The crowd cheered, and Saule stepped forward. Her eyes scanned the crowd before landing on me.
“I wish to extend my gratitude to Jayne. I welcome her and her sister Beth as the newest members of our family. It was Jayne who killed Velns.”
Clapping followed, and I blushed. Jayne. She’d called me Jayne.
She turned her gaze on Aaron. “I also wish to especially thank the mortal man, Aaron, for risking his one life for our existence, and for my freedom.” Her golden eyes peered down at him where he still knelt. “Rise, Aaron.”
Ursins leaned toward me. “Pay attention,” he murmured. “This doesn’t happen often, and you won’t want to miss it.”
“Aaron Chambers,” Saule said, “you have been challenged, and you have triumphed. You entered into the underworld and emerged undefeated. And finally, you defeated Velu Mate. We are in your debt.” She turned to the table covered with fruits and goblets. “As a token of our gratitude, I present you with this goblet filled with sap from the Tree of Life. Drink, and become our eternal brother.”
“Wait,” I breathed. “Is she really granting—”
“I accept your offer with humble thanks and consider your debt paid in full,” Aaron said. He rose, then lifted the cup to his lips and drank.
He hadn’t missed a beat. Had he known this would be the outcome? Had someone briefed him? Stars danced in front of my eyes, and I gripped Ursins’ arm for support. “Did he just—did they just—”
Ursins laughed and pried my hand off his arm. “Yes. He drank from the Tree of Life. He is now immortal.”
Perkons’ eyes lifted and landed on me. “Jayne,” he said, the voice thundering through the ground and in my soul, “come forward.”
The people parted around me like the Red Sea for Moses, and I felt their eyes on my back as I moved through them. I was still the new kid, the interloper attempting to mingle with them.
Perkons waited until I stood directly in front of him. To my left were Saule and Aaron, but I did not look at either of them, keeping my gaze steady on Perkons.
“Jayne,” Perkons said. “There are some matters we need to attend to. First, we thank you for defeating Velns. His death does not bring us joy, but it was his choice. Second, you have not only inherited all of the powers of Dekla, but Laima passed hers on to you as well. You have choices before you. You may continue as one of our pantheon, as the primary goddess of fate. Or we can remove these powers from you and make you a normal girl.”
A normal girl. The words echoed in my mind. A few days ago, that was all I ever wanted.
Would that mean I would be mortal again? My eyes darted toward Aaron against my will. What would that do to the two of us?
“Who becomes the goddess of fate if I choose a normal life?” I asked.
“You will decide who she will be.”
The options danced in front of me, and I wavered. I could be a high school girl again, free to do whatever I liked without worrying what the future might bring, either mine or anyone else’s. Or I could live an immortal life with Aaron by my side, reliving death over and over and over again.
“Can I think on it?” I asked timidly.
“Of course you may.” He nodded at me, and I sensed it was a dismissal. But before he could turn away from me, I thought of something else.
“There’s one more thing,” I blurted.
Perkons’ stormy blue eyes focused on me again, swirling as if wispy clouds tumbled in their depths. “Oh?”
I gathered my courage, even though I want to streak away from that gaze. “Can we do something about my marriage to Jumis?”
He blinked as if he had forgotten who Jumis was. “Your marriage to Jumis?”
“He formally presented me to you, and you received me as Jumis’ spouse.”
“Jumis has vanished. He betrayed us in our hour of need and has abandoned all of us, including you, his wife. He is unworthy to be your spouse. If you wish to renounce your marriage, you are free to do so.”
I swallowed. That was it? “I renounce my marriage.”
“It is accepted. Your marriage to Jumis is formally undone. Now.” He turned his glowering gaze on the two people at the back of the room. “Before we can celebrate, we have one more item of business to attend to. Velu Mate, you are sentenced to life as a mortal. I release you to earth.”
