CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN

**OLIVER**
True to his word to my mother, Joshua had had me moved from the dungeons into more humane accommodations. I had been given food, and fresh clothes on my back. I sighed as the large chain that tethered my leg to the stone wall rattled, a subtle reminder that I was still in fact a prisoner. A chain that restricted my movements around the room.
I hadn’t seen my mother since our last encounter and I wondered what she was up to, how she was, and where she was. Even though a part of me was happy that at some point in her life, she had been able to find happiness, a larger part of me was afraid. Afraid that the man she knew all those years ago wasn’t the same now, and that the man who loved her unconditionally then didn’t love her the same now.
But she was happy. So, that should count for something, right?
I stood in front of my window and watched as the moon rose above the mountain, marveling at nature’s beauty. From my position, I could hear a river flowing below, and hear the mountain goats bleating. The calls of the creatures of the night were a suitable familiarity that was not unwelcome.
The door to my room still had the same spell as the dungeon. I had found out the hard way when I had tried to ‘plot’ an escape two days ago and had been unceremoniously flung back, and almost broke my ankle. As though on cue, my lower back throbbed, a subtle reminder of my adventures. So far, I hadn’t heard or seen Joshua or Sasha, and a part of me was worried about that. What were they up to?
As though hearing my thought, my door swung open and Sasha strolled into my room, a huge smile on her face. She looked great. This…arrangement… suited her. Her cheeks were rosy and her blue eyes brighter than I had ever seen them.
“There you are!” She said, smiling at me as the heavy door closed behind her. “How are you doing today, dear brother?”
My brows furrowed in confusion and I felt the hairs at the back of my neck rise. Dread settled in the pit of my stomach. No way this was good.
“What do you want?”
Her hand raised to her chest, and she gasped. “What do you mean? Can’t a sister visit her brother to know how he’s doing?”
I felt a cold sweat break out on my brow as she began to laugh. Her voice bounced off the walls of the mostly barren room.
“Cut the crap, Sasha.”
Sasha’s cheery smile dropped and replaced with a sinister tilt of her lips. “It’s time,” she said simply.
“Time for what?”
Sasha opened her mouth to respond but was interrupted by the heavy door opening and admitting her father. As he stepped in, I noticed the similarities in their attires. They both had on white flowing robes with Sasha’s cinched at the waist. Pearls and sea shells were braided into her hair and markings on her face and hands.
“What is going on?” I asked, panic seeping into my voice.
Joshua smiled. “Today…today, you feel the true power of the goddess. Today, you become one with her!” He answered excitedly. “Today is also the day we drain you of the goddess’ power…and the day my Sasha becomes a strong woman. A strong woman who would break history.”
Sasha giggles animatedly, her eyes shining with excitement. The more excited she looked, the more tense I became. One thing was certain. Whatever was about to happen wasn’t going to end well for me.
“Are you going to kill me?” I asked tersely, hating how small and pathetic my voice sounded.
Joshua and Sasha laughed, their loud guffaws only serving to add to the panic I felt deep in my soul. “Well, I wish it could be averted.”
“So I’ll die?”
Joshua nodded. “Yes. Yes, you will.”
“But what about my mother? She…”
Sasha groaned and rolled her eyes. “My mother would be fine,” she answered. “We’re a family now, Oliver. She has us. You’re not needed. You were never needed. This is your last chance to be useful, you should be happy and embrace it.”
“We’re ready!” Joshua yells.
I took several steps back until my back hit the wall and watched helplessly as two tall men came into the room, with plain white cloth wrapped securely around their waists and markings scattered all over their forms.
“No!” I screamed but my voice fell on deaf ears.
I watched and flailed helplessly as I was unchained and dragged out of the room, following behind Sasha and Joshua. Life flashed before my eyes. Tears flooded my vision as I was forced out into the cold night air, the moon shining down on us, welcoming us into her embrace as I was pushed into a wooden lift on the side of the mountain, and we were lowered down to the ground below. Sasha and Joshua came down after, satisfied and happy smiles on their faces.
I thought of my mother, and I couldn’t help but bark out a laugh. I hoped it was all worth it for her. I took a deep breath, all the figs hit leaving me as Balfour gathered in front of my face. I allowed myself to be dragged to the flowing river without resistance, and unceremoniously dumped at the edge.
“We’re finally going to do it, Dad,” Sasha said dreamily.
Joshua smiled down at her, his eyes filled with a fondness that I had never seen in my father’s. “Yes, we are, my darling.”
My teeth clattered as I was stripped down to my boxers and dumped into the river. The cold of the water and the night air came together to maximize my suffering.
“You want to know something, Oliver,” Joshua said as he walked over to me slowly. “When Sasha had told me that you were fighting autonomy with the goddess, I couldn’t believe it. I had thought to myself that certainly, he was joking.” He threw back his head and laughed. “But you weren’t. And till today, I’m still disappointed. But today, before you die, you will feel the true power of the goddess. We’re going to take her from you and give her to Sasha. The true heir. The only heir.”
Joshua nodded to the two men and they tied my hands solidly behind my back, the ropes digging annoyingly into my hands.
“Let us begin.”
One of the men handed him the crossbody bag he had had on him, and I watched solemnly as he retrieved a round-shaped, transparent, glass-corked bottle. Its contents were a glistening purple in the moonlight. Joshua uncorked. And I choked as the pungent smell found its way up my nostrils.
Joshua began to mutter under his breath and began to rub the ointment into my forehead. I gasped as the cold liquid touched my skin. As the intensity of his rubs increased, I could feel a strong pull in the back of my head. I felt my eyes open wider as I felt the goddess revive inside me.
“What are you doing to me?” I asked, my voice coming out in a whisper.
I got no response. He simply continued his ministrations. My head began to throb, and my breaths came in short, hard pants. I began to feel weak, my legs quivered in the water and my hands were limp in their bonds.
“Untie him,” I heard Sasha whisper to one of the men.
They obliged, and soon the ropes were taken away and my hands hung by my side like dead weights. Joshua’s chants get louder and the feeling in my head insides until I could feel myself being pushed to the back of my mind, making way for the goddess to come through.
“Kneel in the water, Sasha.”
Sasha giggled, ran into the water, and knelt across from me, her bright eyes holding mine…mocking me. Joshua’s chanting stops suddenly stopped. In the distance, I could hear sounds of commotion and screams from the top of the mountain. Across from me, excitement leaves Sasha’s eyes, giving way to fear.
“What’s wrong, Dad?” She asked.
I smiled and sighed in relief. I closed my eyes as I felt the goddess begin to regress to the back. I listened intently and smiled when I heard the howl of a wolf piercing the night. I couldn’t help it, laughter bubbles in my chest and escapes from my mouth. Oh, how lucky I was.
“He’s here,” I said quietly.
“Who?” Sasha asked.
“My mate,” I replied.
Joshua scoffed. “He’s a little too late. He can’t cross the barrier that surrounds this place,” he said haughtily. “He would die trying.”
“He’s here for me,” I said again, happiness filling my soul.
Gabriel had come for me. Gabriel had found me.
Joshua scoffed, his eyes burning in anger. “You’ll both be dead anyway!”
Just as the words flew from his mouth, Gabriel walked through the forest, his eyes scanning his surroundings and landing on us. Semi shifted, he was taller, his claws drawn, his eyes red, and a crocodile’s skull hanging off for his neck. His nose flared, and he growled. Joshua’s mouth opened in shock as Gabriel walked straight to us and stopped short of the river bank. His eyes met mine and softened, and in them, I saw the pain and the love that was reflected in mine.
“Oliver…”
“Gabriel…”