From Titans (Book 4) (33 page)

The red line on the monitor jumped and was
then followed by the green and yellow. Was that a good thing? Then
the lines went crazy, moving in big waves. The machine started
beeping.

“
Stop that thing.
It
’
s
making a lot of noise,” Zeus spat. He had no idea what it
was.

“
I
don’
t think it
’
s that simple,”
Poseidon mumbled.
“It
’
s hooked up to Mom.”

“
Duh,” Hades
murmured.

It was a laughing moment. To hear a god,
especially Hades, say that word tickled my stomach, but all the
humor in me had disappeared.

“
What
’
s going on?” Mason
asked.

The beeping sound continued. I stared at it,
expecting it to stop any second. None of the Oracles answered. They
were too busy assessing Mom.

“
I
don’
t think it
’
s working?” Dad murmured.
His face turned pale and so did mine.

Mason squeezed my hand.
His love and support had been my anchor. My blood had to work. I
didn
’
t want any negative thoughts to cross my mind, but I
couldn
’
t help it when the colors and the beeping sound came faster
than before. Then the unthinkable thing happened. The colors
stopped into a straight line, and the sound echoed one long
noise.

No! No! No!
This wasn
’
t
happening.

Dad grabbed
Mom
’
s hand. “
Wake up,
Rhea.
” Dad
’
s whimper became a full-blown
sob. “I need you. Sky needs you. Don
’
t leave us. We have a family to
raise together.”

I
couldn
’
t believe what was happening before me. Watching my dad cry
and then seeing others bow their heads, I lost it.

“
Stop it!
She
’
s not dead.” I raised my voice, my face contorted in anger.
“Dad, stop crying. All of you, just stop.” I cupped my
mom
’
s cheeks.
“
Mom, wake up.
It
’
s
time to wake up.” I bit down hard on my tongue, refusing let tears
pool in my eyes. “You
’
re not dead.
You
’
re asleep. Please, wake up.” I glanced at the monitor. There
was no sign of life. “Wake up and show them you
’
re not dead. My blood
is supposed to make you better. It will.” I gripped her shoulders
and shook her. “Wake up, Mom.”

“
She
’
s in a better place,
Sky. You have to let her go. She fought well, and her bravery
won
’
t go unnoticed.” Mason
’
s voice became lost to
me.

My heart squeezed in
agony, and the room spun out of control. My world tilted right
under my feet.
You have to let her
go.
Mason
’
s words drilled a hole in my
lungs and trapped my air.

“
No. I
can
’
t let her go,
” I snapped.
Then I placed my hand on her chest and shocked it, trying to
re-start her heart. When it didn
’
t work, I did it again and again,
as memories of my childhood came in flashes. Mom, who had bandaged
my wounds, wiped my tears, taken care of me when I was sick, who
would die for me, who had loved me unconditionally. Nothing could
ever replace a mother
’
s love.

“
Sky.” When Mason placed
his hand on me, I jerked and wrapped my arms around Mom. I
didn
’
t want to believe it. It felt like a dream. When everyone
else touched her, I became even angrier. “Don
’t touch her. She’
s not
dead.” I didn
’
t recognize my voice, nor did I
recognize myself. Suddenly, without warning, my pain and
realization crashed into me.

“
Mom!” The ache poured out
of me in sobs I couldn
’
t control. As my body trembled, I
held on, not wanting to ever let her go. “
You can
’
t leave me, Mom.”

“
Sky, what are you doing?”
Mason asked.

I heard his question, but
I didn
’
t reply. I didn
’
t understand why he would ask
that question until Mom
’
s stomach warmed under my touch.
When I peered up, a glowing light enveloped her. At first I thought
it was from her, but it was from me. Light illuminated around me to
her. My energy flowed to her stomach…the baby? I had never touched
her belly until a second before, to silently say goodbye to the
baby. Disgusted by the fact that he or she was part Hephaestus, I
had never wanted to when everyone else did.

“
I
don’
t know. What
’
s going on?” I
gasped.

The wind had come from
nowhere. The energy sparkled and sizzled. Beautiful lightning
surged around Mom and me and then extended to the entire room. We
were in a tunnel of a lightning storm, only it
didn
’
t harm us. It was magnificent and surreal. My gut feeling
told me something good would come out of it.

The flowing lightning came
to a dead stop. Mom
’
s chest rose sharply, let out a
long heave, and her eyes fluttered open. The monitor danced with
colors and the sound of life came back.

“
Mom?” Tears ran down my
cheek, but this time for a happier occasion.

Mom looked dazed seeing everyone around her,
but she seemed less confused when she realized she was in bed.

“
I almost died?” she
questioned.

Dad squeezed her hand and kissed the back of
it. “We almost lost you. But a miracle happened. Sky and the baby
saved you, I think?”

