Fate's Revenge (Twisted Fate, Book 4)

Chapter Thirty-One

For over an hour, nothing changed. She didn't move or moan or breathe. I kept to the side, watching her from a foot away—just enough to be out of hitting distance—hugging my knees to my chest. I couldn't blink, afraid I'd miss a telltale sign of recovery.

What if I left her and faded into nothing instead of returning to my body? At no point in our pre-journey discussion had we touched upon the source of the potion's power. What if it was all tied to her like I supposed connection while under the influence of the potion? I couldn't leave her side not knowing if doing so would condemn me to being stuck. Or worse, ceasing to exist.

Looking up, the sky was still clear and blue, just as it had been when we tumbled in. the clouds looked like every other cloud I'd ever seen. Whether black and stormy or white and fluffy—this time the latter—it was all the same. Was Heaven like that? It was made, or at least existed upon, clouds. It made sense that wherever you could see a sky and its clouds, you could see Heaven. I mean, we all had to believe in something, even if we believed in nothing at all. With all His powers, he couldn't be limited by the parameters religions placed on faith.

I shook my head and looked down. Lachesis, looking tired but herself, was watching me. While I had my heads in the clouds, she'd managed to pull herself to sitting without making a sound. Or maybe I was too engrossed with thoughts to hear. But she was awake, alert, and I wasn't alone. I wouldn't disappear.

"Are you okay?" I held my breath.

"I'm old," she said, casting a soft smile to me. She looked up, then around, and then braced her palm on her thighs to stand. "I'll be fine." She took a deep breath, sounding exhausted. "Come on. The way to your parents is just over that hill."

"Seriously?" I laughed at where she pointed to a mound not even ten feet away. "I was this close the whole time you were out? How is that even possible?"

She looked down at me and raised an eyebrow, another smile, bigger than before, tugging at the corner of her mouth. "You still want to see them, don't you?"

I scrambled to stand, nearly toppling off balance I moved so fast I couldn't get a solid stance in the loose sand at first. Lachesis reached out to help, but I waved her away, and her hand fell back to her sides. Having never needed anyone's help before today, she wouldn't understand the need for independence. Even then, after talking for a while, she probably would have managed alone. Others didn't have that luxury, so they made the small things that which mattered.

As soon as she saw I would be okay she started walking away. It was a struggle to catch up—how could she move so quickly yet appear so frail? Was this the perk I'd questioned? No, it couldn't be. Probably... it was age. Being ancient must have taught her to be swift, both in speed and recovery—she didn't even look like anything had been wrong. How was she stronger so quickly? I could ask but a unvoiced inkling of concern told me I didn't want to know the answers.

I pushed all the concern and questions I had for her over what just happened and bent forward at my waist to keep balanced as we started to hike up the hill that turned out to be a freaking mountain. At least, it felt that way when we were climbing, no longer protected by its size as we began to ascent. Every few minutes, sand blasted against us with high wind force. We hunched against it as it lifted our hair and embedded in our eyes, ears, nose, and if we forgot to close it, our mouths. Dehydration wasn't just a chance, but probable. If we had bodies. I don't know how long we walked but eventually I couldn't stand the silence and the questions burned to deep to remain unasked.

"So, what happened?" I asked, huffing as I walked beside her, speaking through clenched teeth to avoid being fed by our surroundings. "You totally freaked me out. I thought I'd have to fade alone, and then I wasn't even sure I could without your help."