by Raye Wagner
“Sixteen. Unless you are an Arktoi.” She bowed her head. “If your companion would like to act as your surrogate . . .”
Hope suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. She was seventeen.
“That won’t be necessary. Is there a restroom nearby?”
The holy woman pointed to a doorway behind several hallowed icons.
“I’ll be right back.” Priska’s posture softened as she addressed Hope. “Stay here, please. And keep Angel on a short leash.”
Hope nodded at her aunt, then turned back to the woman in blue. The silence stretched into awkwardness.
“How long have you been here?” Hope asked, more for something to say than actual interest.
“Five years in May.” The priestess tilted her head to the side and examined Hope. “Are you thinking of becoming an Arktoi?”
Hope’s mouth dried up. “I . . . haven’t—”
“She wouldn’t be able to serve,” Priska said.
Both Hope and the priestess stared slack jawed. Priska no longer appeared to be in her thirties. Now, she seemed no more than sixteen. Her dark, straight hair now hung well below the shoulders, and her face was fuller. She still wore the fitted skirt and tailored jacket, or Hope might not have recognized her.
“Is this young enough? I can drop a few more years if I need to.” Priska sniffed.
The priestess’s jaw moved up and down, but no sound came out.
Hope had never seen her aunt shift either, but she knew it could happen. Demigods could recapture the ages they’d lived. Priska had allegedly allowed her body to age until she was quite elderly, but for as long as Hope had known her she’d always been in her early thirties. This Priska, teen Priska, had more softness in her appearance, but her personality was still sharp.
“The inner sanctuary, please.” Priska held out her hand and deposited several coins into the priestess’s.
The priestess closed her hand, but her eyes remained wide, and she swallowed several times.
“We really don’t have all day.”
As if someone had pinched her, the priestess jumped and led them between two pillars into a narrow hallway. She repeatedly glanced from Priska to Hope, and while her eyes were filled with questions, her lips pursed until the edges were blanched.
Hope felt the same way.
The hallway was lined with intricately carved doors, and they stopped in front of one with a forest scene. Deer lapped from a river that wound through a copse of evergreens. The length of the door was carved into a long bow on one side and several arrows on the other.
“Your worship will be uninterrupted here,” the Arktoi said. “Please be sure to close the door on your way out.” The woman pulled a key from her belt and unlocked the door. “May the Goddess grant your petition.” She bowed and left.
Priska eyed Hope. “Are you ready?”
With a deep breath, Hope opened the door.
The smell of fresh rain and dirt wafted out from the room.
Hope stepped through the door and held her hand up to feel along the wall for a light switch. Only there was no wall. Her eyes adjusted quickly to the dark, and what she saw took her breath away.
A crescent moon hung in the night sky. Patches of gray still covered the stars, and the air was thick with moisture. The ground was spongy, and Hope knelt to run her hand over the mossy covering.
“This is impossible.” She glanced up at Priska. “How?”
“This sanctuary is dedicated.” Priska’s face radiated reverence and love. “If Artemis is willing to visit, it is always on her terms and in a setting to her liking.”
“Priska!” An exuberant young girl ran from between the trees and launched herself at Priska. “I’m glad you’re safe.”
The two young women embraced. “It has been far too long since you’ve visited.”
“I’ve been busy with my charge.” Priska rested her hand on Hope’s shoulder.
Hope gaped at the goddess of night. Artemis’s dark umber skin contrasted with her pale, almost silver hair. Her slight figure was clad in black, fitted garments, and as she pulled the silver bow and quiver of arrows from off her back, her midnight eyes settled on Hope.
“You are very young.” She set her weapons on the spongy moss and stepped up to Hope. “Very young, but not too naïve, I think.” Her gaze held Hope captive for a moment, and then the goddess contemplated the puppy struggling in Hope’s arms. “Who is this?” Artemis giggled as Angel licked her face.
“She’s . . . she’s for you.” Hope held the pale Labrador out.
