The rock Dylan sat on wiggled. Dylan startled, his coffee sloshing over his hand, but he didn’t seem shocked. Kieran knew what that meant.

Alexis had mentioned that Dylan was keeping tabs on the magical world. He likely knew Kieran had procured the giant. He now knew the giant was powerful enough to wiggle a multiple-ton rock that had probably been there since the beginning of time.

The rock bucked up out of the earth, and Dylan flew into the air. In a shock of sound and light, lightning zipped down around Kieran like raindrops, each bolt small, concise, and with enough of a punch to fry someone from the inside out.

Kieran shielded his eyes, unable to help it. The movement surely gave him away.

Water sailed through the air, surrounding him in an arc before the next blast rained down. Just like before, it was a cluster of smaller bolts, none of them digging down far into the water before spreading out, finding ground, and dispersing.

Dylan hit the dirt beside the rock, his head thunking on the hard ground, but he scrambled up quickly. Light crackled between his fingers, ready to blast out at a moment’s notice, and clouds gathered overhead, carrying much larger charges.

Zeus wasn’t the only one who could affect the weather, though, and while his Demigods were stronger with storms and cloud formations than Poseidon’s, this guy was not a Demigod. He was no match for Kieran.

“I don’t mean to harm you,” Kieran called out, scattering the clouds above. “But you watching my girlfriend is something of a sticking point for me.”

Jerry stood slowly, clearly unaffected by the lightning that had just rained down on him. Dylan flinched and altered his position, now only needing a slight turn of his head to focus on one threat or the other. He’d had good attack and defensive training.

“Clever, with the water,” Dylan said, and Kieran could tell he held no love for Demigods. Not that anyone could blame him. “I partially chose this location because there weren’t large quantities of water readily available.”

“There aren’t…unless you work with someone that can literally move mountains.” Kieran walked to the right, forcing Dylan to take his eyes off Jerry if he wanted to remain focused on Kieran. Dylan wasn’t the only one with training, after all. “Why are you watching Alexis?”

“I didn’t realize her magic could reach this far. Or was it the giant that felt me coming?”

“Hers doesn’t, and he did, but not before Alexis’s army of spirits noticed you getting within striking range. Why are you watching her?”

“Isn’t it obvious? I don’t trust her. Or you. Since when does a Demigod allow the mouse to get away?”

“Who is the mouse, her or you?”

“Both. Either. Aren’t we all mice to a Demigod?”

“I prefer to think of things as a game of chess. To me, you are a pawn, and she’s the queen. My queen. She has decided you will be left to your life. I will gladly honor her wishes.” Kieran held out a hand. “Unless you endanger her or her children. Then I will allow Jerry to play a game of rock, paper, lightning with you.”

“Giants don’t move very fast in rock form,” Dylan said with a smirk.

“Jerry?”

Rocks rolled down from heavens knew where, large and small alike, crowding in around Dylan in perfect formation. They blocked him from bolting in all directions but one—straight back to Jerry.

“He doesn’t move very quickly in that form, no. But trust me, he can magically throw a rock much faster than you can run. He owns this mountain. You’re but a squatter.”

Dylan scanned the rocks gathered in front of him, chest high, then looked over them at Kieran, hate filling his eyes. He didn’t speak. Thunderclouds tried to form overhead, blocked by Kieran. Rage was getting the better of him.

Kieran put up his hands. “As I said, I don’t wish to hurt you. If you remain peaceful, I’ll remain peaceful. We’ll leave tomorrow. You’ll never hear from us again.”

“You expect me to believe a Demigod who needs me will just walk away?”

“I don’t need you. You’d be an incredible asset, don’t get me wrong, but I can fill that hole in different ways. Look, it’s very simple. I need a team to help protect her. If you don’t want a place on it, then great. Been nice knowing you. We won’t hang around.”

“Yet you just bought that big house on the hill.”

“You guys don’t do Airbnbs up here. That was the next fastest option for what we needed.”

“Must be nice.”

“Watching my mother die slowly at the hands of my father? No, not really. That wasn’t exactly the highlight of my life. Killing my father in vengeance and taking his money and his job? It’s actually a shitty, hollow feeling, if you must know. If I hadn’t met Alexis, I’m pretty sure I’d be the horror you currently think I am. But I did meet Alexis, and she’s taught me that anyone can change their stars. Anyone can turn things around. Anyone can have a second chance.”

Jerry grunted his assent.

Dylan scoffed. “I have my second chance. Guess you’re out of luck.”

“This second chance is going to kill you,” Kieran said softly. He pushed the water away, standing without armor in front of this man who had obvious, unhealed emotional scars. Kieran knew what that was like, and for the first time that he could remember, he felt a deep, profound connection toward a stranger. They hadn’t had the same circumstances or life situations, but they’d both suffered in a magical system beyond their control. Kieran had been saved by Alexis and her misfit family, but this guy still had nobody. He had nothing to fight for. To live for, really, since he was living a lie.

“Is that a threat?” Dylan said, lightning crackling between his fingers.

Kieran put his hands in his pockets. “Alexis has devoted her whole life to helping people. As you probably know, altruism doesn’t come naturally to me, yet I find myself wanting to help you. I know what it’s like for a level-five magical person who can’t use their magic. My mother would stare out at the water and twitch, desperate to be in it, needing to allow her magic to swell and feed on the ocean’s currents. My whole life, she needed the release that was denied to her. You know what I mean. You are using your magic in increments, but the pressure is building. You can feel it, I know you can.” The nearly full moon cast light on Dylan’s falling, knowing expression. Yes, he definitely felt it. What a terrible way to live. “My father was keeping my mother’s skin from her. She couldn’t release any magic, no matter how desperate she got, but you can, and when you blow, this whole town will feel your wrath. By then, though, I’m not sure you’ll care.”

“What about Alexis? She’s a level five and didn’t even know her magic until she met you. She was fine, and you’ve basically given her a death sentence.”

Kieran spread his hands in a sudden flash of rage. The thunderclouds rolled back in, boiling and building. Electricity filled the air from Dylan, but fog moved in around them, easily turned to liquid if Kieran required it.

“Why the fuck do you think I’m here?” Kieran yelled, losing his cool. “Why the hell do you think we went after Jerry? The most important person in my life is in danger constantly, and she’s not strong enough to handle it on her own. By the time I was smart enough to send her away, I wasn’t strong enough to go through with it. And now I question whether I can protect her. So yes, I’m here, begging help from people who hate everything I stand for. That’s the situation I have to bear, and I will bear it, because I’m the one that created it.