomes Her, A Beautiful Evil, and The Wicked Within, published by Simon Pulse. As Kelly Gay she writes the Charlie Madigan series (Pocket Books). She is a two-time RITA® Finalist, an ARRA nominee, a Goodreads Choice Award finalist, and has landed on the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance's Okra Picks list. Kelly is also a recipient of North Carolina Arts Council's fellowship grant in Literature. She lives in NC with her family. Online, Kelly can be found via Twitter, Facebook, and her website at kellykeaton.net