Artemis peered from Hope to Priska and back to Hope again.
“You are giving me an offering?” She raised her brows but did not take the dog.
Hope shifted her gaze to Priska for help. Hadn’t she said she would do the talking? Priska was studiously examining the night sky.
“No . . . I mean, yes. Yes.” Hope shook her head. “We got her for you.” She extended her arms again, the dog’s back paws dangling in the air.
“Hope wants to break the curse,” Priska said, taking the puppy from Hope. “The Lab was my idea. She comes from a long line of hunters. She will be loyal and easy to train.”
Artemis extended her hands. “Loyalty is difficult to come by. I will accept this with gratitude.” She took the puppy and set her on the ground. The pale fur glowed in the moonlight, and the puppy scampered about. “What do you need my help with, Hope? It was my brother that cursed you, not I.”
Hope shifted her weight. “Yes, but do you know anything that could help me? Has he said anything to you?”
Artemis drew in a slow breath and closed her eyes.
Hope again looked to Priska, but she’d chased after the puppy, leaving Hope alone with the goddess.
“She’s scared,” Artemis said, breaking the silence. “She feels responsible for what happened to your mother. And she feels bad about what could’ve happened to you.” She grabbed Hope’s chin and forced her head side to side. “You want to break the curse?”
Hope nodded.
“It won’t solve your problem,” the goddess warned, dropping her hand.
“It won’t solve all my problems.” Hope took a deep breath. “But it will give me freedom to love who I want, and no one will hunt me.”
“Perhaps.” Artemis grabbed an arrow and strung her bow. A faint twang, and the arrow lodged in a tree at least a hundred feet away. “Do you believe you are more deserving of this freedom than your mother or grandmother?” She released another arrow, which embedded in the trunk next to the first.
“No. No more deserving than they. But no one deserves to be cursed by a god.”
Artemis dropped the bow and arrow to her side and faced Hope. “Who are you to decide that?”
Anger fueled her courage. “Really? Your brother got dumped, and he killed the girl who dumped him, and her husband. In the mortal realm, that’s murder, and in some states it will get you the death penalty.” She took a deep breath and continued, “But he didn’t stop there. In his infinite wisdom, he cursed their baby and changed her into a monster. Along with that, he made it so if she didn’t choose to sleep with him and have his babies, her posterity would continue to carry the curse. How exactly is there any shred of fairness or even a modicum of rationality to that?”
Artemis did the last thing Hope expected.
The goddess of night broke into peals of laughter. She dropped her weapons and held her sides as she chortled.
“Dear gods, what did you do?” Priska walked back to Hope with Angel in her arms.
Hope shrugged.
“She is . . . very much . . . like you . . .” Artemis took lungfuls of air, her smile bright like the moonlight. “When you were younger, you had a very strong sense of justice.”
“Most youth do.” Priska grimaced. “It doesn’t make them right.”
“But their naivety doesn’t make them wrong, either.” Artemis sobered. “You are becoming cynical, Priska.”
“No, Mother, just pragm
atic.”
Artemis’s focus shifted to Hope. “I can’t take away the curse. No one can. Even the Graeae have said as much.”
Hope stomach dropped. “Can you help me?”
“No.”
Her heart stopped. Then why had they gone through all the––?
“I can’t help you directly. There would be . . . problems on Olympus, if I did.” Artemis scanned the night sky before facing Hope. “You need to start with all the facts. Which means you need to go to the Olympian library and do some research on my brother. Then, if you have time, read up on divine law. Do you understand what I’m telling you?”
“Yes.” No.
Artemis rolled her eyes. “Priska will help. After you get your information, you’ll need to see an oracle. Be careful who you choose.” She bit her lip. “The rest will be up to you.”
Research Apollo and divine law. Go see an oracle.
“Got it.” Sort of.
