Lovesick Gods

by Amanda Meuwissen

  “What?” Danny’s mirth plunged to the pit of his stomach. He scowled at both of his friends as he realized, “Stella talked to you, didn’t she?”

  Andre and Lynn exchanged a look, which was a definite ‘yes’. Damn it.

  “We didn’t tell her anything that’s been going on,” Lynn said. “That’s for you to decide if and when you’re ready to confide in her. But closing yourself off from the people who care about you is only going to make things worse.”

  “I know that, I just—”

  “Look,” Andre broke in, “are you getting laid tonight?”

  For once, Lynn had no reaction, other than the same expectant look that Andre wore.

  Danny squirmed under their scrutiny. “No, wasn’t planning on it. Though that was the original idea before—”

  “Before you had your booty call last night instead, right?” Andre said. “Which means you’re free now and you owe yourself and your family some private time.”

  A dozen words of dissention rose up in Danny’s mind but froze on the tip of his tongue. Anything he said would just be an excuse. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to spend time with his family. He’d barely been home lately. He loved his dad. He loved Stella. And Joey was just finding his feet; he didn’t deserve Danny’s ire.

  With a sigh of resignation, he fought down the tension and anger churning in his gut. “I hate that I know you’re right.”

  “But we are right,” Lynn said. “Baby steps, Danny. Just try. Spend a little time with your family. If we need you for Zeus work, we’ll call you.”

  Danny nodded, but he couldn’t help the bitter taste in his mouth. “Okay. I’m sure Dad will expect it anyway. It’s going to be a long shift today though. This Virgil Labs case is impossible. We’re going through the motions of questioning all the employees, but it isn’t any of those people, even if it does look like an inside job. Must be someone new with some serious tech.”

  “Or an Elemental?” Lynn asked.

  “I honestly have no idea.” Danny held up his hands. “The only thing we have to go on so far is the timeframe and that the cameras were tampered with right before the heist went down. How, though…no clue.”

  “Are you sure it wasn’t Prometheus?” Andre asked with a short laugh, then betrayed in his eyes, only enough for Danny to see, that he hadn’t meant to bring up the source of their argument again.

  Danny mustered a smile. “No ice residue, remember?”

  “Right, I know,” Andre relaxed. “Still, can’t think of anyone else who could leave a scene that clean.”

  “Could it be another Elemental we know?” Lynn asked. “Maybe something from the list of what was stolen would give us a clue or at least a better idea of what they were after.”

  “Money,” Danny said. “The thief went after high ticket items. We’re trying to see if we can catch any of the loot with local fences, but this sort of thing is likely being sold through people we’d need an in with to even get a lead.”

  “If only the OCPD had someone undercover with the mob about now,” Andre said far too seriously for Danny not to laugh.

  “You know it doesn’t work like the movies nearly as much as you think it does, right? Usually, all that action and adventure comes down to just one nerd in a lab.”

  “Well then, I better get cracking,” Andre grinned. “See what you can bring me, huh?”

  Danny glanced at his watch. “And on that note, I should actually get to work. Enjoy the donuts, guys. I’ll just…” He grabbed two glazed ones for himself. “If anything comes up, I’ll check in. Otherwise, see you tomorrow?”

  “See ya, Danny,” Andre said—fences mended, even if Danny didn’t deserve it. He didn’t deserve any of the amazing people in his life.

  The idea of family dinner left him vaguely nauseated, but he pushed those feelings aside in favor of remembering how peaceful he had felt that morning after a good night’s sleep. Everything would get better from now on. Even the Virgil Labs theft had to have a break in the case at some point. And in the meantime, there were plenty of days ahead to see Cho again.

  ß

  Hades never dreamed his failure of a life could ever amount to so much success. He’d just needed to Awaken as an Elemental like he always knew was his destiny. If only it hadn’t come so late in life so he could have shown his father he wasn’t a disappointment, but it had finally happened. All because of Zeus. The brash, young hero didn’t even know he’d created his next great enemy.

