Innovation's Muse (Truth's Harem)

by Allyson Lindt

  She didn’t summon it yet. She needed the right moment.

  It was difficult to strike a balance between blocking out the noise of being stuck in this vision, and hovering on the edge of summoning a tangible illusion. Fortunately, that meant her mind didn’t have room for the distractions of torture.

  The world around her faded, and she forced out an image. Her surroundings became a vast space of nothingness, similar to what she’d seen when she stepped into the labyrinth.

  “You’re alert again.” Lorelei’s song brushed her skin. “That won’t do.”

  Lexi shoved everything she had into a concentrated point. When the dagger appeared in her hand, she felt it. She swung in the direction of the voice, slicing. When she hit resistance, she pushed harder and twisted the blade with as much force as she could muster.

  Lorelei’s scream sliced through Lexi, making her body feel like it was being forced through a cheese grater.

  Lexi clenched her jaw and swung, and struck again.

  Agony wrapped in a vivid song tore her to shreds. She fell forward when her target vanished. The noise stopped, and silence blanketed her.

  Lexi rubbed her ears, to make sure they still worked, and cringed at the warm stickiness that slipped over her skin. She held her hands in front of her face.

  Blood was coagulating on her fingers. The sight and faint scent of copper summoned a wave of nausea. She fell to her knees and retched.

  Was this really her? It had to be. She sobbed in relief. It could be another step in Lorelei’s torture, but the drying gore on her skin implied she’d done serious damage with her illusion.

  Fuck. Did she kill Lorelei? She should be horrified at the thought. Killing was new for her.

  Her or you.

  That didn’t make her feel better. She needed to get out of here. Where was the exit?

  If this was like the labyrinth, was finding a path the same as well? She didn’t require a meditative state to feel Cerberus, the way she had then. The instant she opened her mind, his familiar presence slipped in and wrapped around her.

  Actaeon’s aura brushed her senses, and a third strand wove through it all, sharpening her mind and helping her keep panic at bay. She grasped all three and yanked herself toward them.

  Fractures spread through the nothingness, growing and splintering until it showered down around her. She cringed away from the debris, but as the shards struck her, they vanished.

  Blackness engulfed her. She blinked several times and rubbed her eyes, but nothing appeared. A jabbing pain radiated from her ear. She reached for it and brushed the fresh wound from ripping out her earcuff.

  She was back in her physical body.

  A pale sliver of gray at her feet speared the darkness. The crack under a door. She wrinkled her nose at the dust in the air. Voices and the scuffing of shoes on the floor reached her.

  She groped blindly in the dark, feeling along a rough wall until she gripped a knob. The door to the closet she was in swung open. Sunlight greeted her, and she shut her eyes tight, to block it out.

  “Lexi.” Cerberus’ voice made her heart soar. He wrapped his arms around her.

  She fell into the tight hug, pressing her cheek to his chest and daring to look again, now that her eyes had adjusted to the afternoon light.

  Actaeon kissed the top of her head. “I’m glad you’re all right. You are, aren’t you?”

  “My ear hurts like a bitch, and I’ve learned things about your pasts I thought would take me centuries to uncover, but yeah. I’m good.” Her gaze fell on Icarus, who stood several feet back, hands jammed in his pockets. She wanted him closer. Part of this not-quite-group hug.

  He gave her a tight smile. “Welcome back.”

  “Thanks. How far did I go?” She took a moment to absorb her surroundings. The floor was unfinished and stretched for several meters in each direction. Steel supports ran to the ceiling, loose cables and trash littered the floor, and graffiti decorated the sheetrock walls.

  Icarus kept his distance. “Building next door to the temple. There was a call center up here until a couple of years ago. No one else has leased the place since.”

  “Why was I in a closet?”

  “That’s where the doorway is. It used to be a server room. I’m guessing they either had fantastic connectivity or the shittiest feeds ever, depending on who worked for them.”

  This was all so normal. Four people standing in the middle of an abandoned building, discussing local jobs as though she hadn’t just been repeatedly dragged through a psychological shredder.