Artemis turned to Priska. “I am proud of you. No matter what, I love you. You have become far greater than I ever could’ve imagined.” The two hugged again. Artemis pointed at Hope but kept her gaze on her daughter. “Keep her safe. I will talk to my mother. You’ll be able to get her in, but the others will be very angry if they figure it out, so be careful.”
“Thank you. I love you.” The women embraced again.
“Work hard and be smart, young Hope.” Artemis clicked her tongue, and Angel bounded over to the goddess and wagged her tail. “Come, young pup. We have much training to do.” The two walked into the forest and disappeared into the darkness.
The trees shimmered, and the surrounding forest’s colors blurred with a soft breeze, like watercolors running down a page. The moon waxed full, then waned to a sliver of pale light. Hope’s eyes adjusted, and they stood in a plain concrete room with a statue of Artemis with her bow drawn. The air was stale, and at the base of the statue lay a sundry of offerings, forlorn in their abandonment.
Priska sighed. “Let’s go home.”
Hope’s shoulders sagged as the weight of the encounter settled. “How do we get into an Olympian library?”
The young Priska gritted her teeth and pulled the ornate wooden door open. “There’s only one.”
“How do we get into the Olympian library? And where is it?” Hope asked when Priska walked in the door. She wasn’t willing to remain silent forever. In the almost week since their visit to the temple, Priska had talked of her work, getting Hope enrolled in school, and how to spend the rest of summer. Not once had they discussed the subject of the library or the curse. But not for lack of Hope trying.
Priska had morphed back into her older self and was back to work at Mr. Davenport’s office. “Good evening to you, too.” She set her bag on the counter. “Are we eating out again tonight? What sounds good?”
Hope stared blankly at her aunt. She didn’t care if they ate in or out. She didn’t care if they had Italian, Chinese, Mexican, or Indian. What she wanted was answers.
“My choice? Excellent. Let’s have Italian.”
“It’s not going to go away because you won’t talk to me about it. I know that’s what you want, but I’m not going to do nothing. If you won’t help me, I’ll––”
“Stop.” Priska closed her eyes. “You don’t know what you’re talking about. You don’t know—”
“I would know if you talked to me. You used to talk to me, tell me stuff. Now it’s like you don’t even care.” Hope flopped down on the couch. “If my mom were alive—”
“I said stop!” Priska glared at Hope. “You want to know? The Olympian library has two ways to access it. Two.” She held up a finger. “The first is from Olympus, where the gods live. The only way to get to Olympus is by invitation. Not going to happen.” She held up a second finger. “The only other entrance is through a conservatory. A home for demigods. Which you are not.”
Olympus was definitely out, so a conservatory was the only way in. “But—”
“To refresh your memory, I escaped from a conservatory about a month ago. Barely alive, I might add. And I feel the need to point out that the sons of Apollo are probably still hunting you. And did I mention that they were the ones that almost killed me?” Priska dropped her head into her hands.
What had happened to her fearless aunt? Where was the woman who hunted Skia and laughed about it? “Tell me what I need to do to be safe?”
“You need to not go.”
This wasn’t a whim. It was her life! “But Artemis said you would be able to get me in.”
“She did, and I can. But before you decide—”
“You want to tell me all the risks?” Hope sucked in a deep breath, preparing for rebuttal.
“No. It wouldn’t do any good anyway.” Priska’s shoulders dropped, and she studied Hope. “Your chin juts out when you get stubborn. Just like your mother. I can see it all over your face that you won’t let it go.” She picked up her phone. “Let’s order dinner. Then we’ll come up with a plan.”
“I am sick of this,” Hope muttered to herself as she trudged up the sidewalk on her way home from school. She kicked at a pebble on the ground and listened to it skip up the street.
After all that planning with Priska, nothing was happening. Seriously, nothing.
Demigods used the conservatory as a safe haven, and young demigods stayed there to get training and education. They’d moved close to the one in Seattle, and the goal was to have the demigods “stumble across” them, invite them in, and then, somehow in the course of her studies, Hope would sneak into the library and do her research. Priska had made it sound easy, and of course Hope trusted her. But seriously? Were all demigods on holiday?
