Page 24 of Another Damned Storm

A true witch mating with any other magical being often created offspring with fascinating abilities. “Can you travel to all realms?”

He hesitated, taking a moment to chew on his lip before shaking his head.

Either he was lying, or he was thinking about lying and that little head shake was the moment he decided to tell the truth. I honestly couldn’t tell which.

“Can you travel to the Alius?”

His muddy brown eyes went wide. “No. Why would anyone want to go there?”

Because the realm was home to the magic and energy that powered several worlds, for starters. “Have you tried?”

He opened his mouth and closed it again.

“I don’t have all day, Criton.” That wasn’t strictly true. I had all the time in the world. I’d tried to leave the Nassa a million times over the many millennia I’d been trapped here, and one thing I knew for certain was that I would be stuck here until someone summoned me.

My patience, on the other hand, wouldn’t hold out forever.

“No,” he finally confessed.

As I suspected. I uncrossed my arms and turned toward Anya’s body. “If you truly desire that wretched creature’s dust, you will try.”

Fear flickered across his face. “Gods don’t belong in the Alius.”

Yes, well, neither did Never. “You will go, and if you succeed in crossing the veil, I want you to observe for a short while, then come straight back here.”

When he didn’t move, I shooed him off with my hands. “Go on then.”

“This is a bad idea,” he muttered.

A snide suggestion about him returning to whatever world he’d come from was on the tip of my tongue, but a tug in my chest washed the words away.

“Never?” I whispered. I pressed my hand over the barely perceptible fluttering around my heart.

It was her alright. The sensation was so faint I couldn’t glean even a sliver of what she was feeling, but the simple reconnection was almost enough to bring me to my knees.

“Hey, man.” Criton took a step toward me. “You alright?”

I was better than I’d been since I woke to find Never gone, but I was also thoroughly confused. Had our connection somehow survived her trip to the Alius or was something else happening?

Straightening, I hit Criton with a serious look. “Change of plans. I’m assuming you can visit Othrys?”

His brow pinched, and his expression seemed to ask if I was a fool. “Yeah. Can’t all gods and demigods.”

“Not all,” I bit out. Because not all of us were welcome.

“Oh, right.” I didn’t miss the hint of humor in the statement. “What about it?”

“You will go there and be my eyes and ears for a time.”

“You want me to spy?” He shook his head vehemently. “No way.”

“Then go home,” I said coolly.

“But…” He motioned to Anya’s body. “Can I take just a little?”

“Earn it or leave it. The choice is yours.” My original plan was to have him attempt to access the Alius and report back to me about Never, assuming he could locate her. With the resurgence of our link, I had the sneaking suspicion she was precisely where the fates did not want her to be.

Criton shot me an exasperated look. “Come on, man.”