“
The baby?” Mom
panicked.

“
Somehow the baby took in
Sky
’
s power, and along with Sky
’
s blood in your system, they beat
the odds. The baby is fine,” Zara explained.

Mom blinked in confusion and smiled. “The
baby will turn out to be good, just like Sky.” She rubbed her
little bump softly.

“
You gave us one hell of a
scare, Mom.” Zeus placed his hand on Mom
’
s feet.

“
I
’
m sorry.” Mom offered a
smile. “What happened to Cronus? Since we
’
re here, I assume everything
went well?”

“
You
don
’
t have to worry about Father anymore,” Poseidon
muttered.

Hades ran his hand down
his face. Looked like he rubbed tears from his eyes. Hades did have
a soft spot. He cleared his throat. “He
’
s little now. I
don
’
t think we have to worry about the Titans anymore.
He
’
s
locked away underground in New Olympus.

“
Good,
”
Mom sighed.
“Everyone
okay?”

The door slammed open. Amanda, Noah, Nick,
and Sarah ran in. Their eyes grew wider at the site of Mom.

“
Aaron and Colin are in
trouble,”
Nick informed
us.

“
Skylar, we need more of
your blood,” Zara said.

“
Whatever you
need.”

Chapter
30

Skylar

After Mom, Aaron, and Colin were out of
danger, everyone headed home. With one nonstop trauma after
another, it was the first time Mason went home, and thankfully we
were alone. The dogs went crazy. They jumped, barked, and welcomed
Mason.

“
I missed you too,” Mason
said, sprawled on the rug in the living room, squirming as he
allowed the dogs to lick his hands and face. When he’d had enough,
he got up, and the dogs continued to follow him.

“
I
don’
t think they missed you.” I snorted
and turned on the light switch for the hallway.

“
Probably not. I
wouldn
’
t miss me if I had someone like you watching over me.” He
winked.

I placed my hands on my
hips as I watched him slowly make his way toward me with purpose in
his eyes. He wore sweatpants and a T-shirt, but holy Mason, it
didn
’
t matter what he wore. He had the body of a god, toned in all
the places that counted. “I didn
’
t miss you either.”

Mason took another step
and stopped. I glimpsed his lightning tattoo I missed touching
daily. “I see. I didn
’
t miss you, too.”

I took a step back toward the kitchen. “I
never thought of you.”

Mason took two steps and stopped with hunger
in his eyes. “I never thought of you, either.”

I took two steps back. “I never wished you
were home.”

Mason took three steps and stopped. His eyes
sparkled with his power, silvery lights dancing in his eyes. “I
never wished I was home, either.”

“
I never cried for you.”
Tears pooled in my eyes. Though we were being playful, recalling
how I wept all those nights alone, wallowing in the gut-wrenching
pain of missing Mason, wondering if he
’
d been hurt or if he had his
memories taken away, I couldn
’
t help it. And even though he was
here with me, the ache still lingered.

“
I…I…” Mason choked up,
his lips quivering. Tears pooled in his eyes too. “I thought I
would never see you again.” He dipped his head and then looked back
at me.

The playfulness between us ended at that
moment. With all the speed he had, Mason collided into me. My back
slammed against the long cabinet, and he kissed me hard. He kissed
me as if it was our first and last kiss, so much passion and
desire. I wrapped my arms around his neck and held him tighter.

Oh, dear God, how I missed
him. Tears streamed down my cheeks. He was home…he was finally
home. The long, torturous days were over. I went through hell, but
I
’
d
found heaven again.

“
Oh, Sky, I missed you so
much,” he murmured between his lips on my face and down my neck.
His hands ran through my hair and all over my body. A couple of
times he shocked me, but I didn
’
t jump. I didn
’
t want what was
happening between us to be interrupted.

Panting, enjoying his hands caressing my
back, I said, “I know. I missed you too.”

As we continued to lock lips, he lifted my
leg and anchored it around his hip. Then he yanked off my sweater
and his T-shirt. The warmth of his toned chest made me combust.
Lust and love filled my body, and I wanted him as much as he wanted
me.

Sizzling, silvery-blue
lights engulfed us. Every time we were intimate, we glowed
together. I wasn
’
t sure if this happened to other
couples, but I didn
’
t care and I never questioned. To
me, it was something special between Mason and me, and the pleasure
he gave me through his power was unbelievable. It felt out of this
world.

“
Oh, Mason,” I moaned and
gasped.

Electric lights flowed from his fingertips.
He knew exactly what he was doing to me.

“
I
’
m going to make you feel so
good, Sky. It
’
s been way too long.
I
’
m
going to show you how much I missed you,” he growled. I loved his
wild, animalistic side. His eyes darkened, simmering with
electricity in his irises.

I waggled my eyebrows.
“And I
’
m going to show you too.”