I spun to see Jordan knock Hurakan to the ground and grab a section of the rope. The jerk screamed as his skin sizzled. I lunged. We got tangled up, a wrestling blur of two godborns, struggling for the same prize. The cord scorched and burned every inch of skin it touched. I reached for the fire inside me but found nothing. The time rope was a power sucker.
Hurakan’s voice raced toward me telepathically. Get the rope around him, Zane!
Jordan broke free and bolted toward his mother, who was still trying to rip off the cord. Hurakan dove for him but missed by a long shot, landing with a double thud to his head that knocked him out.
“Zane!” Ren shouted. “I can’t hold on much longer.”
Jordan was unraveling the blistering rope around the demon goddess. I launched myself onto his back, seized the slack, and wrapped it around his throat. He wailed and shuddered.
“Get out of there, Zane!” Ren yelled. There was a burst of blinding light as I jumped back, but Ixkik’ got her hands on my arm, gripping me so tight I couldn’t distance myself. She put a loop around my wrist, searing my skin.
I tore at the rope, but its magic wouldn’t release me. I summoned Fuego, and my spear zoomed over and began sawing the cord. Hot white sparks blinded me.
Everything spun violently. I was falling into space. Voices vanished. Darkness closed in.
Just when I thought I was gone, I felt strong hands grip me from behind. Tugging, twisting, breaking me free.
There was another flash of light so bright it was like a thousand suns were exploding. The earth shook once…twice. Then everything went still.
And I looked up at my rescuer.
“Mom?”
She fell to her knees and pulled me into a fierce hug, saying incomprehensible words broken up by her heaves and sobs.
“I’m okay,” I reassured her. “See?” I pulled back and gave her a relieved but trembling smile. “All in one piece.” Well, sort of, unless you counted all the gashes and burns the time rope had left on my arms, hands, and cheek, and the sheer terror still coursing through my veins. “Don’t worry—Rosie’ll fix me up.”
“I could have lost you,” she cried, her eyes wide with fear.
“But you didn’t,” I said. “You saved me. But how? How could you—”
“How could I, a mere mortal, save you?” she asked, a smile creeping onto her face. “Desperate moms have superpowers, didn’t you know that?”
This time I was the one who pulled her into a hug.
“Zane!” Ren hurried over and threw her arms around both me and my mom, muttering, “That was too close,” over and over and pretty much smothering us.
>
Hurakan groaned and turned onto his side. My mom’s eyes fixed on him, and her expression froze when she saw the resemblance to me.
“Dad?” I helped him to his feet. It was muy cool that I was taller than him (by at least three inches). He rubbed the back of his head, grimacing. “This non-godly power stuff is dreadful.”
Ren tapped his shoulder gently. “But it’s not forever. I mean, you’ll get your godliness back, right?”
He gazed at my mom, then looked away. “I imagine we will. Someday.”
Someday was good enough for me, because it wasn’t never.
“So Ixkik’ and Jordan—” I began.
Ren cut in, “Are stuck in a time loop with no chance for parole. I wasn’t sure I could even do it.”
“You’re sure they won’t be coming back?” Mom asked. Her voice was still shaky.
Ren snapped the time rope, retracting it to the size of a ruler. “Positive.”
“How…how…did you get the rope?” I asked, still dazed. “I thought only Pacific could use it.”