these things about you, I thought I might be able to help you embrace that side of yourself and unlock the things you keep most hidden. This is why I accepted you and gave up what I was to help you become your most powerful self.
I didn’t know what to say. Having Tia with me was like having a guardian angel who understood everything. Who accepted my strengths and weaknesses and was willing to stick with me and loan a supporting hand regardless of whatever trouble I found myself in. And I was about to find myself in a mess of trouble.
“Thank you. For believing in me, I mean.”
I am not the only one. Your mate has an abiding trust in you as well.
“How do you know that?”
He spoke to you last night as he wandered the netherworld.
“He did?”
Yes. You didn’t see that part. The young man wasn’t aware that I was listening in, but he hoped you’d understand his message just the same.
“What did he say?”
Flowery things. Most of his words were insignificant, meaningless emotional professions of various lengths. The only time I really paid attention was when he spoke words of encouragement and of how he looked forward to your reunion, as dangerous as such a thing may be.
I slowly let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding.
You…you wish to hear his words of devotion?
“They mean everything to me,” I admitted.
Then next time I will make an effort to pay better attention. To me he sounded much like a lovesick bullfrog in mating season, croaking in an ever-increasingly flamboyant manner to capture the attention of his intended female.
I laughed. Especially when I realized that her thoughts contradicted her words. Amon’s words of devotion had touched her, though she didn’t truly understand the purpose of it. “Just you wait until it happens to you, my friend,” I said. Then I sobered when I realized she was no longer going to get the chance to fall in love if lions even did.
Quietly, I asked, “Do you love your male counterpart? He was a rather handsome lion.”
Our notion of love is different. I am bonded to my family, not to one lion in particular. We function as a cohesive unit. Each one is important. We do not seek to isolate ourselves from the others like you do.
“We bond with our families, too, but when we choose a partner, a mate, we want that relationship to be special, different. Something magical that exists only between the two of us.”
I am not sure that your way is better than mine. As you can see, your exclusive bond with this male means you mourn when he is removed from your immediate proximity.
“That’s true,” I admitted. “I feel broken without him. A bit lost.”
You sacrifice much for a slim chance at happiness. A steady, productive life might be more fulfilling.
“That sounds too much like the life my parents have planned for me.”
I did not mean you shouldn’t explore and do the things that please you. I meant that it is important to find moments of joy in the here and now, not to set all your hopes upon one dream, upon one man.
“I’ll take it under consideration.”
Thank you.
It wasn’t that she was wrong exactly. I never wanted to be one of those girls who pined her life away for a man. But I never imagined someone such as Amon either. I ran my palm across the heart scarab at my waist and felt a little flutter jolt through me. My heart was tied to his, and until it wasn’t, I’d do anything in my power to be with him.
I could now smell Oscar but I couldn’t see him. It was noon and the sun was directly overhead. Cupping my hand over my eyes to shade them, I turned in a circle. A sound behind me caught my attention and I spun around quickly, crouching down, ready to attack.
Dr. Hassan dropped a full canteen, the water gushing out in thick waves like a heart that had been stabbed. He stood there, the shock registering on his face as he scrutinized me.
“Lily? What have you done?”
Slowly, I straightened, rounding my shoulders, the bones cracking from the release of my tense muscles. “What do you mean, ‘What have I done?’ ” I said. “Haven’t I accomplished what you sent me out to do? You should be pleased that I didn’t die on the journey.”
Oscar’s mouth was gaping open as he took in my appearance. “You…you,” he finally