My heart almost exploded.

  I had no idea what emotion was running through the Goddess, but both of the personal guards ran over to the tent and moved Oz and Ren out of the way as Klix pulled Ether out of the tent. Something that I noticed very quickly was that Ether was moving on her own legs. Then I saw Klix point at me.

  “DON’T!” Ether moved in between us. “You’ll have to kill me first if you want him.”

  Klix slowly moved her hand to pat Ether’s head. “Oh, this is good…”

  Ether tried to pull away, but froze.

  “Miel has been worried sick about you for the last six years. You’re not going to run away again.” Klix glared at my love. “Though it seems you’re not going home either.”

  “I’m never going back.” Ether growled. “Not to those monsters!”

  “Monsters?” Kliz raised her hand, and I thought for a moment she was going to slap Ether. The Goddess slowly lowered her hand. “Why do you think that?”

  “EVERY. ONE. OF. MY. SIBLINGS.” There were tears in Ether’s eyes. “They sold them when they were twelve! Both Kara and Jare! I HATE them!”

  “This is not a conversation that we need to have here.” Klix nodded at one of her guards, and they grabbed Ether under her shoulders. “We’ll talk in the car.”

  “NO!” Ether and I screamed at the same time.

  “I won’t help you if you take her!” I tried my best to glare at the Goddess.

  I got hit with an Aura so strong that my eyes felt like they were burning out of their sockets. I blinked a few times before I realized that Klix was in my face.

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  “If you don’t help me, then I can’t verify your story, and that means I have to kill you for the attempt on a God’s life.” Klix snapped her fingers, and the screams coming from Ether silenced. Her red eyes bored into me. “And then Trent will come after me, so I’ll have to kill him now while it’s easy, and since I’m in a killing mood, might as well add in the fox and everyone here so there are no witnesses to dispute my story.” My head felt like it was about to crack open under the pressure, but I did my best to hold her glare. “Are you willing to pay all of that just to defy me?”

  It was illogical. Throwing everyone’s life away just to save Ether. Ether meant something to Klix, but she meant something to me too.

  “Yes.” I was blinking back tears. “I love her.” I knew I’d just given her leverage, but I’d also told her just how far I’d go.

  “Really…” Klix began walking her fingers around in my hair. “Tell you what, we’re in Mive, so let’s do it his way, so..." She nodded at Ether. “We each sit in on a conversation.” She must have seen the resistance in my eyes because she grabbed a handful of my white hair. “I sit in on the one you have with Mive and you sit in on the one I have with little Ether…”

  I started to argue but realized that at least I’d be with Ether. It gave us time to figure something else out. “Fine…” I looked at Ether. “Just don’t hurt her.”

  “She deserves it for what she put her mother through.” Klix shook her head. “But that’s a conversation for the car.” She nodded at the guard and they carried Ether out of the building.

  “Now!” Klix’s claws dug into my shoulder, and I realized that I could move again. I thought about running after Ether, but there was no way that I could shake Klix’s grasp. “I believe that you have a deal to pay.”

  She guided me into the tent and sat me down in between Mive and Trent. “Let’s hurry this up.”

  “How exactly is this going to work?” I swallowed. “Every time I hijack a mental spell it puts me into the other person’s mind, but you don’t want to do that.”

  Klix closed her eyes for a moment, then looked at me. “Think about it this way. He’s in a cage right now.” She nodded at Mive. “With strong bars that he can’t break, but you can walk through the bars.”

  “Okay, but you don’t want to walk in with me.” Mive had used an ant and a house analogy, but I kinda liked hers better.

  “I’m going to anchor you so that you stay in your mind. Then Mive can reach his hand through the bars and touch you. He'll have to strain, and he might get his hand smashed, but if he wants to talk, then he’ll come out to play.”

  I nodded and put my hand on Mive’s hairy arm. It made sense, but if he could do that... I let my fingers on my other hand touch Trent’s arm.

  “SIPHON!”

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