Unedited.
Chapter Twenty-Five
This whole situation was freaky. I’d finished my shower, got dressed, and when I slowly crept down the stairs, hoping Eros had disappeared, I was disappointed when I found him stirring up a pitcher of sweet tea in the kitchen.
“You smell so much better.” He tapped the spoon against the lip, not even looking up at me. “Have a seat.”
“I’m the one supposed to be telling you that.” I sat at the kitchen island, careful to keep him in my line of sight. I wanted to make sure I could see the knife stabbing me in the back if that was indeed what he had planned. Not that I had any idea what was about to happen. At the moment, I was flying blind and I had to trust my gut. Right now it said I was safe but to be vigilant. “You’ve taken “make yourself at home” to the extreme.”
“I understand why you would believe that.” He retrieved two glasses from the cabinet and filled them both halfway with ice before pouring the tea over top. Watching a God do mundane things was bizarre to the extreme and set my nerves even further on edge. “However, I’m only trying to be polite. Lemon?”
“No lemon. Gods are polite?”
That actually got me a smile. “Some of us. We can be downright civil if we wish but it’s rare.”
He placed one of the glasses down in front of me before sitting on one of the barstools across from me. He took a sip of the tea, mulled it over before swallowing, and then nodded. “Just as I remember. There’s nothing in the world like southern sweet tea.”
I made a noncommittal noise and continued to sit there, not daring to try the tea. My father taught me not to take drinks from strangers. Pour my own or not drink at all. Granted that advice was for parties but I was applying it here as well. Who knows what was in the beverage. Trust was earned and so far, Eros was hitting high my caution meter even though he was trying to appear as nonthreatening as possible. He didn’t seem too perturbed at me not drinking; in fact he appeared as if he’d expected it.
“Why are you here?” I finally inquired.
“The lightning show in the Between meant something.”
“So I’ve been told.”
“The weapon was claimed by the Lycaon Guard.”
“I noticed that.”
“I believe your instructions were for you to retrieve the weapon. Not your Guard.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Is that a problem?”
“No. It only means our plans have been altered a bit. There are many elements in play here, Oracle. You can’t go messing around with them too much.”
“I wasn’t. Despite what you or Gaia may believe, the weapon wasn’t mine to claim. It was Andrzej’s birthright to wield that particular blade.”
“Which is why you’ll now have to find the other piece.” He took another sip of his drink. “You must be the one to kill Caelus. No one else.”
“I’m not capable of murder. Gaia must realize this.”
“Your fight with the chimera states otherwise. You performed particularly well during that test.”
I ignored that. “Chimeras aren’t people.”
“Caelus is a God. Not a person.”
“The body he inhabits is a person.”
“The person who previously inhabited that particular form was—evicted, you could say, when the ritual was completed. The moment you died, so did they.”
That wasn’t comforting. “You’re telling me one of my friends is dead and Caelus is walking around wearing them like a suit?”
“Basically. Is that enough incentive for you?”
“Can’t you put the person back in their body after Caelus is…”
“No. Caelus will die this time. Make no mistake about that. And with him, so will the body. There is no wiggle room here, Oracle, and it’s something I refuse to apologize for.”
“You can’t make me kill someone.”
“Then you will have the blood of the world on your hands. All the suffering your friends and family will endure will be at your feet.”
“Don’t put that on me.”
“Why not? Demigods are made for killing. That’s the point of your existence. Killing Caelus is your purpose.”
“I’m not just a demigod, Eros.”
“You are the Oracle as well, I know. It will keep you sane far longer than the demigods who came before you. Then again, it also might drive you insane quicker. Who knows what the future holds?”
His smile was cruel and I knew that last dig was directed towards me specifically. It only made me angry. Probably not the reaction he wanted out of me.
“All I know is Gaia is keeping me from seeing a lot of things I need to. The only excuse she gave me was I wasn’t ready to know what happens yet and I find that to be a bunch of bull.”
“You’ll understand soon enough. You have a very deductive mind and therefore will figure events out without having to see them.”
“You’re being very ominous.”
“Habit, I’m afraid. Now, we need to talk about Caelus.”
“I thought we were talking about Caelus.” He cocked an eyebrow and I knew my snark wasn’t being appreciated. I sighed and said, “What about him?”
“You still don’t remember who he is?”
“No.”
