“Open up, Elle,” Jack called. It looked and sounded exactly like him.
Elle was going to unlock the door before she paused her movements. Her nagging feeling that something wasn’t right about this wasn’t going away. When Jack had disguised himself as Apollo, little signs had been there to show it was not actually him she had been kissing. She couldn’t help but feel this situation felt remarkably similar to when Jack had tricked her. She didn’t feel it was truly him behind the door. Jack Frost wouldn’t wait behind a door to be let inside. Elle had to be on her best game if she wanted to catch if it was really him behind this door. “You could just teleport in,” she said evenly, watching him through the peephole. There was something very wrong about this that she didn’t like.
“Or you could just open the door,” said Jack coolly. “Hurry up. I placed a large enough blizzard on this place it’ll probably snow us in for weeks.”
This was his arrogant tone, but it still seemed so wrong. Something wasn’t right about this no matter how hard Elle tried reassuring herself she was probably overreacting. There was also the lingering thought of wondering why would Jack care if a lot of snow was coming. He was the immortal god of winter. A snowstorm would not bother him.
“Oh! Guess what?” said Elle lightly, a quick plan coming to mind. “We have lots of red apples left over. Your favorite!”
She could see Jack smirk lightly through the peephole. “Excellent. Open on up, Letter.”
Biting her inner cheek, Elle tried to remain calm. He failed her test; this clearly wasn’t Jack. Since the imposter had yet to barge in, did that mean he couldn’t get in since he apparently wanted Elle to open the door? She couldn’t be sure.
“Come now, I don’t have all day,” drawled the Jack at the door.
Scrambling to the area she left the enchanted snow globe, Elle snatched it off the couch before running back to the door. Keeping an eye through the peephole, she started spinning the bottom musical part to play the lovely song. She did it for two reasons. The first was to further confirm her theory that Jack was not at the door. The second was to use the globe to contact the real Jack Frost.
He knew when the globe would start to play. Therefore, he would make comment of the noise. Instead of making a grimace or some type of facial recognition to show he heard it, the Jack behind the door did nothing.
“You’re not Jack,” said Elle with absolute certainty, carefully moving away from the door. Now, she was worried. She was all alone. Why didn’t the real Jack Frost at least leave her a cell phone? Elle turned the globe, but there was no real way to tell whether or not Jack was instantly coming to her rescue.
“Damn the fates to Tartarus for that blasted globe,” the Jack behind the door muttered, causing Elle to immediately move further away. What was she supposed to do? Hide? Fight? Stop replying and simply pretend she wasn’t home?
It was smart to move away from the door. The large wooden door to the cabin suddenly burst open, the wood flying back at least three feet as it flew off its hinges. If Elle hadn’t moved, she would’ve been easily taken out by the door alone.
Elle accidentally dropped the globe due to her sudden fear, glass shattering beneath her feet. Luckily, nothing bad happened to the globe courtesy of Elle simply blinking. The enchanted globe appeared on the floor next, back in perfect condition as if it hadn’t just shattered. The Jack at the door started to chuckle as he spotted Elle a few feet away.
A familiar face was suddenly behind the door, someone Elle wasn’t expecting. Pele was now standing in the same place Jack had been, her beautiful mane of dark hair curled and tossed over her right shoulder, causing it to cascade nicely down her front and past her chest. She was dressed in a very lovely cream knee-length tunic dress. What seemed strange about seeing her was the very cold look plastered on her face. “I thought for sure you would’ve allowed me inside with that form,” said Pele quietly, arching a dark brow to watch Elle.
How did she find this place?
“My dad taught me about stranger danger,” Elle replied coolly, tightly holding onto the snow globe she plucked up from the ground. The lovely music continued to play, providing a small silence to take over as Pele watched Elle intently.
“Are you going to invite your mother inside?”
Was this truly her mother? Was it not? Elle was suddenly thinking of vampire legends and how they weren’t allowed to come inside without an invitation. The same could apparently be said for Pele at the moment; she could not seem to be able to walk past the threshold. An invisible block restricted her from entering.
