“Well, now that’s settled, I think I’m going to find something soft to lie on.” Seth popped up from his chair, his movements not nearly as fluid as normal. He glanced at me, and a mischievous glint filled his amber eyes. “Want to join me?”
I rolled my eyes.
Annoyance flashed into Aiden’s eyes, turning their hue into a stormy gray as he pushed off the desk and straightened. “Very amusing.”
Seth winked as he backed away. “Hey, just being gentlemanly.”
“Go somewhere else, then,” Aiden replied.
Chuckling, Seth dipped out the door as I shook my head. While Seth and I had been more than friends at one point and our feelings for one another did run deep, I was a hundred percent certain that Seth was just trying to cause Aiden to stroke out.
Once Seth exited, the conversation moved back to the Council, and my interest also exited. Pushing up for the chair, I limped out of the office after telling them I was heading back to my room. I foresaw another herbal bath in my future. I had two more training sessions with Perses, and while each of us was getting better, none of us had taken him down.
Yet.
One of us had to take him down before we left for the Catskills.
I’d made it halfway down the stairs before Apollo poofed in front of me, startling me. I jerked to the side and lost my balance. Teetering on the edge of the step, visions of bones crunching rang in my head. He caught my arm, stopping my fall.
“Gods,” I gasped, grasping the handrail with my free hand. “Is it necessary to do that?”
“You’re okay.” He dropped my arm. “We need to talk.”
I leaned against the railing, eyeing him wryly. “What? You got bored with the Newton’s Cradle?”
His lips tipped up at the corners. “Why haven’t you transferred the power from Seth yet?”
“He wants to wait until we get to the Catskills.” I paused as his eyes narrowed. “Look, I’m going to try to get him to do it before we leave, but—”
“Seth doesn’t want to do it, and I bet it’s because he’s not sure he can let you do it.” Apollo cursed, and unease blossomed deep in my belly. “This could be a potential problem.”
The unease gave way to irritation. It pricked at my skin and poked holes in my insides. “You know, I love how you just pop in and out whenever you want to and offer little to no answers. Nothing really helpful either, but boy oh boy, there may be a problem!”
Apollo’s expression slipped into a scowl, but I was on a roll. No stopping me now. “You know, all of this is bullshit. I said it before, and I’ll say it again, Ares is your problem. He’s the gods’ problem.” His mouth opened, but I kept on going. “And don’t you dare say it’s Seth’s problem! Ares created this mess ages ago when he started this crap with Solaris and the First. But you guys didn’t really do anything then, did you? You sent the Order in to kill them instead of getting to the bottom of what was happening.”
“Alex—”
“And now it’s happening again. We are going to war for you—for the gods. People will die. My friends and the people I love could die! I could die!” My voice cracked, and I took a step down. My throat felt like it was on fire. “I haven’t forgotten that, Apollo. I know I could die in the end.”
He clapped a heavy hand on my shoulder and squeezed. “I promise you, Alex, that no matter what happens, I’ll take care of you. I told you that, and I always keep my promises.”
A knot in my throat made it difficult to speak. The probability of my inevitable death at the hands of those who needed my help wasn’t something I’d forgotten about. In reality, it was just something I couldn’t fixate on. Since the hellboy twins had been exorcised from me, I had refused to dwell on it, and the reason why descended in startling clarity in that moment. In the end, no matter what Apollo wanted, he would not disobey the other Olympians. Doing so would further split them, and it could become disastrous.
Blinking back tears, I looked away, working my throat until I was sure that, when I opened my mouth, it wasn’t a sob. “I don’t want to die.”
“I know,” Apollo said, and his voice was surprisingly gentle. “I will do everything in my power to make sure that doesn’t happen. I haven’t let you down yet, have I?”
My gaze crawled over the gray cement walls, finally settling on his. Had he? He’d skirted the truth and divulged information only when he felt like it, but had he let me down? I didn’t answer the question. “The gods should be fighting. You know that, Apollo. They should be a part of this.”
Seconds passed. “You’re right.”
Wow. I was stunned into silence. Next thing I’d knew, Aiden and Seth would start to make out and profess their undying love for one another. “I’m right?”
“You are. They do need to be involved. They need to fight.”
It took me a couple of moments to remember how to use my tongue. Hope kindled in my chest like a fledging, delicate fire. If the gods would fight, then the losses on our side would be less. “And you can make this happen?”
Apollo lowered his chin. “I will do everything I can to get them involved.”
“You should. This is their fight.”
“This is everyone’s fight,” he corrected. “Because it’s everyone’s future.”
CHAPTER 19
Saturday had been a day full of pain.
While we were getting better at fighting Perses, we still were getting our butts handed to us. Seth had come close to taking Perses down with a kick. The Titan had stumbled, but he hadn’t fallen. He’d come back at Seth, and within seconds the First was on his back.
But Sunday got worse.
“Mats are for the weak,” Perses announced as I bounced across the blue butt-saver, and that comment took the happy right out of my step. He raised a hand, and the mats flipped up on their own, starting to fold like accordions. “Warriors do not need mats.”
Jumping back, I missed being smashed and folded by less than a second. Under the mats was nothing but cold, hard floor. I sighed, knowing this was going to sting, and as usual, we had a crowd watching. Three pures had mixed among my friends. Solos was already cringing.
Perses motioned me forward. “Come on, girl.”
I took a deep, calming breath before I stalked toward him. Attacking in anger seemed like a good idea. The gods knew I was known to do so from time to time, but I made mistakes in the heat of it, and making mistakes with Perses or Ares wouldn’t end well for me.
He immediately launched at me, swinging a meaty hand at my head. Easy. I dipped down, avoiding the attack. Springing up, I twisted to the left as he kicked out with a booted foot. I blocked him at the knee, and then struck out for his throat. Perses countered, sneaking a punch that caught my arm and spun me. I tried to twist out of it into the fall, but as I turned, he threw his arm out, hitting me across the chest. Air exploded out of my lungs. Stumbling back, I was unprepared when he kicked out, sweeping his legs out from underneath me. I hit the hard floor on my back, knocking the oxygen out of my cells this time.
“Ow,” I moaned, bending my knees. I blinked the ceiling back into focus, clearing the white flecks of light from my vision.
Aiden’s curse rang loudly.
Hovering over me, Perses’ laugh grated on my nerves. “I hope, when you become the God Killer, Ares stands still for you.”
I flipped him off.
The Titan tipped his head back and laughed. “Charming.”
Rolling to my feet, I limped over to the side, passing our little audience. Olivia caught my eye and smiled sympathetically. Almost, she mouthed.
Almost didn’t really count. I joined the guys by the wall. “Well, that was a fail.”