Jods rattled his chains. “It’s a death sentence! The moment she leaves the celestial realm, her years will catch up to her! She’ll be dead in minutes!”
Velu Mate remained silent, chest heaving, eyes glowering at Perkons. The crowd murmured behind me, and Perkons held Jods’ gaze until silence returned.
“That is her sentence. May it be on your conscience for dragging your mother into this.” Perkons waved his hand, and the hag vanished from the cage.
Jods swallowed and straightened up. He didn’t look in the least bit repentant.
“Jods. We sentence you to return to the underworld in Velns’ place. You are now the keeper of the dead, never to return to Slitere.”
“You had best take away my immortality and kill me,” Jods hissed, “or I will find a way to seek revenge on you and your family.” He spat the last word.
“It is done. You are no threat to us.” With another wave of Perkons’ hand, Jods disappeared as well, the chains clinking as they fell to the ground.
“Now.” Perkons turned a smile to the rest of us. “We eat.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Perkons put an arm around Aaron and walked away with him, leaving me torn and confused as to what I should decide. I caught up to Ursins just as he approached a gaggle of goddesses.
“Ursins.”
He stopped and waited for me to reach him. “Congratulations, Dekla. Or Jayne, rather.”
A small smile pressed against my lips. “Jayne is fine. But I do carry Dekla’s memories.”
“And Laima’s now?” he asked, sadness crossing his face.
I shook my head. “Only her powers.” I took a deep breath, and then said, “What’s going to happen to Jumis?”
Ursins faced me, his expression somber. “He’s gone into hiding. Perkons has already sent forth kaukas to capture him and bring him to trial.”
“And if he doesn’t find Jumis?”
He shrugged. “He will be a rebel, a rogue god. Happens from time to time. He will lose his powers, though, since he will not be allowed to drink from the Tree of Life at the annual harvest festival.”
“Apjumibas,” I said, naming the celebration. Jumis Day. My mind lingered on my estranged husband. There was no denying the anger I felt toward him, but a part of me pitied him. He had wandered off the path because of his love for a woman. It pained me to think he would no longer attend his own festival.
“If he does not wish to live as an outlaw, he will surrender himself and beg for mercy. Perkons is known to grant clemency.”
“Ursins!” one of the girls called, and he tossed his blond hair behind a shoulder.
“It will be an honor to have you as one of us, Jayne.” He bowed his head before turning to face the goddesses lined up to flirt with him.
The soft touch of fingers on my arm distracted me, and I turned to see Beth. Her wavy dark hair had been pulled halfway up, giving her a more childlike appearance, incongruent with the gold goblet in her hand.
“Perkons offered me the same choice,” she said. “Mortality and a normal life, or immortality and remain as Karta.”
My heart stammered in my chest. “When?”
“Just now. He spoke to me while you were talking with Ursins.”
“And?” I said, my mouth suddenly dry. “What did you decide?”
She lifted the goblet to her lips, eyes on me over the rim. She took a sip, then lowered it. “I asked for the opportunity to grow up like a mortal girl and then join the pantheon when I am ready. Perkons accepted. He said I have to continue to do my job from home, summoning visions to me instead of going all over the world. But I can go home. I can be with Mom and
Dad. I can live like a mortal.” She gave a wide grin. “Except I won’t be, of course.”
I let out of breath, happy she had found a decision she was satisfied with. I just didn’t know if I could make the same one.
I hung around the party for a while, hoping for the opportunity to talk to Aaron, but he was never alone. I found I wasn’t any more of a party animal as a goddess than I had been as a teenage girl, and eventually I gave up and retired to Laima’s cabin. I had thought I’d feel excited when the quest was over, but instead I felt a bit let down. And empty. As if they had taken Aaron from me.
That was a ridiculous thought, wasn’t it?
What I needed was some perspective. I searched the kitchen for the tea Laima had made for me, but though I found plenty of tea, I didn’t find that one.