  Standing before what remained of his haul from Virgil Labs, Hades frowned. He’d made thousands from what he’d sold already, but it wasn’t enough. The credibility he craved was missing. He wanted the police floundering, but without any suspects to shine the limelight on him, he’d never get the fame he deserved. He had to do things carefully to make his entrance memorable. That meant another heist quickly, one with a few actual breadcrumbs left behind.

  Patience was key, but eventually his time would come and he’d face off against Zeus like he’d been planning since the day after he Awakened, that foolish hero who thought he could protect this city. Zeus’s other villains were a cakewalk. No, he was meant to be destroyed by someone greater, someone who’d earned the hatred they had for the city’s paragon. Hades would show them. He’d show everyone who’d ever thought they were a match for Zeus what true power looked like. Maybe he’d dethrone one of Zeus’s more public enemies before seeing to the man’s downfall.

  Hades had heard from several reliable sources that Prometheus was planning something. Even those who would readily snitch on anyone for the right price didn’t have much information though. A heist was imminent, yes, but no one knew anything about where or when. Only the other Titans knew the details, and none of them would ever talk. Hades needed to go where he could eavesdrop without any of them knowing they were being overheard.

  And there was one place he knew where Prometheus always showed up.

  ß

  The house smelled like tomato sauce and garlic when Danny entered, later than he’d hoped but still on time for family dinner. His father had left the station ahead of him, and Stella was obviously already in the kitchen since it was her turn to cook.

  She’d been on her own since college, in her own apartment, living her own life outside the family, but Danny hadn’t followed suit. There had always been a reason to stay home. He and his father worked at the same precinct. His romantic entanglements never lasted long. And his mother had always kissed his temple and said she didn’t mind if her baby boy stayed at home forever.

  Danny hadn’t intended for that. He was ready to leave, ready to take a larger step toward being on his own, when Rick was killed and everything unraveled.

  He’d never had many friends. Obsessive and analytical, he was perfect as a detective but not the best for relationships. His father had always been better at finding a balance with his personal life, but Danny immersed himself so much in work, he’d forget to step back and breathe.

  It was only through Rick, his partner, that he found a true friend who understood him, who devoted himself just as deeply and never told Danny to ‘get a life’ or ‘take it easy’. He’d been the only person who ever really made Danny feel like he could be himself.

  Danny could still remember the way Rick’s face had turned purple before the light in his eyes died.

  “Whoa! Watch out, man,” Joey said as he barreled down the stairs, nearly running into Danny.

  Blinking back to awareness, Danny realized he was blocking the young man’s path. “Sorry.” He smiled and took a step back. “Long day.”

  Joey hopped down from the landing, swinging around into the living room with one hand still on the banister. “Sure,” he said, typical stunted teenage response. He paused to look at Danny like he was expecting something from him, some action or further words, but like many times before, Danny’s tongue fumbled to s
ay anything when he looked into the deep black of Joey’s eyes.

  Dark leaning. Dark—just like Thanatos.

  Like millions of other people, dozens of which Danny saw on the streets every day. But with Joey it was an awful reminder of the darkness in Thanatos that had made Danny discover the deepest darkness in himself. Joey was so stark in appearance; a skinny, fourteen-year-old kid, with pale skin, black hair, and even blacker eyes, like endless pits.

  Thanatos’s eyes had been the only thing Danny could see clearly through his costume—all purple and black, a cowl covering his face like Danny’s, but with the eyes visible so everyone could see the way they turned from black irises to black all the way through to the whites when he used his powers.

  Dark didn’t mean evil any more than Light meant good. After all, Camo was Light and it hadn’t prevented him from becoming a criminal. But Joey’s eyes still made Danny shudder as he remembered the way a similar pair had looked taunting him over the death of his mother, and then afterward…

  “Uhh…what?” Joey asked, backing up into the living room.

