Rowan stared at me for another long second before he traced my forehead with a finger. “You're Goddess Blessed.” He sounded breathless and surprised.

I nodded, staring into his eyes. “Yes…” I furrowed my brow. “I thought you knew.” A soft light rippled on his face, and I looked up to the sky, trying to see if the moon was trying to shine down on us through the clouds.

“I did.” He tilted his head, still staring at me. “But hearing it and seeing it are two very different things. This,” he waved his hand, “is different.”

“What do you mean?” I looked from him to Alannah and then landed on my mother. “Mom?”

“Your mark…your eyes…they changed.” She pointed to her own forehead. “It was a normal Goddess Blessed mark, the crescent moon. But now it’s more…” She trailed off as she leaned closer. “I don’t know why.”

“More?” I looked back at Rowan. “More how?”

He pulled his phone from his pocket and aimed it at my face. I heard the click of his camera as he took the photo. He turned the screen towards me, and my breath caught. “It’s more,” he agreed as he stared into my eyes. “And your eyes…they are silver.”

If I weren’t looking at photo proof of their words, I would have laughed. But they were right. My eyes were molten silver that shifted with a light burning from within. And the crescent moon that I once carried was gone. In its place was a triple moon—an empty circle flanked by crescents on both sides. Curling vines trailed down my temples and star-shaped flower blossoms bloomed on their tendrils. All of it pulsed with a soft glow, like moonlight shining from under my skin.

I looked up from the phone when I heard tiny footsteps coming from the cabin. Carly was coming back, and that meant something was wrong. I pulled myself from the grave just as she came to a stop at the foot of the hole. “Hello, Pandia.” Her soft white eyes saw more than she let on. Her soft, chubby face held a soft smile, but that smile made it seem like she was hiding the secrets of the universe. It was unsettling. She giggled, as if she had read my mind.

“Pandia?” I recoiled from the name, but it settled in my chest; a soft glow of light flickered under my skin. “My name is Amy.” It sounded foolish to myself. Carly knew my name. “You know my name, pup.”

She laughed, a sultry laugh that had no business coming from a little girl. “Yes, your name is Amy. But you are the Pandia. And you know I am more than that, Pandia. I am a shaman, the eyes to the past, present, and future. I am the warning call in the middle of the night when the world turns dark.” She tilted her head; her little pigtail shifted over her shoulder. “But I think you already knew that, about both of us, even if you don’t want to admit it.”

“You are a little girl…my little girl.” I reached for her, but she backed away and laughed. Her white eyes sparkled under the moonlight.

But it was my mother’s hesitant voice that snapped us back to the conversation. “What’s the Pandia?” My mother turned to Carly and crouched down.

“A chosen daughter of a goddess, but Amy wasn’t just chosen by one, were you?” Carly smiled. “Your bloodline will be strong, and it needs to be.” Carly stepped closer. “But remember, with power comes enemies. Watch over your flock, Pandia. Someone is hunting us. Someone who doesn’t want a king or a queen. They want chaos and death, and they are coming.” Carly’s eyes shifted back to her soft brown ones, and she dropped to her knees, landing face first in the dirt before anyone else could catch her.

My mother rushed to her side and picked her up from the ground, turning to Alannah. “I’m just going to put her in the house, then I will be right back.” She shifted to look at me. I recognized the look. It was a warning. We would be speaking about all of this later, when we weren’t in the middle of a funeral.

Alannah gave a sad smile. “I’m okay. Go. She is always so tired after her visions, and she has had a handful today.” Alannah rubbed her belly and grunted. Everyone froze.

“Are you okay?” Rowan paled a little.

Alannah waved him off. “False contractions.” She turned back to me. “Can I have a minute alone with my mate before you…”

She nodded towards the pile of dirt.

I walked over and kissed her cheek. “Of course.” I turned and grabbed for Rowan’s hand as I walked away. We walked back towards the cabin with my mother, and I heard her sit down.

“Hi baby.”