“That is indeed very inconvenient. You’ll need to recover those memories and soon.”
“Why?”
“Because Caelus needs to wake Gaia before the rest of his plans are enacted. In order to stop him before he even starts, we’ll need to know where, and who, he is. Only you can tell us that.”
“Wait.” I leaned forward, my hand flat against the marble counter so I wouldn’t end up trying to kill Eros. “The man, the one in shadows, keeps telling me to “wake her up”.”
“Indeed.”
“You’re telling me the shadow man is Caelus? He’s the one haunting my visions?”
“I’m telling you you’ve always known it was Caelus. You just never wanted to admit it. Gaia is the only one who needs to be woken up.”
“Why can’t I see him then?”
“Because he’s keeping you from seeing him. It’s a talent only a few of the Gods have.”
“Zeus?”
He nodded. “It is how he keeps his anonymity. Only a select few know what he really looks like, Gods and Goddesses excluded. Not all of us like our faces out there.”
“Like you?”
“I stay out of the lime light for the simple fact of blending in. If no one knows what you look like, no one will bother you.”
“And you don’t want people bothering you.”
“In a sense. I am the primordial god of procreation. People tend to go a little crazy with that.”
“Does this mean you’ve picked a side?”
“What do you mean?”
“Before, you said you’d yet to pick a side and now you’re in my house claiming to be friend over foe. So, it must mean you’ve picked a side.”
“I have.” He took a gulp of his tea. It was only half full now and I had a feeling when the tea ran out, he’d be gone. “Both Gaia and Caelus came to me for help.”
“And you decided Gaia was your best bet.”
“I like this world, believe it or not. There are pluses and minuses and as long as I stay out of the Gods’ business, they stay out of mine. I have no inclination to change the arrangement. I was, however, reluctant to get involved at first. These things usually have a way of sorting themselves out without my involvement.”
“What changed your mind?”
He stared at me and the feeling I’d gotten the last time I met his eyes sparked but quickly fizzled out. His eyebrow arched up slowly. “That’s why.”
I frowned. “I don’t understand.”
“Both you and Cyrus are completely devoid of lust.”
“That makes no sense.”
He leaned forward, across the island. “Did he ever tell you about his first time?”
It took me a second to get what he was talking about and when I did, I felt a lot of blood rush to my face. “This isn’t appropriate…”
“Most people have general lust. It exists before love and allows you to be attracted to other people, like certain things over others.”
“I don’t…what point are you trying to make?”
He took a hold of my left hand, turning it so my palm faced the ceiling. His other smoothed across my skin, from my elbow to my wrist, making my life lines still as if I was human again. This was all very bizarre and I knew I should’ve yanked my arm out of his grip but I was curious. Kells had done this back when he was pretending to read my lines and even now, he’d always found my love line fascinating.
Eros dragged his pointer finger down the red line before following it back up where it disappeared under the cap sleeve of my shirt.
“It’s so straight. Barely any wrinkles, completely devoid of knots.” He drew his hand back down and met my eyes. “Do you understand how rare that is?”
Considering there’d been a knot in it not too long ago…
I swallowed, trying to tie down my nerves and forget that lapse in judgment. “Someone might’ve mentioned it.”
“People live their lives by this line. They spend their time documenting every ripple, ponder over what it all might mean, but you…you are so stubborn and decisive that this line couldn’t be any other way. You know who you want to the point where no one else matters. There’s no room for lust.” I was trying not to fidget but I couldn’t help it as my arm moved a little, giving my inner thoughts away. “I’m making you uncomfortable, aren’t I?”
I nodded.
“It’s because I’m not Cyrus.” Both of his hands clasped around mine. “You are so in love with him, you don’t notice anyone else.”
“But…”
“Cyrus took a little longer on figuring things out. It’s why his road has been bumpier than yours. Why his love line has wrinkles and knots. No two love lines are the same and it’s the reason you can’t compare them to others to see who you end up with. That’s not how it works.
His first time was awkward and unpleasant because it wasn’t you. His Elite experience has been harder because you weren’t there from the start like he was for you. When he discovered you were the source of all the unpleasantness and longing, he blamed you for it. Mostly because he felt you didn’t feel the same way.”
“But I did.”