  The reminder clenched in her gut, along with visions of Lorelei’s blood coating her hand. She gasped and stepped back, struggling to find her breath. “There was so much blood.” She held her hands in front of her, but they were fine. “Where... Did I...” She couldn’t grasp her thoughts to form a full sentence. An onslaught of memories crashed around her—not all hers, but all ones she’d lived—and threatened to suck her back into torment.

  And on top of it all, she couldn’t shake the vision of stabbing Lorelei. How much of that was real? She sank to her knees with a sob, wanting to the visions to stop.

  “...she didn't know...”

  “...for her and her family...”

  “...to go through the same...”

  “...day, and she's told me...”

  “...I just don't want...”

  And now the fucking voices were back. She knotted her fingers in her hair and pulled until her scalp screamed in protest.

  “Hey.” Actaeon’s voice cut through the chaos. He knelt in front of her and lifted her chin. His touch chased away the chatter and shooed her imprisonment to the far corners of her mind. “Stay with us, okay? It’s a short walk back to the shop, and then you can rest. I’ll carry you if you’d like.”

  She laughed weakly. “Carrying isn’t necessary. I can walk.”

  “If you’re sure.” He helped her stand.

  They took the stairs to the main floor and stepped out onto the sidewalk.

  Actaeon’s touch kept the terror at bay but she knew it was there. Her thoughts kept drifting back to it. Like prodding a wound, despite the ache each time. Having Cerberus on her other side helped, but it was more like a bandage than a cure.

  Lexi needed a better place to focus. “Icarus said Cassandra told you I was in trouble. I assume there’s a story there?”

  Icarus walked a few feet ahead. At the question, he spun to face her, never breaking stride. “She’s locked in a room, back in my shop.”

  Lexi didn’t know what bothered her more—how closely that description matched the situation she left behind, or that Cassandra was alone at Icarus’ place. No, she knew exactly what bothered her the most—Actaeon had to be the reason Cassandra was around. After he’d promised. Sworn.

  Lexi pulled her hand away and shoved it in her pocket. “I hear you wrong. I must have.” She glared at Actaeon. “You didn’t bring her back into our lives. After everything...” Lexi choked on the memories. It was too much, combined with what she’d just been through.

  Actaeon gave a strained laugh. “She sought me out. She has her memory back. And short version—she says she’s sane now, but I don’t buy it.”

  If Lexi wanted an external focus, this fit the bill perfectly. She could channel all her rage and frustration into an interrogation. “ Let me talk to her. I’ll tell you she’s a liar, and you can kick her out.”

  Cerberus’s grip on her hand tightened, and concern spilled through their bond. He didn’t want to tell her no, but he wanted her to rest first. It was all there in a whisper of emotion.

  Actaeon was silent.

  Icarus turned away, to walk forward again.

  Lexi didn’t appreciate being shut out. She opened her mouth.

  “Okay.” Icarus’ voice carried over his shoulder.

  Lexi waited for Actaeon’s protest, but all she got was the heavy press of growing tension. She’d focus on his betrayal later, and base her response on just how much h
e’d given up to bring Cassandra back into this mess.

  When they reached Icarus’, Lexi asked, “Where is she?”

  “Do you want to rest first?” Cerberus nudged her toward the stairs going up. “You haven’t slept in a while, and you just came out of a traumatic experience.”

  “It was a long-ass dream, and I’m not looking forward to going back.” Lexi headed to the basement instead. “Down here?”

  “Yes.” Icarus stayed by her side. When they reached the room, he gestured to a plain-looking door on a far wall. “She’s in there.”

  Lexi didn’t break her stride. Slowing down meant doubting herself. Falling into her thoughts. On the other side of hesitation lay insanity.

  Cerberus and Actaeon followed. Lexi wanted to tell them she’d taken on a siren; she could handle a well-animated zombie. She hadn’t, though. Lorelei had trapped her in a different plane of existence. A world where fears and illusions were given shape and visibility.

  Lexi faltered. Was that why she’d been able to summon wings the other day? Because Icarus’ shop helped make imagination real?

