“The Manor collapsed. We were hit hard by a wave. My father died.” River paused, swallowing before continuing. “One minute I was sitting underneath the tree with him and the next I was sitting on the Devil’s Chair, sitting on the chair, but floating at sea. I swam to shore. I went to Dolly’s, to my apartment—”
“That wasn’t a dream.”
“I don’t know. I can’t say what that was. All I know is that I couldn’t stay.” He shook his head. “My body was dragged away, dragged back to the chair, back across the iron gate. I was just out there, stranded, floating on top of a structure that shouldn’t have floated at all.”
He looked at me briefly. “I don’t think I’d ever cried before, if I had I can’t remember, but that night, as I vacillated between what once was Dolos Island and Pan Island, I cried. When I woke up again, I was in the Bahamas.” He sighed.
“It took me months to get to the States, but during my time in the Bahamas, I went to see a witch that was also passing through. She told me I’d been freed. The curse had been lifted, and that made me panic because if I was free and alive, what did it mean for you? I went to Florida, to Amelia Island, but you weren’t there. There was no sign of you there at all and I thought . . . I thought . . . ” When he looked at me, his expression was pained. I set a hand on his and wiped my cheeks with the other. “What did you do, Penelope?”
“What I had to.” I licked my lips, tasting the salt on them. “I burned my family’s house. Burned the leaves. I told him that if he set you free, I’d endure his pain. I’d endure the suffering caused by the souls he’d taken in.”
River shut his eyes, swallowing hard. “Why would you do that?”
“Because I love you too much to watch you suffer,” I said loudly. “Because I didn’t want to live in a world that you weren’t a part of.”
“Penelope,” he whispered, opening his eyes. He brought a hand to my face, wiping my tears. “My world was over the moment you left that island.”
“It wasn’t. It didn’t have to be.” I wiped my face again, hating the pain in my chest. “It was the only way to undo the curse.”
“I hate that he has any part of you. I hate that you did that for me.”
“But I get to have you.” I cupped his face.
“I know how this feels.” He tapped a scar. “I know how much it hurts when you get new ones.”
“You were ten when you started getting them. Ten years old, River. I’ll survive it just fine.”
He shook his head, glancing away briefly.
“How’d you find me?” I asked after a moment.
“The Haunt.” He smiled at me. “You started posting pictures in Greece, and then more and more here in Santorini, and here I am.”
“And now you’re putting this beautiful house up for rent to vacationers,” I said, smiling.
“Not really.” His eyes crinkled as he looked at me. “It was just a ploy to get you here. I just bought it last week, but I didn’t know what your plans were. I could stay here forever, but only if you’re going to live in it with me.”
“What?” My heart thumped harder.
He kissed my nose. “If it feels like home, we’ll make it home.”
“River Caliban.” I sat up straighter, letting the sheet fall from my hand so that I could grab both sides of his face. “The only thing that feels like home to me is you.”
“Good, because the feeling’s mutual.” He pressed his lips against me then and kissed me with the fire of a thousand souls trying to get back to their other half.
Epilogue
“When we said you’d find a Greek god in no time, we were not expecting you to actually go out and find one,” Dee said, eyes wide on River.
“I hope it’s okay that I brought him,” I whispered. “It was all so very last minute.”
“Um, yeah, as if we’d ever turn away a super-hot guy from our wedding guest list.”
I laughed, then looked over at Jose, who was uncharacteristically quiet. Dee squeezed my hands and went to change. Jose stood quickly and rushed over to me.
“What the fucking fuck?” he whisper-shouted. “He’s supposed to be dead. How does Dee not remember this?”
I bit my lip. “If I told you, you wouldn’t believe me.”
“Try me.” He raised an eyebrow. “I am from the fable capital of the world, after all.”
“I gave Dee and Martín tea leaves and set the intention that they’d forget,” I said, rushing to explain myself. “It was too much for me, I can’t even imagine how traumatizing it would be for you guys. I’m sorry I couldn’t make you forget.”