“Nope,” Elle answered without even blinking.
Pele frowned. “I don’t particularly care for your attitude. Allow me inside and I shall attempt to explain why I am here.” The goddess straightened her posture, her full lips pressing into a tight line.
Without moving her eyes from the volcano goddess, Elle started turning the bottom of the snow globe a few times more. Allowing her inside was definitely something Jack would warn her against doing if he was here. As the agonizingly long seconds passed by where the only sounds could be heard was the globe’s soft music, Elle strongly felt suspicious that this wasn’t the actual Pele at the door. Why she felt this way couldn’t be explained. Her best possibly reasoning for feeling suspicious was based on the goddess first pretending to be Jack. If the “Pele” at the door had no malicious intent, why pretend to be someone she wasn’t?
“How about you tell me why you’re here?” said Elle, carefully moving to hide behind the large, forest-themed couch. Even though Pele could not come in, that didn’t necessarily mean she couldn’t start throwing things into the room to harm Elle. She could kick the door in just fine. “I already know you’re not the real Pele.”
“What makes you say that, my daughter?”
“You obviously know Jack’s not here. That’s why you pretended to be him,” Elle answered, twisting the globe some more. “If it was Jack you wanted to hurt, you’d simply have followed him when he left. I’m getting the impression it’s me you want to see.”
A low cackle of laughter sounded, causing Elle to poke her head up to see the arrival had changed yet again in appearance. Pele was no longer standing at the door. Now, a gangly red-headed man with an impish grin stood at the door, wearing only a pair of pants that reminded Elle of the sea-inspired clothes Triton and Ajax wore. The young man was barefoot, and a large shark tooth hung on a golden necklace around his neck. Whoever this new arrival was, Elle placed a bet he had something to do with the ocean.
The only five words that came to mind for Elle while watching the man were relatively simple. “Who the hell are you?”
“None of your concern, daughter of Pele,” the young man answered, his brown eyes cold and narrowed. “I implore you to join our cause, child. Help destroy the heir of Boreas, and we shall go in peace.”
There were only two words that Elle took great notice to: our and we. As in, this strange man wasn’t alone. Sneaking a quick peek toward the window next to the couch proved what she already figured out. He hadn’t come here without backup. People began emerging from the lake. Massive tails flapped in the air before diving back into the water. People started walking out of the lake, all of these individuals in sea-inspired bikini tops or trunks, as they appeared not to have any problems with walking out of a near-frozen lake given it was February. People moved chunks of ice if they was in their way, but the majority of people seemed fine with the cool temperatures.
Elle remained silent, partially giving into the idea that if she remained absolutely quiet, maybe wanting to come in wouldn’t be so appealing. More individuals soon started to arrive on the long porch of the cabin, all seeming to be led by the strange man wearing the large tooth on a chain.
“We cannot burn the place down, Ofile,” a nearby woman said quietly. “’Tis enchanted!”
Elle partially wondered if burning down the cabin would even affect her. If flames could start on her skin, could she even feel a
regular fire, or would it just be similar to the no-feeling she experienced with her own fire? She didn’t really want to test this to find out.
“We are on the brink of war, child,” the man who appeared to be the leader of the group rasped, his brown eyes glowering. “Every domain must be led by monarchy, and Oritya cannot maintain the crown given she is not a blood descendant. A new heir in the royal children cannot take the throne while Jack Frost still lives and breathes. He must die!”
“What! Why?”
Elle wasn’t the only one surprised by her question. The people on the porch looked to their male leader with curious gazes as if wondering what he would say next. The man nearly laughed. “Why? Oh, child, this shows how little you know of what war you are stepping in! Jack Frost’s reign will bring the comrades of Queen Oritya who wish her reign to continue to an uproar! We are speaking of storms, seas uprising, and the gates of the underworld possibly being unleashed. Do you know what happens then?”
“I can’t say that I do.”
The man glowered as the individuals near him began muttering about Elle’s incompetence. “Word on Olympus is your death occurs at the hand of your relative, Macaria,” the man named Ofile said coldly. “I gather you can figure out what shall happen if the gates of the underworld are opened…Macaria escapes!”