  She wasn’t thinking about that.

  She stopped in front of the door and waited for Icarus to open it.

  Cassandra wore a hesitant smile, until her gaze landed on Lexi. “You don’t look like you were fed to a siren.”

  “I got better.” Lexi spoke through clenched teeth. Not really. But she would.

  Cassandra pressed against the far wall and pulled her knees to her chest. “Please don’t make me leave. I like it in here. I can’t hear Hades in here. It’s quiet in my head.”

  That wasn’t even in the same hemisphere as what Lexi expected—bravado, smugness, confusion perhaps. But raw terror radiated from Cassandra. It was difficult to be angry with a request like, Keep Hades out of my head. Fortunately, Lexi had rage to spare.

  Cassandra had agreed to the original pact. She might not like the consequences now, but she’d signed on for them.

  And it had meant the death of Lexi’s mother. Her thoughts seethed white-hot. “Actaeon says you remember everything.”

  “I do.” Casandra occasionally darted her gaze behind Lexi, but mostly directed it at her.

  Lexi swallowed the bile rising in her throat. “You remember killing Persephone?”

  “Yes.”

  “Would you do it differently, knowing what you do now?”

  Cassandra stared at her, unblinking. “No.”

  Lexi clenched her fist. Now might be a great time for that giant mallet. “Why did you come back?”

  “Because Hades said you’d be destroyed. That I could have Actaeon. That everything would work out. But Hades was in my head. I don’t want him there.” Cassandra sobbed.

  Acid churned in Lexi’s gut. A range of weapons flickered in her hand, sliding from knife to sword to mallet and back again. She wasn’t doing that on purpose. She refused to lose control for this woman. Could Lexi kill her?

  The memory of Lorelei’s blood drenched her thoughts and made her stomach churn. Maybe she could, but if Cassandra was Hades vessel, it wouldn’t matter. “As long as she’s in this building, I won’t be.” She looked at Icarus. “Your choice.”

  “She can give us—” Actaeon snapped his jaw shut when Lexi glared at him.

  The fact that he had a protest, regardless of what it was, ached as much as the wound on her ear. Did he understand the impact of anything he said? Or was he just letting help the sad person dictate the direction of his life?

  “It doesn’t matter.” Hades’ voice filled the small room.

  Lexi whirled back to Cassandra, who stood in the middle, terror replaced with confidence.

  Fuck.

  “She told me what happens.” Hades spoke through Cassandra’s mouth. “I know every step you’re about to make, and I’ll destroy you. Let me put this in terms you’ll understand. This isn’t an episode of Supernatural. You don’t get to paint a demon trap on the ground and lure me into it. I know you’re coming, and I know how you die. The question I leave you with is a two-parter. Do you think I’ll do it on earth or in the underworld? And how badly will you fuck yourselves second-guessing your next steps? Too bad I forbade her from telling you what she told me.”

  Cassandra gasped and stumbled back. “Please lock the door and never let me out. Please.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  Actaeon wanted to let Lexi rest. The haunted look on her face spoke volumes about what she’d been through. He wished there was time for that. “Hear me out. There’s a reason I brought Cassandra here.”

  “I’m glad it wasn’t because you like having her back in your life. That’s not what it is, right?” Lexi didn’t turn around.

  The question hurt. “That’s not why. She’s working with Hades to destroy you, and the other gods. She’s—”

  Lexi let out a barking laugh. “That’s sooo much better. Wow. Are you serious?”

  “She can get us into the underworld and tell us where Hades is,” Actaeon said.

  Lexi shook her head and faced him. “Because that doesn’t scream trap. She might as well have painted it on the side of the building.”

  Actaeon needed to do a better job of explaining his logic. He wasn’t doing this to hurt her. He needed to diminish the pain. “You spoke with Aphrodite?”

  Lexi paled. “Yes. But she only confirmed what Zeus said. Nothing new.”

  Why did she waver on those last words?

  “Cassandra says the same—Hades can’t be killed. Though I assume most of what she says is meant to deceive, whether it’s true or not.”

