The Gatekeeper's Secret: Gatekeeper's Saga, Book Five (The Gatekeeper's Saga) by Eva Pohler Read Free Book Online Page A

quarters, Hip was sitting across from Than in conversation. They looked up at her as she crossed the threshold.
    “How did it go with Poseidon?” Than asked.
    Therese removed her quiver and bow and laid them on a table before crossing over to the new couch between the leather chairs. She nestled her back in one corner, kicked off her boots, and stretched her legs across the cushions. Clifford came from his bed in the next room and jumped onto her lap. As she stroked his fur, she said, “Apollo couldn’t get a clear reading.”
    “What does that mean?” Hip asked.
    “It means Poseidon isn’t sure himself where his loyalties lie,” Therese replied. “It means Poseidon hasn’t made up his mind.”
    They were silent for a while as Therese kissed the top of Clifford’s head and continued to stroke his fur. She felt optimistic about Poseidon. Despite his flaring temper and past alliances with Ares and Zeus, Therese had a special fondness for the god of the sea that began in her childhood with her love of the water. Suspicious that the boys might be communicating without her, she scrutinized their faces and noticed that Hip looked less jovial than usual, and, on closer inspection, sad.
    “So, what’s up, Hip?” she asked nonchalantly.
    He gave a look that said, Really? You have to ask?
    It was Than who spoke next. “He’s worried about Jen.”
    Therese’s mouth went dry. Of course he’d be worried for Jen.
    “I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m worried, too.”
    Jen was, after all, her very best friend.
    She would never admit this to anyone—she could hardly admit it to herself—but she hoped beyond hope that the person fated to die on her wedding day was neither Jen nor Lynn. It wasn’t that she hoped it was Carol or Richard or any of the Holts or her other friends. None of them deserved to die, and any one of their deaths would be agonizingly painful. And she hated herself for playing this morbid game of favorites in her mind. But she wanted her best friend and her little sister to have a chance at a longer life.
    Therese had thought about going to the Fates and asking them to tell her the outcome, but she was too afraid of their answer. She’d already learned once that nothing good ever came from knowing the future.
    Two, but none immortal.
    “Have you heard who’s been assigned your duties yet?” Therese asked the boys.
    “Mortals can go without good sleep for the ceremony,” Hip said. “But Hecate is slated for Death.”
    Therese nodded. That was the best choice, but she was disappointed that her friend and ally would not be by her side on the best and worst day of her life.
    She let out a deep breath and sighed. “Well, Than, are we ready to head to my aunt and uncle’s for Christmas?”
    Than turned to Hip. “You sure you can handle my duties for two days on top of your other concerns?”
    Hip stood up and offered his fist for a bump. As Than reached his knuckles to Hip’s, the god of sleep said, “I told you, I got this, bro’. Plus, you said you’d relieve me every so often. Right?”
    “Right.”
    Therese watched as Hip faded from their sight. Despite his upbeat demeanor, he could not hide his frown.
    “He’s in love with her,” Than said, once Hip was gone.
    “Oh, no.”
     
     
     
    Chapter Five: Christmas in Colorado
     
    Lynn played patty cake with Therese as Carol pulled up the calendar on her ereader, the lights from the Christmas tree behind her reflecting on the screen. “But the summer solstice is on a Sunday. You sure you don’t want to have the wedding on the twentieth?”
    Therese glanced over at Than, who said, “My family is a bit eccentric.”
    That’s putting it mildly , Therese prayed to Than.
    Than grinned, obviously trying not to laugh. “They, uh, they have their hearts set on the twenty-first. Is that okay with you?”
    “I don’t have a problem with a Sunday wedding,” Richard said. “And you want to have it here, you say? That’s nice. Really