The overcast sky hung heavily with moisture, and rain oozed from the clouds, unable to be contained. Nothing like cold, damp weather to explicitly state that the extended summer was over.
Not that she even cared about the weather. Or school. Or that Priska was likely already at their new apartment, baking cookies. Well, actually, that sounded kind of nice, but the rest of it was all-around sucky.
All Hope wanted was for the stupid demigods to find her so she could get to the conservatory, find out how to break her curse, and maybe apologize to Athan. Maybe.
She still wasn’t sure about that last one. In hindsight, she’d jumped to conclusions. He’d told her he’d been sent to hunt her. He’d also said he’d keep her safe. But when she overheard him talking to his dad, Hermes . . . No, it didn’t matter. A relationship between Hope and Athan wouldn’t work. Hermes had even said as much. And if Apollo found out, he’d kill Athan.
But she couldn’t help the guilt that gnawed on her, especially late at night. Especially when she thought of how stupid she’d been. She shouldn’t have let Priska talk her into another new phone and number. She shouldn’t have put off calling him. Because when she finally had, he’d changed numbers too. And even though Haley still kept in contact with Hope, her best friend had no forwarding number for him.
She wanted it to be over already.
If patience was a virtue, Hope was a serious detriment to the moral fiber of society. Actually, the fact that she was a cursed monster would probably be considered worse than her impatience.
But really, what was taking so long?
Priska’s brilliant plan was to get Hope “discovered.” Like Athan’s initial misunderstanding, they were banking on the demigods assuming she was one of their own, and then hopefully she’d be invited into the conservatory. At that point she’d have to figure out how to get into the Olympian library.
The Olympian library, where she could peruse every book ever written, every story ever told. It was going to be like finding a needle in a haystack. She’d need to figure out how it was sorted so she could focus on Apollo and her curse.
The whole thing would be overwhelming, except for the little hang-up of not being able to even get to the haystack. She couldn’t do anything until she was found by some stupid demigods.
Stupid demigods
.
She pushed through the glass doors into the sparse lobby of the high-rise apartments and strode toward the elevators. The doors were starting to close, and she cursed as she ran, sliding her arm into the shrinking gap at the last second. The doors slid back open, and Hope stared at the male occupant.
He was young, certainly less than twenty. He exuded a strength and power that made her want to back away. It wasn’t just that he was well built, although he was. His shirt hugged his body, and the tattoos on his arms accentuated where his muscles dipped and curved. His hair was dark, almost black, cropped short, and although disheveled, it appeared to have been spiked up in the front earlier in the day. His eyes were a striking ice blue. Everything about him seemed hard.
She hesitated, debating if she should back out, and then he smiled. Not in a friendly way to put her at ease. His smile mocked her, like he knew the effect he was having on her, and she was somehow beneath him because of it.
“Are you coming in?” His accent was Irish or British . . . or maybe Australian.
She frowned.
“Or did you want to wait for your own lift, princess?”
Definitely not American.
“Hello?” He waved his hand at her.
Yikes. She was still standing with her arm blocking the elevator doors. She shook off the shiver of fear.
“Excuse me.” She stepped onto the elevator and gave him her most withering glare. “Would you push twenty-one, please?” While her words were polite, there was no warmth behind them.
“Oh, but of course.” He inclined his head, pushed the button, and then leaned back as the elevator doors slid shut.
Hope watched the numbers light up, one by one. A spicy smell, both strong and masculine, filled the small area. Hera and Zeus, he smelled good. Seven . . . eight . . . Trying to be discreet, she glanced at the young man.
He met her eyes with appraising ones of his own, and he lifted his brows. “See something you like, sweetheart?”
“You were staring at me.” It felt imperative that she correct his blatant misrepresentation. “Didn’t your mother ever tell you not to stare? It’s rude.” There was something arrogant and irritating about the stranger.