"Fucking Black God." Jenn stopped. Bianca tensed at the mention of her brother. "Sorry. A little bit of bad blood there. Who else, Sofi?"
"If he feels like showing …"
"Gods, not Xander. Bianca, let me die if that happens," Jenn said with a grimace. "I'd rather face ten guardsmen than one Xander."
"Jenn, where do we go if we escape?" Bianca asked.
Jenn considered, her gaze going to the small window above them. She could smell the sea; they were probably somewhere in the destroyed city. How far from the gateway, she wasn't sure. Her gaze went to Sofi. At around four months pregnant, the Oracle barely showed in the mortal world but looked closer to nine months here. She was the most vulnerable of them.
"I can run," Sofi said with some level of offense. "Pregnant doesn't mean crippled."
Jenn cleared her throat and looked away before the Oracle saw her smile.
"Yeah, don't go there," Bianca advised in a whisper. "Damian said he'd need to buy a wheelbarrow to roll her around in soon, and she tore him to shreds. That was a rough day."
Jenn almost choked on her laugh. The Oracle was staring at them, displeased.
"So where do we go?" Bianca asked again.
"To the orchard. The Others have a gateway to the mortal world there. If we can reach the orchard, we can get back home. If we get separated, go toward the ocean. The orchard is right there on the edge of the city," Jenn answered. "In the middle is an apple tree marked with a ring of stones. Walk around it, and you'll end up in the mortal world."
"I never knew the worlds were so different," Bianca said, fascination in her voice.
"Don't get used to it," Sofi said, rising.
Jenn looked at her closely, uncertain how to take the words. The Oracle probably knew how this day would end, which world would survive.
Darian would swing through here like a wrecking ball. Jenn shivered at the idea. As powerful and patient as he was, he wouldn't hesitate to lay waste to anything between them. She suspected even his promise to sacrifice her if it meant saving their world would melt in the furnace of his fury. He'd been sweet to her last night. He meant what he said: if she wanted him, she could have him. If she didn't, he'd accept her decision.
She'd never had much of a choice before. Sex was a weapon, her body a tool. She wielded it well, but it usually meant the choice was never really hers. Darian had given her the power to choose. He treated her as an equal, a partner in a relationship with a wild god, one who respected her enough to let her decide.