in the world who’d been able to save her from herself.
“And,” Delia went on, “he has every reason to stay vigilant, especially now that we know Zagreus has been released by the Fates.”
Cynna’s stomach tightened, and she protectively touched her belly again.
Delia, being one of the strongest witches in their land, had sensed the moment Zagreus had been released from his latest imprisonment. Cynna still wasn’t sure why the Fates had let him go, and she told herself he wouldn’t come looking for her, that he had no interest in her anymore, but always in the back of her mind, she worried.
She’d voluntarily spent nearly a year with the Prince of Darkness as his “mistress.” He’d told her numerous times that she was his. That she would never get away from him. Then she’d betrayed him by falling in love with one of his prisoners—Nick—and they’d both escaped Zagreus’s lair together.
Plus, she’d helped Nick come into his god-powers. Her actions had resulted in Hades destroying Zagreus’s home. And the fallout from all of that had been Zagreus being sent to the Underworld for gods only knew what kind of inhuman torture before being imprisonment with the Fates. For twenty-five years.
Nerves prickled her skin. After all that, after Zagreus’d had time to think about her year with him, the minor god had to know Cynna had lied to him. That she’d never been the one he’d been looking for. Yes, twenty-five years was a lifetime to some, but a blink of an eye to an immortal. Now that he was free, he had to be thankful she was no longer a distraction.
Wouldn’t he?
Cynna’s gaze skipped over Delia’s features as fear churned in her chest. The witch was an elder in her community, wise beyond her years, but to those around her she was youthful and beautiful. The only feature that gave away her age was her snow-white hair. “Have you seen something in your visions? In your glass?”
“No. Wherever the Prince of Darkness is hiding, it is beyond my sight.”
Cynna breathed easier. Delia was able to use water and mirrors to search for beings in this world and other realms. If she couldn’t see Zagreus, it meant he wasn’t in Argolea or anywhere close.
“But something stirs inside him,” Delia said, her piercing blue eyes locked on Cynna’s. “I feel it gathering strength, spurring him toward a goal I cannot bring into focus just yet. And it is making him stronger. I told you once that he is more than Hades’s son. You and your mate would be wise to remember that he is more powerful than the Argonauts believe him to be. And that he does not forget. Ever.”
Well… shit.
Icy fingers of dread tiptoed down Cynna’s spine. She placed her other hand protectively on her belly. Where Zagreus was concerned, nothing and no one was ever safe.
The tent flap behind Cynna rustled, and seconds later a witch with light purple hair stuck her head into the clinic. “I’m sorry to interrupt, Delia.” The witch bowed slightly then quickly looked toward Cynna. “You have a visitor. They said it was an emergency.”
The conversation with Delia pushed Cynna’s worry right back to the forefront, and she immediately thought of her mate. But when the witch stepped aside, it wasn’t one of his men from Kyrenia where she and Nick lived who appeared in the doorway. It was Cynna’s niece.
Cynna’s worry quickly shifted to her sister. “Elysia? What’s wrong? What’s happened? Is it Isadora?”
“She’s fine.” Elysia gripped Cynna’s hand. Her face was flushed, her dark hair wind-blown, and her skin was pale, as if she’d just seen a ghost. But her grip was strong. “My mother is fine. She’s with my other aunts. But I need to take you to them.”
“Why?” Cynna asked, brows drawn low. They weren’t Cynna’s family. Casey and Callia were Isadora’s half-sisters on her father’s side, the late king. Cynna was related to Isadora through their mother.
“Because you’re the only one who may be able to tell us where he took her. Or what he plans to do with her.”
“He who?” When Elysia tugged on her hand, Cynna pulled back, staring at her niece in complete bewilderment. “And who did he take?”
“Talisa,” Elysia said, meeting her gaze. “Zagreus has Talisa. He grabbed her and poofed right out of that club in the human realm as if he’d been waiting for her. And he called her mono mia.”
Cynna sucked in a shocked breath.
Fear filled Elysia’s eyes. “You know what that means,