Elle shook her head as she remained hiding behind the couch. “So in order to not anger random gods and goddesses, you’re willing to kill an innocent man even though he was always meant to be Boreas’s heir? That’s insane!”
Ofile merely sniffed. “’Tis insane that Boreas believed he could allow his bastard to become King—”
“Don’t talk about Jack like that!” Elle shot back vehemently.
“What are you so very angry about, demigoddess? We merfolk mean you no harm,” the man growled. “We wish entry to Jack Frost’s sanctuary to stage an ambush. The bastard must die in order to maintain balance. Your mother Pele has explained things perfectly; in order to keep the order between the cosmos that has been kept for the last couple thousand years, Jack Frost needs to meet his demise…”
“Are you kidding me?” Elle nearly screeched, feeling irate. “Pele hates Jack! Of course she’d convince you he needed to die! She just tried killing him a few weeks ago!”
“Why do you think that is?” the merman seethed. “The moment gods and beasts are released from the underworld, hell shall literally break loose! It is not just the ghastly individuals of gods and men, but even the fiercest individuals of mortal hell shall be spat out! If the underworld is opened, that stages the risk of the gates of the most foul in hell escaping onto these mortal plains! To keep the peace, Jack Frost must perish! Assist our cause, or be prepared to die!” he growled.
Elle barely registered the moment she was on her feet launching a rough-looking fireball in the direction of the merman through the door. She developed it in her hands. One moment she was shaking with anger, the next she was throwing fire. Elle was so very angry at the thought of these people wanting to harm Jack she didn’t think before she acted. The ball of flame she threw hit Ofile squarely in the chest, causing a mass amount of panic throughout the merpeople as the man fell backwards. Ofile started to scream and writhe in pain on the floor of the porch. Even as the fireball extinguished itself, it didn’t take away the merman’s pain.
“Δαίμονας φωτιά!” someone shouted fearfully, pointing at Elle as a thick layer of fire developed in her hands. The large gathering of merpeople started yelling before motioning to head back to the lake. Out of malicious spite alone, Elle kept launching fireballs out the door, attempting to hit every last person who was in on this ambush. It was so very inappropriate, but Elle had to resist laughing at the merpeople trying to get back to the water.
They were absolutely terrified of her, even though only one out of every four fireballs she threw hit a target. “Yeah, you better run!” she called, trying and failing to resist from laughing. She wasn’t cruel with throwing balls of flame—the people she was throwing them at seemed to be healing themselves just fine because they were immortal. As soon as their feet touched the water, a dazzling display of sleek-looking, colorful tails started protruding from their torsos.
Elle was so preoccupied with landing the last flame at a still-running mermaid, she barely noticed when someone wrapped their arms around her waist before pulling her close in a hug. “I’ve missed you!” She smiled, turning and surprisingly finding the person she was referring to wasn’t actually behind her. She should’ve figured Jack wasn’t behind her; the arms around her weren’t cold.
Apollo’s bright-watt smile slowly fell as he found Elle wasn’t smiling back at him. “Did you assume when they were yelling demon-fire they were referring to you?” he lightly joked.
Now it made sense why the merpeople were yelling in Greek. They had seen Apollo inside the room. It hadn’t been her they were afraid of. It was the god of light. “Yeah,” said Elle, resisting a smile. “Long time no see, Aiden…” she joked before fear suddenly took over. “Are you really Apollo?”
Apollo’s bright, mega-watt smile returned before he pulled her into a hug. “When you were seventeen and working concessions at that KISS concert, you broke the rules of that horrid teacher Ms. Swift and went to watch them perform even though you weren’t supposed to leave the kitchens.” He grinned. Elle launched herself harder at him for a hug, relishing the very mention of a normal time from her life. Apollo started to laugh. “Had I known you would’ve been excited to see me, I wouldn’t have delayed a visit for so long.”
“Why have you?”
