Underworld 134_Goddess Of The Underworld

Chapter 134

 The weight of strategy still hung in the air when a knock, small, uneven, like someone using their knuckles and then forgetting halfway through, sounded at the door. It opened before anyone answered. Elliot led the charge, Macey close behind, arms full of paper and glue. Layah padded after them, dark fur catching themplight.

 “Look!” Macey announced before she even cleared the threshold. She pped a sheet of paper onto the table between all the coffee cups and maps. “It’s us. See? That’s you.” She jabbed a finger at a stick figure with wild yellow hair and a scribbled crown.

 “That’s me?” Haiden asked, mock offense in his tone.

 “Obviously,” she said, rolling her eyes like it was the dumbest question in the world.

 Elliot held his own drawing close until I reached for it. Then, shyly, he let me take it. “It’s the Underworld,” he exined. “But I made the sky bigger, so you don’t get squished.”

 The paper was all stars, heavy dots of crayon pressed until the wax broke. In the center, a small figure with a round belly and four taller ones around her. He didn’t say who they were, but he didn’t need to. My throat caught anyway.

 “Beautiful,” I whispered.

 Layah stretched, tail flicking, then tipped her head toward me. The link brushed soft against my mind. “You’ve had a hard day.” 

 “You were there“, I sent back. You saw it too.

 “I did. And I will again. But for now…” She stepped closer, pressed her nose to my palm. Warmth slid through me like a tide rolling back in. Then her shape dissolved, folded, and she was gone, her presence settling back into my skin, back into me.

 I exhaled, lighter than I had been all day.

 “Hey, Mum,” Elliot said, tugging my sleeve. “Can we put these on the fridge? So you see them every time you get snacks.” 

 “Yes,” I said, scooping him into myp. “Every single time.”

 3

 14:03 Wed, Se

 Noah leaned over my shoulder to study the drawings, pressing a kiss to the top of my

 head. “Best art this house has ever seen.” 

 And just like that, the air shifted. Not war, not witches, not fear. Just crayons, glue, and little hands reminding me what we were really fighting for.

 We tucked Elliot and Macey into bed with all the usual negotiations, one more sip of water, one more story, Fergus tucked just right under the nket. Layah sprawled across the rug like she had every intention of standing guard till morning. By the time their

 breathing evened, my heart had unclenched a little. I slipped into the hall, quiet on purpose. That’s when I saw them. Four shadows, four sets of eyes catching the low light. Maddox, Talen, Hawk, and Flint. The hellhounds. My mates‘ other halves. All waiting.

 Before I could say a word, they moved as one, brushing up against me, nuzzling my hands, crowding my legs like oversized wolves who’d decided subtlety wasn’t on the menu tonight. Heat, muscle, smoke–and–earth scents pressed close.

 Iughed, helpless. “What’s all this?”

 Xavier’s voice slid into my head through the bond, warm and sure. “They voted. Apparently, it’s their time with you. No objections epted.”

 I hummed, stroking Maddox’s thick fur, Talen pushing his massive head into my palm. Hawk paced at my side, smug as ever, while Flint leaned against my thigh like he’d been there all along.

 “Alright“, I answered, amusement and affection in equal measure. “Then let’s not keep them waiting.”

 Together we walked back to our chambers, my little entourage padding silent and steady at my sides. One by one, each hellhound got their moment, scratches behind ears, hands pressed into warm ruffs of fur, whispers just for them. They soaked it in, tails low and pleased, like kings granted audience. By the time I curled up on the couch, they’d settled in around me, pirs of shadow and fire keeping the world at bay.

 Morning in the Underworld never meant sunlight, but I felt the difference all the same, like the whole ce inhaled at once and waited for us to move. The house stirred early. Elliot ttered through the hall in boots that weren’t evenced, Macey trailing behind with Fergus tucked under her arm. Layah paced them like a drill sergeant, making sure they ate at least two mouthfuls before they could go raid the cushion fortress again. Breakfast was quick and noisy, coffee strong, tes passed fast, the scrape of chairs.

 Normal in all the best ways, even with tension riding under it.

 91%

 Xavier spread a rough map over the dining table, weighting corners with mugs. “Rota’s clean. North fence doubled, west culvert sealed until we can sweep again. Zion’s men run second watch.” 

 Leviid his notebook beside it. “Envoy meeting tomorrow. They’ll expect us at dawn. I’ve marked the clearing. No distractions between now and then.” 

 Haiden leaned on the chair back, hair damp from a run. “Felix checks in today. Says he wants to set anchor early, let us test it before your shift.” His eyes flicked to my belly, then back up. “I told him he’s got a week’s worth of packing into a day. Man’s stubborn, but he’ll be ready.” 

 Noah slid a te in front of me, toast cut just the way he knows I like it. “And we don’t let the witches set the pace. Salira thinks she can scare us with parlor tricks and borrowed wolves. We show her our line, and we hold it.”

 I ate, even though my stomach was tight. Because they watched me. Because I promised my mum. Because this pup deserved more than fear. When the table cleared, we split by habit. Haiden and Noah to the border, Xavier and Levi to the wards, Elliot and Macey passed off into Mum’s capable orbit. And me? I stood a beat longer, hand on the map,

 tracing the path that would bring us face to face with every storm waiting on the horizon.

 Today we prepared. Tomorrow, we fought.

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Underworld 134