A knock came at the front door, followed by a male voice calling out my name in a British lilt. “Jayne?”
I abandoned my search for tea and rushed to the door. I flung it open and threw my arms around Aaron’s neck, crushing his mouth with mine. He kissed me back, lips hard against my skin, and the two of us stumbled backward into the room, legs tripping over each other until I collapsed on the couch and brought Aaron down with me.
He disengaged his lips from mine but kept his face hovering over me, his blue eyes searching me.
“You left. I was looking for you, but you were gone.”
I lifted a shoulder in a shrug. “I’m trying to sort my thoughts.”
He straightened, leaning back against the couch. “You’re trying to decide if you want to be a goddess of fate or not.”
I clasped his hands in mine, feeling the way my fingers fit with his. My heart warmed, and I treasured his touch. “I’m trying to decide if I can give up immortality.”
Aaron’s eyes turned downward for a moment, and then they met mine again. “What if I told you,” he said carefully, “there’s a way to have both?”
“Both?” I asked, seeking further clarification before I allowed myself to believe.
“Freedom from being a goddess but also keeping your immortality.”
My breath caught. “How?”
“Perkons offered me a place in the pantheon.”
I clasped my hands over my mouth, but Aaron kept on talking.
“Taking Jods’ spot. Helping keep the balance between life and death. If I accept, I won’t just be immortal, I’ll be a god.”
The room swam around me. “A god,” I said.
“And if I’m a god, Jayne—” His eyes captured mine. “I can take a mortal wife, and she will not taste death while we are married.”
Just like becoming Jumis’ wife and had granted me access to immortality through him. I could share Aaron’s. I burst into tears.
Aaron’s brow furrowed, and he grasped my shoulders. “Jayne, it’s not an obligation. You don’t have to. I’m just saying it’s an option. So you can make a decision without worrying about me, or us. In case you were.”
He suddenly sounded self-conscious, which made me laugh.
“No, you don’t understand,” I said. “The only thing that made me hesitate was thinking I couldn’t be with you. If I can have you, the choice is easy.”
Aaron’s hands moved from my shoulders to intertwine my fingers again. “You don’t have to decide right now. It’s an option, it’s there for you.” His grip tightened, and his voice grew huskier. “Jayne, even if it wasn’t, even if I could only have you for one lifetime, I would take it. It would be worth it. I love you. The moment I thought I’d lost you, it became crystal clear to me that I was letting material things cloud what really matters.”
“Material things?” I laughed, so giddy I thought my wings would burst out and I would fly. “Getting a college education? I was immature and stupid. I should’ve been supporting you, not begging for your attention. I should be able to have enough faith in us not to worry about the time or distance between us.”
“Yes, you should,” he said, a smile teasing his lips. “I hope I have proven my loyalty to you now.”
My only response was to once again swing my arms around his neck and press my lips to his.
*~*
I sat on the stone steps outside the University of Latvia in Riga. I had traveled the world during the past two weeks, searching for the right woman—or women—to take my place in the pantheon as a goddess of fate. I’d found several candidates, and even though the visions I summoned of their possible futures indicated that they could do the job and do it well, I hadn’t been able to pick one.
So now I was in Latvia, hometurf, so to speak. I thought maybe I needed to get back to the original bloodline before I would feel comfortable conveying such an important role onto another person.
I’d been shadowing Emilija for days here at the university. At the moment I wore jeans and a T-shirt and a pair of headphones, blending in with every other student walking the grounds. But I could make myself unnoticeable if I so desired, or visible only to her. Neat powers I had.
I understood this girl far more than she understood herself. She was inquisitive and curious, a budding scientist, with aspirations to be on the forefront of new ideas and innovations that could improve the quality of life for all mankind. She was also compassionate, spending her off hours volunteering at a local animal shelter, where she spent as much time caring for the animals as helping lonely people find the best pet.
I knew she would be perfect. I’d already seen a vision of her life where she took on the role and quickly became adept at summoning and making judgments.