  Danny sucked in a breath as the present caught up to him. He was home and that night was six months in the past. “Nothing. Sorry. Just a long—”

  “Long day. Right.” Joey rolled his eyes and pivoted on his heels to head into the kitchen. His white T-shirt had a yellow lightning bolt emblazoned on the back. Joey had acquired every piece of ‘not official but obviously meant to be’ Zeus paraphernalia he could get his hands on.

  Once, when Danny had asked Joey how he could still like Zeus after everything—after he’d failed to save Joey’s mother, Danny’s mother, and so many others—the kid merely shrugged and said, “At least he tried.”

  Danny chucked his bag against the back of the couch. His childhood home was a simple two-story farmhouse style with a wraparound porch. Built not long before Danny was born and well loved, the living room spread to his left as he stood in the entryway, sporting a fireplace and warm, earth-tone colored furniture. The staircase in front of him led to the second floor bedrooms.

  There weren’t any paintings or expensive photographs on the walls like in Cho’s apartment. Every possible surface, including the mantel and various end tables, was covered with framed picture after picture of their family. Even a few included Joey. Most had Stella in them. And some were from long enough ago that it was just Danny and his parents.

  One particular photograph from when Danny must have been only three years old—laughing as his parents hugged him around the waist—was his favorite, positioned just off the landing of the staircase to his right.

  His mother had been so beautiful…

  “Danny?”

  Head jolting forward, Danny saw Stella leaning out of the kitchen doorway. “Hey,” he said, realizing he hadn’t moved and starting to toe off his shoes. “Need help with dinner? I’ll be right there.”

  Stella nodded, though a concerned expression flitted through her eyes. She let the door fall shut behind her, and the brief swing in and out revealed John and Joey already helping, being a family without Danny having to participate at all.

  They didn’t need him, not as he was now. He had to get better. He had to find his way back to the Danny in those photographs who knew how to be happy without faking it. And the only way he knew how to do that was to focus all of the anger and resentment and wrongness in his life on someone who deserved to be targeted.

  Pulling out his cell phone, Danny thumbed through his contacts until he found Cho’s number. Hey. You free this weekend?

  Chapter 10

  “You’re so big!” Lucy exclaimed as she pressed both hands to Carla’s swollen belly. Their favorite day-waitress at Haven only had a couple months left before she popped.

  “Just what every girl wants to hear,” Carla laughed, one hand occupied with the pot of coffee she’d been interrupted from offering Mal when Lucy squealed at the sight of her. Carla was Earth leaning, with brown eyes like Lucy, dark skin, and tightly coiled black hair that framed her face.

  “Oh please, you’re pregnant,” Lucy said dismissively. “And gorgeous.” Her eyes widened and a fresh smile brightened her face at presumably feeling something beneath her palms. “Baby Mai’s rambunctious today.”

  “She’s rambunctious every day.”

  “Mai?” Mal questioned Lucy’s apparent insider knowledge.

  “Carla’s been throwing around M names as far from Irish-sounding as possible,” Lucy said as she sat back. “Mai’s my favorite so far.”

  Finished filling Mal’s coffee, Carla said, “Wouldn’t change Michael’s name for nothing,” concerning her ten-year-old son, “but this little girl’s gonna get a fresh start.”

  Considering Carla’s ex was Sean Dunkirk, Mal understood the sentiment.

  They ordered a late lunch and Lucy inquired after Carla’s current boyfriend

  “Still acing every exam,” Carla said. “That man’s gonna have his RN license before you know it.”

  “Hey now,” a new voice interrupted them, “you’d have me beat in no time if you didn’t have to pull back for maternity leave.”

  Oswald “Oz” Percy, or as the public had once known him, Hermes, walked over from the entrance toward Mal and Lucy’s table. As an Air Elemental capable of teleporting anywhere in the blink of an eye, he’d been one of the few people who could give Zeus a run for his money. Zeus either needed to see where he was going or to have been to a location before in order to jump there. He also got exhausted from overusing that part of his powers. Teleporters like Oz could get worn out as well but only after far more extended use.