“You’re very stoic. Has anyone ever told you that? You control your emotions and expressions so completely it is hard for anyone to understand you. It’s a trait of the Oracle since she must remain unbiased of all outcomes but you’ve shattered the mold on how the Oracle must be. It’s not a horrible thing. All the other Oracles were easily manipulated.”
“But I’m not?”
“Considering how much energy and power Gaia has to use to enter your mind and suppress the future, no. You’re not easy to manipulate. You’re like stone, Oracle. Stone that refuses to be altered or reshaped. Cyrus is the same. You two are the very definition of kissing stones. You’ll never change and if you do, it’ll take a lot of convincing.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
“It’s so you know, when the time comes, what you’re supposed to do in order to save the ones you love.”
“And we’re back to me murdering Caelus.”
“Murder is such a harsh word.”
He released my hand completely and finished off his tea. I didn’t say anything as I knew what was about to happen. Eros stood up and took his empty glass to the sink, intending to rinse it out before leaving. The sound of the water running was different than normal. Instead of the usual rush of the faucet dispensing water, it was more of an all consuming sound. A noise that drowned out everything else and was usually in result of being near a…
…waterfalls pooled into a river at the base and it twisted and turned, cutting a path through the landscape below. It was the only discernible feature that lay before me, the scenery blurring and shimmering in most places to conceal the particular afterlife within.
“Hello, Natalie.”
The voice was soft, caring. So unlike the first time I heard it. It was so different, in fact, that it caused me to pause for a moment and think it over. What exactly did it mean and why was there a sad lit to his tone? I had to face him sometime and I couldn’t help but think it wouldn’t be so bad when I did.
I turned away from the endless sprawl that was the Underworld and confronted its keeper. His eyes were still a brilliant blue and assessing, his skin as pale and untouched by the sun as I’d ever seen. He was the exact same and I knew he would never change. None of them did unless they wanted to.
“I wasn’t expecting you so soon.”
All I could manage was a weak smile and a careless shrug. “Things happen beyond our control.”
“Yes. I dare say they do.” He stood up from his throne which was solid black stone instead of the shadows I was used to seeing and approached me. I looked down, hoping I wouldn’t see the damage that was done to me but no such luck. The Greek and Latin words made from the Goddesses’s blood still stained my skin; the dress I was put in still blood soaked. “You are a complete mess.”
I nodded, still keeping the tears in my eyes even though this would be the opportune time to shed them. I was dead but I still couldn’t bring myself to cry like normal people. “I’m a little out of sorts, I’m afraid.”
The tip of his shoes touched the tips of my toes and I took in a deep breath. It was almost laughable considering I didn’t need to breathe anymore.
I was dead. You don’t need to breathe when you’re dead. You didn’t need to do a lot of things when you’re dead.
Hades’s pale hand lifted from his side and cupped my chin, his skin chilled but not freezing cold like one would think he would be. With a little bit of pressure, my head was lifted up and I was looking him in the eyes.
“It takes a bit of adjusting to get used to being dead. At least that’s what I’m told.” His head tilted to the side just a little like he was contemplating something…
“…something’s wrong. I—Natalie?”
I blinked a couple of times and my kitchen came back into view. I was still sitting on my stool but I was no longer facing the sink or Eros. Instead I had a direct line of sight to the back door, my whole body having turned as if watching someone walk out the door and Eros was gone. Part of the door was obscured by my father who was standing in front of me, cell phone to his ear with his brow crinkled in worry.
“Dad?”
“Oh, thank god.” He hung up, dropping the phone on the counter before checking me over frantically. The back of his hand was pressed briefly to my forehead and then he was touching my face and arms. “Natalie, honey, are you ok?”
“Yeah, I…” I had to blink a couple of times and swallow because my mouth was dry but… “I’m good. Why?”
“I came home and you were sitting here practically comatose.”
“When did you get home?” I frowned and looked around. “Where’s…”
“Where’s…?” He bent his knees a little so he could look me in the eyes. “Where’s what, honey?”
“Nothing.” I shook my head and smiled up at him, hoping to smooth this all over. “Hi, Daddy.”
He stood up straight, his hands instantly going to his hips. “You’ve been gone for days and all you have to say is “hi, Daddy”?”
“I could scold you on the amount of take out containers in the trash but I thought I’d save you the embarrassment.” I got up and hugged him, letting him squeeze me tight. “I missed you,” I admitted. “I’m sorry I didn’t get a chance to tell you I was leaving—there wasn’t enough time—I’m sorry.”