But one thing kept nagging me. How could I expect someone else to take on something I didn’t want?
I tore my eyes away from Emilija as she walked hand-in-hand with her boyfriend down the steps of the science building. I lifted my wrist to text Laima when I remembered she was gone. I swallowed past a lump in my throat. I’d complained about her constantly when she was alive, but without her to mentor me, I often felt lost.
Her soul was in the underworld. Aaron could take me there, but Jods would never let me speak with her. Not with the bad blood between us. It was probably safest for me if I never stepped foot down there again.
Instead I messaged Beth. She was back at school, where I should be. But my mom had pulled me out for the time being, citing emotional trauma. I was homeschooling at the moment, with the intention to return after Thanksgiving.
“Beth,” I whispered to my wrist. “Can you talk?”
I waited half an hour for a response. Finally, a chatty blue jay dropped onto the steps beside me. It straightened up and morphed into my sister, looking typically teenager in her leggings and long shirt.
“What’s up, girl?”
“Took you long enough,” I said.
“I had to wait until a passing period. Visiting you doesn’t happen in the blink of an eye, you know. People will notice my absence.”
“Sorry.” I exhaled loudly, breathing out my frustrations.
“Can’t decide who to pick?” Beth pulled her knees up and rested her chin on them, glancing around at the students who passed by.
“I don’t know what the problem is. I feel really good about her.” I bobbed my head in Emilija’s direction. “But something is keeping me from finishing the assignment.”
“Maybe because the person who is supposed to be the goddess of fate already is.”
I mimicked her posture and looked at her, cheek on my knee. “How can we be sure? Can you see my future?”
She shook her head. “Not you or any of the other gods. But Laima said something once, when we were all on Slitere. It didn’t mean much to me then, but—I think maybe it was intentional.”
I straightened up, heart beginning to pound harder. “What did she say?”
“She said the future is all about choices, and even when we think we know what’s coming, it can surprise us.”
My shoulders relaxed, and I felt let down. “Just another riddle. How does it help me?”
“I’m not done, Jayne.”
Beth gave me a patronizing look. “Then she said you surprised her. She said of all the possible futures she saw for you when Adele asked to save your life, she never saw you as a member of the pantheon.”
“So.” I breathed out slowly and nodded. “I’m not supposed to be a goddess after all.”
“Oh, for the love of heaven.” Beth rolled her eyes. “You really don’t get anything. This is your future now. Because of choices you made. You were supposed to die, Jayne, and because of Adele’s choice, you lived. And now you’re a goddess. What it boils down to is, we still decide our own destinies.”
I mulled that over in my head. Several months ago I’d thought no matter what I did, the future couldn’t change. But I had proof in front of me that it could. Aaron, becoming a hero when it was originally not in his cards. Me, not only being alive, but becoming a goddess.
Maybe a goddess of fate would still marry a god of death, as Laima had foreseen.
“You know,” Beth said, “it doesn’t have to be a burden, seeing the future. You can come home for good. Live like me. Use your powers to help people decide their futures, all from the comfort of your own couch.”
I narrowed my eyes, feeling like this was a trick. “How will I know if I need to summon a vision? That it’s time to decide someone’s fate?”
Beth shrugged. “I smell cinnamon rolls. That’s when I know.”
I opened my mouth to say I’d think about it but then shut it. I didn’t need to think anymore. Perhaps I’d been doing too much of that. “Yes.”
“Yes?”
“I’ll do it. I’ll continue on.”
Beth squealed and hugged me, her shoulders trembling as she squeezed me tight. “I knew you would.”
“Because it’s my destiny?” I said wryly.
“No. Because it’s who you are.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
I worried that home life would feel rather dull after the excitement of a mythological battle between immortal beings, but I quickly forgot I was anything more than an average high school girl.
Destined (Goddess of Fate Book 4) Page 18