  Stopping at Carla’s side, Oz offered her a kiss on the cheek. He’d been a down-on-his-luck first-time offender when Mal stumbled upon him, an Elemental in hiding who’d been pushed to reveal himself with petty thefts just to make ends meet. Now he was only a few night classes away from being a registered nurse—and the only former member of the Titans.

  Oz’s green eyes stood out against his dark skin, darker than Carla’s, with closely cropped hair and neatly trimmed scruff on his face. He was tall and might have been imposing, but his bright, toothy smile often negated that, which was maybe why he hadn’t worked out as a thief. He’d never wanted to play supervillain. Mal had made a concerted effort to change his mind, but in the end, Zeus had been more persuasive.

  Though Thanatos had played his part too.

  ß

  Months ago, on what ended up being Oz’s last night with the Titans, Mal had decided to aim for a different sort of target, a little of Olympus City’s high life, and steal some of the prized jewelry from the CEO of the Opera House. She kept her most valuable pieces in a safe behind her desk at work.

  The Opera House had no security guards and very few alarms to thwart. A moment of concentration from Lucy and the touch of her hand to a wall was all it took to grow vines up through the foundation and into the walls, shorting out the security system. But even with minimal challenge, the payoff was big enough to make the evening worthwhile once Mal cracked the safe. His ice and a swift kick handled that. He might not have even needed the rest of his team, but he knew Lucy would want her pick of the jewelry before he found buyers, and Dom wanted something to torch. The CEO’s office once they had the goods was fine by Mal. Easily contained, with no one in the building to worry about casualties.

  Only Dom didn’t get the chance. Oz blinked into existence first. He was their lookout, a perfectly suited position for someone who could be on the street corner one second and two feet away from Mal the next.

  “Something’s coming,” he announced when he appeared. His Hermes costume was all black with yellow trim like the antithesis of Zeus. He was also the only Titan who wore a mask.

  “Police?” Mal asked while Dom and Lucy loaded up the bags with jewelry.

  “Something else.”

  The fear in Oz’s vo
ice was apparent; Mal didn’t need further explanation to know that whatever was coming involved another Elemental. “Let’s go.”

  Dom shot out a parting flicker of flames to set the papers on the desk ablaze, but that was all they had time for. As a group, they quickly made for the exit. Oz could only teleport one person at a time; it wasn’t practical to make a getaway like that unless there was no other choice.

  The quiet seemed to ease Oz as they reached the street. “Maybe I was wrong. Thought I felt something,” he said with an exhale. “Whatever it was must have detoured.”

  Mal glanced around the empty streets to be sure. Their getaway vehicle was in an alley a few blocks down and they’d be home free. A heist wasn’t as fun anymore without Zeus dropping in, but the night had still been productive.

  “Relax, Hermes,” Lucy said as they hurried down the street. “You’re a little tightly wound for someone who’s supposed to be a breeze.”

  Oz laughed, but Mal couldn’t latch onto the humor with the others. It was too easy walking the streets like this with no one around. Almost eerie. “What can I say, Gaia? Sometimes I think I’m meant for more than committing felonies.”

  Mal’s senses were buzzing, distracting him from moving as swiftly as he would have preferred in the midst of a heist. Detoured or not, something was coming.

  “Don’t ya have fun with us, Houdini?” Dom asked, in good spirits despite not getting to burn the office fully.

  Chuckling once more at the common nickname, Oz remained oblivious to the remaining danger while Mal was on high alert. Just as Oz started to answer Dom’s question, Mal looked behind them and finally caught sight of the presence he’d been feeling—the encroaching darkness of a growing shadow as though from a building that didn’t exist.

  “Cover! Now!”

  Grabbing onto Lucy, closest in front of him, Mal dragged her toward the nearest alley. They were still one block from the alley they needed. There wasn’t time. Dom was right on their heels, but she turned back to grab Oz when he froze in place on the sidewalk. They made it to safety just as the fight spilled onto the street in front of them.