Chương 113: Chapter 113: The Most Powerful Weapon

Hades POV

Wooden beams above him and the scent of tea greeted him when he opened his eyes.

Every muscle in his body ached. He sat up, feeling the feminine breasts. Goddess. He'd never get used to that.

"Easy now."

That cursed Evenhide Wise Woman's voice.

Hades struggled and swung his legs over the bed, then faced Tulaska, whose hair looked even more ash blonde, her figure regal. "You took a lot of punishment," she continued. "As much as you gave, I'd say."

"How long was I out?"

"Not long enough to clean all that bad stuff out of your mind."

He laughed bitterly. "Nothing can do that."

"Don't be so sure." Tulaska shook her medicine rattle. "Anything is possible. Unless you try something foolish. You'll regret it. I'll make sure you never die if it's the last thing I do."

He'd forgotten how wise women could boss you around. But oddly, he found it comforting. Tulaska wouldn't try to undermine him or backstab him.

"It may surprise you to learn this, Tulaska, but I have no intention of causing any trouble. I've been doing just that for centuries and it hasn't earned me the rest I want. Eternal rest."

She did the most unexpected thing he could imagine. She sat down beside him and draped an arm around him. Her eyes … they looked deeply soulful and understanding. They reminded him of pure sunshine, though they could appear silver sometimes.

"It must be exhausting, living in such torment," she said. "No wonder you're always causing such pain in the world. Your soul is trapped between worlds."

She understood.

"I nearly killed you," he sputtered.

And he'd nearly killed Cyran. He owed that boy so much.

He LOVED that boy, the way he'd never loved any living thing.

Cyran likely wanted nothing to do with him–and yet, he hadn't let the Dark Goddess consume Hades.

Tulaska shook her head. "You didn't, though. We Wise Women are made of tough stuff. We have to be. You see, we take medicine for everyone else. We take the cure so others don't have to."

He scratched his head. "I don't understand."

Wise women! Why couldn't they ever say what they meant?

"You see, Hades, I've had a taste of the torment you've endured for centuries." She shuddered. "I don't know how you aren't completely mad. If it weren't for the Mystics of Merkur and my friends, I wouldn't be here right now. I'd be locked away somewhere, with my soul doomed to wander for eternity, like yours."

That interested him. He knew, of course, that Cyran and Tulaska had survived the legendary shrine where few dared to venture. "Cyran told me a bit about that. You actually survived their dark rituals?"

"I suppose your Dark Goddess called them that?"

He chuckled wryly. "You've got me."

"Well, they're not dark. They're life-affirming. They can take the most broken soul, which Cyran was, and make them whole again."

With pride, he said, "The boy is my blood, after all."

"Hmph. His sister is your blood, too. And Melisande …"

Hades leaned in. "She willingly gave me her body. She wanted adventure."

"I believe it. She didn't seem happy being a healer. Or happy with anything in her life."

Hades paused, an unfamiliar feeling pricking him. Maybe it was the dress he wore, made of scratchy wool. He pulled it off. No change. He still felt that uncomfortable sensation.

Guilt?

"As for Garnet … I underestimated her," he admitted.

He had. As a sorceress, as his blood, as a leader. She had proven herself more powerful than Cyran in every way. And yet, he'd chosen Cyran. Even with these new Sinsworths popping up, Talon and his boy and his sister, and the pup in Talon's mate's belly, Cyran held a fascination for Hades … and was lost to him. Cyran might help him out of necessity, but could never care for him.

Hades had ruined that.

"I hurt Cyran and his sister," he mumbled.

Tulaska looked at him with compassion. The one thing that made him tremble.

He would have called her kindness a weakness just a few months ago.

"I can't excuse your actions, Hades," she told him bluntly.

He snorted. "I wouldn't believe you if you said otherwise."

"Smart boy. Ravyn has the right approach in trying to understand you." She tapped his head. "To see what makes you the way you are in here." She tapped his heart. "And in here. Because frankly, nothing else has worked."

He huffed. "Hate is easier."

"What's easy is not always right. And I've never been one to choose the path of least resistance, anyway. I like the uncharted road. The one with detours. So, I'll help you."

"What's the catch?"

He believed her. Goddess help him. He didn't know if she planned to destroy him. To win his confidence, and then ruin him completely.

But what choice did he have? As she said, nothing else worked for either of them.

He tuned into his surroundings. The crackling of the fire in the next room. The smell of the herbs that always surrounded Wise Women. The feel of the bedspread, so soothing. The sight of the ancient shifter symbols for healing painted on the wall. The strange aftertaste in his mouth from whatever medicines he'd been given in the human palace.

Tulaska tapped his knee to get his attention. "You must do everything I say."

He howled with laughter. "You don't ask much, do you?"

"It's the least you deserve. If you don't do exactly what I tell you, you'll never get the eternal rest you want. So, are you in or out?"

He trembled. Her sincere compassion was the most powerful weapon he could imagine. How could he fight it?

Did he even want to?

* * * * *

Cyran POV

He'd been to Tulaska's home so often in the last three years that, whenever he visited, even before he walked in the door, she always had his favorite tea waiting for him, with just a dash of honey.

Entering the courtyard with its cleansing pool fringed with ferns, he noticed she'd added a small waterfall. She'd built a small raised pool above the main one, with stone steps leading down and water flowing smoothly.

Talon Blackthorn whistled softly, looking around. "This is lovely."

Cyran jumped. He'd been tailed. He should have noticed them. "Nice of you to join us."

"Don't be rude," Naomi scolded him. "Maybe you need to sit in this peaceful courtyard. And use these plants to soothe your tummy."

"I don't need–"

Jiro tried a distraction. "Leave it to Tulaska to create a courtyard that's both attractive and functional."

Kelara Blackthorn studied the space with avid interest. "Talon, we should do something like this in Blackthorn Castle."

"Oh, of course." He looked mildly amused. "We have a garden, my Luna."

Cyran would normally jump in and join their banter, siding with Kelara, even though he liked Talon. They seemed incredibly suited.

However, knowing that Hades slept inside Tulaska's home drove all other thoughts from his mind.

Kelara's eyes sharpened, and Naomi looked worried. "Cyran, what is it?" they both asked.

Garnet's eyes turned dark amber. "I'll give you one guess."

"He can't hurt Cyran," Jiro asserted. "We'll be here."

Cyran was just about to respond when he heard howls of pain from inside Tulaska's home. The most bone-chilling, fur-curling sounds imaginable. Pulling open the door, he burst through it, with the others on his heels.