Lexi's Fate

~22~

"He's handling a business matter in his study. I'm sure he won't be long. Why don't you and Hades head to the stable. Clary and Dion are taking a walk on the beach, and Mnemosyne is enjoying a bath. I've got blueberry scones baking, so I'm stuck here for a while, but I believe Zeus is waiting for you." She looked up from the tray of fruit she was obsessing over. "Zeus wasn't too pleased when he found out Kade had gone behind his back and invited Aristaeus to the estate."

"Why? Are Zeus and Aristaeus on bad terms?" Lexi talked around the baked brie she had spooned into her mouth.

"No, nothing like that, but Zeus likes to know what's going on. And, apparently, Kade has a habit of doing whatever he pleases with no regard for protocol." She offered Hades a subtle eyebrow lift, and he offered an innocent shrug in return.

"Don't look at me," he said. "Kade gets his bad habits from his mother."

Lexi and Hades made for the path while her thoughts plagued her. What was going to happen to her horse? Would Zeus and her dad ever exchange blows? Did Hades have bad habits she hadn't seen yet? 

As they entered the stable, Lexi found Zeus talking with a broad-chested man in a denim shirt. A man Lexi immediately recognized, although she hadn't seen him since she was ten years old. "Hank? What are you doing here?"

A wide smile broke across Hank's face, exposing a row of white teeth behind a thick, black beard. "Lexi, how you've grown." He lumbered over, greeting her with a strong hug, which brought back a flood of memories, most of them involving Hank rescuing her from the back of an unruly horse named Zenith. "Zeus was right. You have bloomed into an absolute beauty."

Lexi's stomach lurched, and she set her plate of food on a bale of hay before she spilled it. "You...you know Zeus?"

"Of course. I attend to Zeus's horses and oversee the animals of Olympus."

"This is Aristaeus, although you remember him as Hank." Zeus joined them, making no attempt to acknowledge Hades. "I asked for his help with Zenith when the horse proved to have more spunk than a five year old demigod could handle."

"And I warned you that Zenith's strong bloodline would make him difficult." Aristaeus nudged Zeus in the ribs as they both enjoyed a throaty chuckle.

"Even the father of gods can have oversights on occasion," Zeus said.

A loud snort interrupted their banter, and Lexi glanced into Jackie O's stall, but Jackie O was not the first horse she laid her eyes on. A beautiful black stallion stood in the next stall over, and his fearless dark eyes were aimed right at Lexi. "Oh, my gods. You brought Zenith." She hurried over to him and offered a respectful bow before reaching out to touch his head. "You are just as handsome as I remember." Another snort echoed inside the stable, and Lexi turned to address Jackie O. "And you are the most beautiful mare in all of Nova Scotia, my friend. What do you think of this fine stallion?"

Kade strode into the stable with an armful of apples, and he dumped them into the treat bag. "I rounded up something sweet for the horses to whet their appetite. Aristaeus seems to think there's a good chance we can get these two together, but there are some complications." He maneuvered next to Lexi, and Hades appeared at her other side within seconds, his fingers grazing her hip.

"What kind of complications?" she asked, acknowledging Hades with a light touch.

Aristaeus stood between the two stalls, gesturing to the pair of horses. "As you may recall, Lexi, from our numerous conversations about horse breeding, the offspring of a pair will typically display the strongest traits of its parents. Which is why only the finest specimens of the species are encouraged to breed. In the case of Zenith and your friend, Jackie O, we have a stallion with godlike qualities, and a purebred mare with no special qualities other than her bloodline."