“You weren’t,” Priya assures her, and then looks to Titus.
He steps up to Zora, takes the rapier. Bending slightly to catch her eyes, he says, “You did very well for your first time ever handling weapons or defending yourself from attack.”
Zora offers a small smile to Titus, but then glances around at the group. “What Titus and Priya aren’t saying is that I’m a hopeless cause if you want to turn me into some sort of warrior in the next two weeks.”
“We don’t expect that,” Carrick assures her. “You just need some basics to protect yourself if it comes to that. Your powers are going to be your best weapon.”
Zora nods, but I can sense she’s disappointed in herself. I want to get her alone, so maybe we can talk it through. I don’t ever want her thinking we are setting expectations on her.
“You want to do any training?” Titus asks me.
“I’d like nothing better than for you to kick my butt all over this field, but I’m exhausted after running the gauntlet.”
“How did you do?” Zora asks, and I take joy in the excitement in her tone. Because that’s genuine interest in me. Something one sister would want to know about the other.
“I made it through with a few bumps and bruises,” I inform her proudly.
Caiden laughs, smiling at Titus. “She defeated Truwila in less than two minutes.”
There’s pride in Titus’ expression as he looks to me for confirmation, and I nod with a grin.
“She tried to negotiate with her,” Caiden informs him, and Titus raises an eyebrow for the rest of the story.
“Negotiations failed quickly,” I mutter. “Went ahead and trapped her in an iron-laced butterfly net and put a shield around it so she couldn’t attack me with magic.”
“Brilliant,” Titus exclaims with a hearty laugh.
With a sigh, I roll my neck and envision an extremely hot shower. Perhaps I can talk Carrick into joining me. “What are the plans for the rest of the day? Are we going to move into working on Zora’s magic?”
Priya shakes her head. “Actually… we’re going to do that tomorrow when everyone is fresh.”
Carrick reaches out, taking my hand to capture my attention. “I have an idea.”
Hot shower with me? “What’s that?”
“I think you and Zora should take the rest of the day off and just relax down on the beach,” he says, glancing over to Titus and Priya for their affirmation.
“Absolutely,” Priya exclaims. “There’s a wonderful restaurant called Cafe Syreni that makes the best burgers in the entire universe. No joke. You two should have lunch and spend the afternoon lounging like lizards on the hot sand.”
I glance at Zora. “What do you think?”
She looks almost apologetic. “Amell used to tell me tales of beaches and salty water where you’d float. I’d love to see it if it’s not too much trouble.”
“No trouble at all,” Priya says. “I’ve got bathing suits you can borrow.”
“You good with that?” I ask, turning to Carrick. Because as much as a shower with my beautiful man is like one of the best things I could ask for, time with my sister is honestly just as good.
“I think it’s a great idea,” he assures me. “And Titus, Priya, Caiden, and I are going to go over some planning for the ritual.”
“Planning?” I ask with a frown. “Shouldn’t I be there?”
“Probably.” Carrick takes my hand, gives it a squeeze. “But I think it’s more important you and Zora go hang out. You’re not going to miss much anyway. We’re going to talk about drafting some annihilators to join the battle.”
“Oh, that’s wonderful,” I exclaim, looking from Caiden, to Titus, to Priya. “Thank you.”
“It’s part of our job,” Titus says in that low rumbling voice. “To keep evil at bay. But I’m doing this for you first and foremost.”
“And there will be plenty who will want to help,” Caiden affirms.
“Then it’s settled,” Priya says and then moves to Zora. “Come on. You and I will fly back to our house. I’ll grab some bathing suits for you and Finley. We’ll see you all there.”
I watch with just a tinge of jealousy and a whole lot of pride in Zora as her wings fan out and she takes to the air with Priya.
They’re barely fifty feet in the air before Carrick is taking my hand and bending distance back to Titus and Priya’s house.
* * *
“Okay,” Zora says from the lounge chair beside me. “I’m going to amend my list of greatest things about being out of the Underworld and put burgers at the top.”
“Priya wasn’t lying,” I agree, rubbing my hand over my stomach, which is clad in a tasteful one-piece black bathing suit. “That was, without a doubt, the best burger I’ve ever had.”
“Mmmm,” Zora agrees, and I let my head roll on the chaise lounge to see her eyes closed and a serene smile on her face. Priya lent her an ocean blue one-piece. I have to admit, with her white hair, that is most definitely her color. It heightens the blue in her tri-colored eyes.