Deity (Covenant #3)(108)

Artemis glided toward me, her elegant movements completely at odds with her combat-princess attire. “Or you will turn the tables on the First and all those who think they can overthrow the gods.”

“What do you mean?” Marcus spoke, flushing a bright red when Artemis turned to him. He bowed deeply and then straightened. “How can Alexandria turn the tables? If Seth so much as lays a finger on her once she Awakens, he will become the God Killer.”

“Not necessarily,” she replied evenly.

I blinked rapidly. “Care to explain that?”

Artemis smiled. Impossibly, she became more beautiful… and creepier. “It is true that my brother… holds affection for you, but you are a valuable asset to us. Some wish to see you dead, it is true. Hades will be back… eventually, as will the remaining furies. But you will Awaken soon and you are strong—stronger than you realize.”

All my normal smartass responses would probably earn me an arrow in the head, so I had no idea what to say.

She stopped in front of me. When she reached out and clasped my chin with smooth, cold fingers, I wanted to flinch away. She tipped my head back. “You have a reckless sort of passion about you. It guides you. Some would see it as a weakness.”

“It’s not?” I whispered, unable to look away.

“No.” She studied me as if she could see into me, through me. “You have the eyes of a warrior.” Her hand dropped and she took a step back. “Prophecies always change, Alexandria. Nothing in our world is set in stone. And power never flows just one way. The key is finding a way to reverse it.”

Then she just disappeared.

I touched my chin. The skin tingled. Slowly, I turned to Aiden. “You should’ve seen those dogs.”

Aiden grabbed both my arms, his eyes like liquid silver. I could tell he wanted to shake me. He’d seen through the glass what I’d tried to do and Artemis had pretty much thrown me under the bus. As he stared at me, it was like he’d forgotten everyone else in the store, that my uncle was there, his brother, and Solos. He was that angry.

“Don’t you ever think about doing something so stupid again.”

I looked away. “I’m sorry—”

“I understand that you thought you were doing the right thing,” he said through clenched teeth. “But you weren’t, Alex. Sacrificing yourself was not the right thing to do. Do you understand me?”


Marcus placed a hand on his shoulder. “Aiden, this is not the place. We need to go.”

My breath caught as my eyes darted between the two. “I just don’t know how we’re going to win this.”

“No one wins if you kill yourself,” Marcus said quietly. “We must go.”

Drawing in a deep breath, Aiden dropped his hands. His look warned that there would be a later, most likely the moment we stepped back in the car. Solos waited by the door, his sharp gaze narrowed on Aiden as he took a sip of his energy drink.

“Are you okay?” Aiden asked Deacon.

He nodded slowly. “Yeah, I’m great. Nothing like witnessing a death match between gods when I’m trying to get some Cheetos.”

My lips twitched. Poor Deacon. He clutched that bag to his chest, too.

The cashier’s soft snores were the only sound. Remembering the whole purpose of coming to this place, I hastened back to the counter.

“What are you doing?” Aiden asked.

I dropped some cash on the counter and grabbed my bag. “I’m hungry.”

Aiden stared a moment, then a slow smile crept across his face. Maybe I wouldn’t get bitched out too badly. On the way out, he picked up a package of Hostess CupCakes off the floor and caught my look. “Me, too,” he said.

“At least I paid for my stuff.”

Chapter 32

I DID GET BITCHED OUT—A LOT. AND I DESERVED IT. Aiden had been through the wringer when it came to me lately. He understood why—my motives—but he didn’t agree with me. But I knew what I’d been thinking, and it still made sense. I didn’t want to die, but I didn’t want to see anybody else hurt when handing myself over would stop everything.

Halfway into the second part of the trip, as the tires ate away the miles, he grabbed my hand and held onto it. He hadn’t forgiven me, but he didn’t want to shake me anymore. That was progress. I still wasn’t sure if Artemis shooting Hades in the head was a good move or not by the time we reached Athens.

Tall pines and mounds of snow greeted us when we reached the lodge nestled at the edge of the national forest. Without Marcus and the air element, there would’ve been no way that we would’ve made it up the remote road. Even so, it took him over an hour to clear the road.

The lodge was magnificent, made of logs and surrounded by a wraparound deck. If I hadn’t been so exhausted, I would’ve appreciated its beauty much more.

“Do you know that Athens is one of the most haunted locales in Ohio?” Solos said as he opened the door.

“She doesn’t believe in ghosts.” Aiden lugged our bags over his shoulder, cheeks flushed from the cold. I could barely feel it. All I wanted was a bed to sleep the rest of the day away in.

“Really?” Solos grinned. “We’ll have to take you down to the old Athens Lunatic Asylum and see if that changes your mind.”

“Sounds like fun,” I murmured, watching Luke and Deacon usher Lea inside. “How will we be safe here? What’s stopping any god from carpet-bombing us?”