"That's it, isn't it?" he murmured. "She was hurting, and the skies cracked. I'm hurting, and the Lake cracked. I am hurting, and so are you."
Mates-blood-fate. Pre-destined to become mates, he'd gotten close to breaking two of the three original laws governing the universe: one when he walked away from past-Death and the second when he refused Fate's advice about accepting his Future.
Worse - his human emotions were out of control since he'd met her again as a human. They were wreaking havoc on the underworld. He wasn't in control of his world, and he wasn't in control of himself.
"In my defense, there are two of her, and there weren't exactly instructions," he said with a snort. "How does this help me fix all this? Or …" He fell quiet, not liking the solution drifting into his mind. "I help you by fixing me. How do you expect me to move on, after all the pain she's caused? I don't want to become what she was." He shifted restlessly. "I don't want to treat her the way she did me."
The longer he thought, the more challenging the idea became. How did he cut the string tying him to the emotional baggage built up over tens of thousands of years? How did he heal wounds that had been opened so many times, they no longer healed?
How did he rein in emotion he hadn't experienced since he entered the underworld as a teenage boy?
"You are the Keeper of Souls, a compassionate Death of human origin who understands life better than a deity ever could. If you cannot remember how to forgive, who can?"
Gabriel twisted, not realizing how deep in thought he was until he saw Andre, the eldest of Rhyn's brothers who sat on the Immortals' Council That Was Seven. The night-skinned Immortal was dressed practically for the often-stormy underworld in cargo pants and a windbreaker. His tanzanite colored eyes glowed brightly. Andre rarely appeared anything other than polished and put together. He offered a small smile.
"How long have you been standing there?" Gabriel asked.
"Long enough to hear you figure out what's wrong."
"When I became a deity, I never expected to have to bare my soul to so many people. Fate was one thing, but I'm even taking advice from the Dark One now."
Andre chuckled and drew nearer. The peacemaker among the constantly fighting Immortals, he had a calming influence even over a deity like Gabriel. "It's not a bad thing, Gabriel. If I learned one thing over the years, it's that everyone has some unique knowledge that can help you somewhere along the line."