  Cerberus wrapped an arm around Lexi’s waist and pulled her closer. “Can we back up to the part where Cassandra remembers everything?”

  “She says Hades healed her mind. She serves him, they both want Lexi dead, Hades in charge of humanity, and she’s going to win my heart back.” Actaeon hesitated on the last words.

  Lexi snorted. “Sounds pretty straightforward to me. You’re doing a shitty job of making your case.”

  “I don’t know. We could ask her to be the key when we bind Hades. If she’s his servant...” The venom in Icarus’ voice bled with Lexi’s irritation and left a vile film behind.

  Cerberus scowled. “That sounds great. Until Cassandra kills herself to set Hades free.” When everyone looked at him, he said, “What? After everything she’s done, you think she’s above that?”

  Actaeon expected pushback. He knew it was dangerous to bring Cassandra into things, but he’d rather keep an eye on the threat than shove it aside and pretend it didn’t exist. “We need to get in front of Hades, and she can put us there. And yes, I realize that says trap.”

  “Hades knows we’re coming, either way.” Thank creation for Icarus and his logical thought process. “We can pretend he doesn’t, but even if Cassandra wasn’t telling the truth about having seen it in a vision, the moment we step into the underworld, he’ll know it. We have to plan with that expectation regardless.”

  “Which brings us back to the prison for Hades,” Lexi said. “Having been trapped in one for a couple of hours, I vote we lock him in a similar cell for eternity.”

  “No.” Cerberus’ objection landed hard.

  She looked at him, brows raised. “We don’t have a choice.”

  This wasn’t the way this conversation was supposed to go. “We’ll find an alternative. We’re not painting a target on your back by binding you to Hades.” Actaeon grasped for a better argument. “I brought her back here so we don’t have to sacrifice you.”

  Lexi glared at him, ice spilling from her. “Glad you’ve justified it. I already have a target on my back. She’s not the solution.”

  “Lexi’s right. We don’t have another option than to make her the key, and we’re running out of time.” Icarus looked like the words sliced him apart to say.

  Cerberus’ growl wasn’t surprising. “Are you going to at least figure out why it didn’t work for Persephone?”

  “I already have. It won’
t be a problem this time.” Icarus raked his fingers through his hair and pulled up a stool.

  Actaeon needed more information. “How does the key work with the prison?” When they found Lexi, he’d watched Icarus do something with a bracelet before snapping it on Cerberus’ wrist.

  “Magic,” Icarus said.

  “No. Details.” Lexi crossed her arms. “I’m willing to put my life on the line to save countless others. It will be nice to do something, for a change. But I’m not going into this with an answer like magic. Give us details. For instance, why did you hide Hades in the middle of a labyrinth?”

  “I didn’t.” Icarus’ smile was laced with the kind of smugness that said he knew more than everyone else in the room. Actaeon hated that expression.

  Lexi formed an O with her mouth. “The labyrinth was a distraction, wasn’t it?” It was good to see her distracted as well. The shift in her expression was a welcome change from the haunted, murder-Cassandra look. “A way to draw in whoever was loyal to Hades, and get them lost in the challenges. Put them anywhere Hades wasn’t.” She almost sounded excited. That was disconcerting, given the topic, but it was better than the alternative.

  “Exactly.” Icarus’ smile grew.

  That explained why Aphrodite’s city-in-the-middle worked the way it did. But there was a flaw in the design. “That’s fine until one of your trials deposits the person right in front of your key.” For instance, the exit from the town that took Lexi into the underworld.

  “But it didn’t. Persephone sought Lexi out. The key brought the means of her demise to her front door. That wasn’t the doing of a trial,” Icarus said. “But we’ll need something new. A different place to store the prison. The way it works...” He pursed his lips. “All of us are polarized. The power flowing through us has a positive and negative side.”

  “So the prison is like a magnet.” Lexi was picking this up with hesitation. “You take Hades’ power, invert it through the key, and use it to repel him. If he’s in a closed chamber, that prevents him from escaping.”