I sat still in the car, my mind recalling what the goddess had said and Gabriel. I wondered what he was doing right now, wondered if we would ever be able to recover from this. I sighed, leaning my head against the headrest, waiting for my uncle to come out of the coffee shop, wondering how much longer it would take for him to buy a cup of coffee. My head leaned against the headrest, and I began to doze off when the sound of boots on gravel woke me up. I turned to see my uncle approaching the truck with two large cups of coffee and donuts. He smiled widely at me as he deposited the cups into the vehicle before climbing in. I smiled back and reached for the black coffee.
“No!” my uncle yelled and picked up the black coffee. “You can’t have that one. I’m not a huge fan of sugar in my coffee.”
He laughed nervously and took a sip of the black brew. I frowned slightly at his sudden outburst, but I shrugged it off, accepting the other cup. I took a sip of the sweeter coffee, letting the warmth settle in my chest. The silence between us grew thick, and I felt the need to fill it.
“I’ve been thinking about what the goddess said,” I began slowly, staring out the window as the landscape blurred by.
Uncle David stiffened beside me, his eyes never leaving the road. “What exactly did she say?”
“She warned me about you,” I said bluntly, turning to look at him. “She said you didn’t have the best intentions for me.”
For a moment, the only sound was the humming of the engine and the occasional bump on the road. Then, my uncle let out a deep sigh, his grip on the steering wheel tightening.
“Oliver, the goddess is trying to manipulate you,” he said, his voice calm but laced with something darker. “She knows you’re vulnerable, and she’s using that to turn you against your own family. I would never harm you, you have to believe that.”
“But why would she say that? She’s been pretty straightforward with everything else,” I argued, feeling a knot form in my stomach. “What aren’t you telling me?”
Uncle David remained silent for a long while, his jaw clenched as if battling with himself. Finally, he spoke, his voice low and hesitant.
“There’s a way to end this,” he said, his words almost a whisper. “A ritual that could break the curse forever. But it’s dangerous, and the goddess will do everything she can to stop us.”
“What kind of ritual?” I asked, my curiosity piqued despite the unease gnawing at me.
“It’s ancient, passed down through our family for generations,” Uncle David explained, his eyes flickering with a strange intensity. “It requires a sacrifice, someone of our bloodline, to appease the goddess. But it would mean freedom for you and for all those who come after you.”
My heart skipped a beat, the weight of his words sinking in. “A sacrifice… You mean someone has to die?”
He nodded solemnly. “But it doesn’t have to be you, Oliver. We can find another way. I’m willing to do whatever it takes to protect you.”
The sincerity in his voice sent a chill down my spine. Was he willing to sacrifice himself? Or was there something more sinister lurking beneath his words? As I tried to process everything, my vision started to blur, a wave of dizziness washing over me.
“What…?” I mumbled, blinking rapidly to clear my head. But the drowsiness only deepened, my eyelids growing heavier with each passing second.
“Oliver, you look tired,” Uncle David said, his voice soothing but with an edge of something that made my skin crawl. “Why don’t you rest for a bit?”
“No… something’s wrong…”
I tried to protest, but my words slurred together as my body slumped against the seat. Panic surged through me as I realized what was happening. The coffee… he must have put something in it. But it was too late. The world around me faded into darkness as I lost consciousness.
I awoke with a start, my body jerking against the cold, hard surface beneath me. My arms and legs were bound tightly, the rough ropes cutting into my skin as I struggled to move. My heart pounded in my chest as I took in my surroundings—tall trees loomed overhead, their branches casting eerie shadows in the moonlight. The smell of damp earth filled my nostrils, and I realized with a sickening jolt that I was in the middle of the forest, lying on what felt like an altar.
A ritual spot.
My breath came in short, panicked gasps as I strained against the bindings, but they held fast. Above me, the sky was clear, the stars twinkling like cold, distant eyes. My mind raced, trying to piece together how I had ended up here, but the last thing I remembered was drinking the coffee… and then everything went black.
“Uncle David!” I shouted, my voice echoing through the silent forest. “What the hell is going on?”
A shadow moved in the periphery of my vision, and I twisted my head to see Uncle David emerging from the darkness. His face was a mask of determination, his eyes void of the warmth I had always known. He held a ceremonial dagger in one hand, its blade glinting ominously in the moonlight.
“Oliver, I’m sorry,” he said, his voice flat and emotionless. “But this is the only way.”
“What are you talking about?” I demanded, my voice shaking with fear and anger. “You said you would protect me!”
“And I will,” he replied, stepping closer. “But to protect you, I have to protect my own. If you refuse the goddess and die, the curse will fall on my children. I can’t let that happen. You must be the sacrifice.”
The cold realization washed over me like a tidal wave. My uncle had drugged me, tied me up, and was about to sacrifice me to the goddess—to save his own family. Betrayal twisted in my gut, but there was no time to dwell on it. I had to find a way out of this, and fast.
“Uncle, please,” I pleaded, trying to appeal to whatever shred of humanity might be left in him. “There has to be another way. You don’t have to do this.”
He shook his head, his expression unyielding. “I’m sorry, Oliver. This is the only way.”
He raised the dagger high, and I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing for the worst. But just as the blade began to descend, a fierce growl erupted from the shadows, followed by the sound of something large and powerful crashing through the underbrush.
My eyes flew open in time to see Gabriel burst into the clearing, his eyes glowing with that same unnatural light I had seen before. He moved with blinding speed, his body a blur of motion as he lunged at Uncle David, knocking him to the ground. The dagger clattered to the forest floor, forgotten as Gabriel pinned David down, his teeth bared in a menacing snarl. My uncle struggled beneath him, but it was no use. Gabriel was too strong, too fast.
“What are you doing here?” Uncle David spat, his voice filled with venom.
Gabriel didn’t answer, his eyes narrowing as he leaned in closer, his breath hot against David’s face. “You’ll never touch him again.”
With that, Gabriel knocked David unconscious with a swift blow to the head. My uncle slumped to the ground, motionless. Gabriel quickly turned to me, his expression softening as he knelt beside me and began to untie the ropes.
“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice thick with concern.
I nodded weakly, my body trembling as the adrenaline coursed through me. “You saved me… again.”
“I’m not letting anyone hurt you, Oliver,” Gabriel said firmly, helping me to my feet. “Not even your own family.”
As I leaned against him, trying to steady myself, the realization hit me like a freight train. My uncle had been willing to sacrifice me to the goddess…I had been worth nothing to him. And Gabriel had risked everything to save me. I didn’t know what the future held, but at that moment, I knew one thing for sure: I couldn’t do this alone. And I didn’t have to.