Apollo suddenly had a strange look in his eyes, reminding Elle of when he attempted to tell her she was betrothed. He had information, but he didn’t seem to know how to share it with her. “C’mon, tell me,” Elle pushed, unsure of whether Apollo’s hand gently rubbing her back was inappropriate or not.
“Hera recommended I should keep my distance from you,” Apollo admitted quietly.
Elle groaned. Of course the goddess of marriage would be against her fraternizing with any member of the opposite sex who wasn’t Jack. That explained why Elle hadn’t heard from Hermes as well. “Considering she’s also a strong believer in allowing a husband to cheat, I’m not sure she’s the best person to ask.” Elle grinned, attempting to move away only for Apollo to tighten his grip on her.
“No, you don’t, Ells. I’ve gone quite a few weeks without having you around. You’ll let me relish in this while I can.” He nodded seriously.
“After those fish people just tried tricking me into thinking they were both Jack and Pele, I’m not entirely sure you’re really Apollo,” she admitted, only partially joking. She couldn’t explain how the merpeople just happened to know Jack’s special nicknames for her.
The god snorted before he rolled his eyes playfully. This small movement relaxed Elle; she was fully able to see her friend just from this small action. “Your grandpa almost crushed me to death with a refrigerator two summers ago.”
Elle’s mouth pulled into a smile remembering the memory. “He used the famous last words ‘I got this.’” She smiled warmly.
“Considering I’m an immortal roughly twenty times stronger than your average human, I wasn’t really in harm’s way,” Apollo grinned. He soon sighed. “ I came as soon as I heard from Ajax there was a large number of merfolk disgruntled over Poseidon’s law that you shouldn’t be touched. He angered the people of his kingdom. However, it seems it’s not you they truly wished to harm, but Jack alone.”
“They said that if Jack wasn’t killed, war would start,” said Elle. A soft tremble of fear erupted over the sudden fear of Jack being somewhere out in the world unprotected while mermaids attacked him. “What if he’s hurt? What if they’re trying to get to him right now?”
“Shh,” Apollo breathed, releasing her only to gently hold her wrists next. “Jack is fine.”
“How would you know?” Elle trailed off, her eyes going wide. “I turned the snow glob
e and he’s not here! What if he’s hurt? What if something happened? What if…”
“Ells,” Apollo said, bringing up her wrists to rest against his muscled chest. His blue eyes sparkled with intensity. “I’m plenty certain that arrogant popsicle is fine.”
Elle found she didn’t enjoy Apollo’s name calling. When she called Jack some sort of name as a nod toward his abilities, it was only slightly mocking yet also endearing. When Apollo said it, he simply sounded like he didn’t like Jack.
“You care about him, don’t you?” asked Apollo quietly. His bright blue eyes were mesmerized by the oversized ring on her left hand.
“Yeah,” said Elle. The ring felt a lot heavier with him watching it so intently. She strangely felt she was hurting his feelings.
Apollo watched the ring for a few long moments before speaking. “It doesn’t fit you,” he finally said. Elle thought he was referencing the actual size before he continued. “When I picture a ring on your finger, I imagine something small, elegant. Flashy and over the top doesn’t fit your personality at all.” Apollo caressed her wrists with his warm thumbs. “You deserve something as beautiful as you are.”
Elle found Apollo was slowly dipping his head down, his eyes gazing at her lips and then back at her. How long had she fantasized about kissing him? Months, years that she had known him? For a long time, she relished the idea of brushing her lips against his. But now the idea of kissing him caused her stomach to ache. That was when she swiftly wiggled out of his grasp. “Don’t do that.”
Apollo only looked slightly let down as he watched her. “Eros once told me I should keep my distance because you hold feelings for me as well. Was he wrong?”
“Where is this coming from? You’ve never liked me romantically. I overheard you talking with Eros that day I was first abducted.”
“Oh, Elle,” Apollo sighed, rubbing his eyes wearily. He looked hurt. “Simply because I’ve always known you’re supposed to belong to another does not mean I haven’t always had feelings for you.”
Betrothed To Jack Frost Box Set Page 44