“I wish you wouldn’t do that again but Clay said…” He pulled back and started looking me over again. “You’re ok?”
I nodded and blurted the first thing that came to mind. “Yeah. But I’m happy to be home where there’s an actual shower.”
“They didn’t have showers? Wherever you were.”
I shrugged. “They were kinda old-worldly. I was planning to sneak in a nap too before you got home but it looks like time got away from me.”
With a quick glance at the clock over the stove, I was right and I suddenly found myself having to squash a sudden flare of panic. The party started at eight o’clock and it was now six. Time had slipped hours without me noticing. Hours.
“Tales…” I blinked and tried to hide the terror I was feeling before I looked at my father again. But he was too good at seeing me, or maybe just too good of a father, to allow me to get away with not explaining. “What happened?”
“Dad.”
“Tell me what happened just now and where you were these past few days.”
“I can’t, Dad. You know that.”
He was visibly frustrated, something the infamous Theodore Abernathy never was. Most of the time he hid it well, better than I ever could, and the only time he’d ever let his cool slip in public was during a rather terrible round of golf. He ended up chucking his five hundred dollar club into the drink. Not his best moment.
“Natalie…”
“I can’t.”
“You are my daughter. Mine. I don’t care what they say. If I ask you a question, you need to answer it.”
“Dad.”
“Tell me what happened and where you were or I swear you’ll never leave this house again.”
“Don’t,” I implored. “The only thing I can say is I was with Andrzej. He had a family emergency and I had to go with him. It was Elite business.”
The wheels were turning in his head but he was quick to respond, completely ignoring the bit about the Elite and focusing solely on the fact I was with a boy. “Andrzej? That boy who was here the other night?”
I nodded slowly, hoping I wasn’t getting my friend into trouble. “He made sure I was safe.”
I wasn’t sure if he believed me or not. He was staring at me the way dads did when they knew you weren’t telling them the whole story. It was like he was trying to intimidate me into coughing up the rest, thinking waiting me out while giving me that look would do me in. Instead, I just watched him back, hoping he would stop and be happy with me being home. But that wasn’t my father. He wanted the whole truth, every last detail; good and bad bits included.
“I’m not happy about this.”
I sighed. “It’s not like I don’t want to tell you. I’m not that kind of teenager.” I glanced up at him. “I wish I could tell you everything but I can’t. And it sucks.”
“I’m half inclined to ground you…”
“Dad…”
“I know it wasn’t entirely your fault but you could’ve left me a note. Called before you left. Something.”
“I’m sorry…”
“You’ve been distant and disconnected. Clay warned me and I knew to expect it but I didn’t think it would be like this. I have no idea what’s going on in your life anymore…”
“And you think I do?” I shook my head with my mouth slightly agape. “Because I don’t. Sometimes I swear this is all just a dream, that none of it is real. It’s some—joke being played on me and it has ceased being funny. All I want is to be a normal girl who worries about golf. But for some horrible reason I’m not. I’m this. I’m Elite with all the trappings that come with it. But I’m still your daughter,” my voice softened. “Even if you don’t know everything that is going on with me. I’m still Theodore Abernathy’s daughter and I would really like to spend some time with my dad by going out to the haunted mansion with him tonight. If he decides not to ground me, that is.”
There was a lot going on in his head and I could see him wavering on how to handle this. He wanted to ground me but there was nothing to really ground me for. I wasn’t sure if other Elite teenagers had this problem but I had it in spades. Then again, I was sure most of them had at least one parent who was Elite to calm down the other parent who wasn’t.
Clearly my uncle sucked at calming my father. It really would’ve been better if he’d been here for this.
“We need to discuss this more, Natalie. You’re not off the hook.”
I wasn’t exactly sure what else he wanted to talk about but I hoped, by the time he wanted to finish this talk, to have my uncle around. If anyone could help me navigate the situation, it was him.
“Ok. Can I have a hug now?”
He hugged me and after a few moments I heard him release his breath, signaling he was letting it go for now. “You never have to ask for a hug, Tales. If you do, it means I’m not doing my job right.”
“You’re doing everything perfect. Only a few bumps and then the road will smooth out. I promise.”
I could only hope my promise wasn’t an empty one.