Lover, Divine

by A. Star

Vicky's eyes widened. "Her hair?" I nodded. "I almos' died, didn' I?"

  I didn't answer. I didn't want to tell Vicky how close she had come to ending up like the monster that had killed her Rupert.

  "Garrett saved you before Medusa could kill you," I said. "He cut off her head."

  "Bloody hell..." I knew she would be traumatized by this for quite some time. "I owe Garrett my life then."

  "We both do."

  "And Liam?"

  I stiffened. "Wha' abou' him?"

  "Who is he really?"

  I sighed. "His name is Apollo."

  "Like the Greek god!?"

  "Not like the Greek god. He is the Greek god."

  She was silent for a long time. When she spoke again, she said, "Tha' explains so much. Abou' you and your family and all your secrets. I knew there was more to this family than wha' everyone assumed."

  I smiled but it only lasted a second. "Please say tha' you forgive me. For lyin' and keepin' things from you. For bringin' you into this chaotic world."

  "O' course I forgive you, Marie. You're my best girl. Besides, I would have died twice if it meant nothin' happened to those babies. I'm sure Rupert would feel the same way."

  Tears sprang to my eyes. "I jus' can't help but feel like I was the one who killed him. Medusa used everyone I love to get to me. I don't know. I jus' wish I could go back and do somethin'. I jus' stood there—"

  "You were thinkin' of your children. I'll never blame you for puttin' them first. It's wha' a mother is supposed to do."

  I nodded, but her words didn't ease my guilt. As far as I was concerned, this was still my fault.

  "Wha' does your family really do?" Vicky asked.

  I sniffled. "We are wha' is called a Family of Influence. We are agents of the Olympians, the Greek gods, on Earth."

  "Wha' does tha' mean, to be an agent of the gods?"

  "It means we control Earth. Each family controls a certain number of countries and we execute the agenda of the gods under the guise of presidents, monarchs, and dictators. We choose the rulers, whether good or bad. We put them in power, and when their time is up, we remove them from power. By any means necessary."

  "Tha's mad," she breathed. "Lookin' at the shape the world is in, some of you really suck at your jobs."

  I smiled. "Some of the Families are better at Influential politics than others, yes. But we do have some limitations, especially if we want to keep the gods out of it. There are only twelve Families, two for each continent excludin' Antarctica, and billions of mortals on Earth. We can only do so much, but we try very hard to maintain order and keep countries from going to war with each other. We're not always successful, as history has shown, but if things ever got so bad where the gods felt the need to interfere...well...we don't want tha'. No one wants tha'." I decided not to tell her that the gods had their own war brewing. That would have only traumatized her more.

  "Why would the gods even care abou' us?" she asked. "Wha' do we have to do with them? We don't even know they exist."

  "True, and the gods like it tha' way. But mortals are useful to the gods when they become immortal. The gods turn mortals so they have followers to pay them homage and keep them divine. They're called immortals celeste. Emmaline and Conor are immortals. Conor was even created by Apollo himself."

  "Whoa, whoa, slow it down a bit. I'm gettin' a headache," Vicky said, pushing at her temples. I handed her the glass of water from my night table and she drank. "So you're tellin' me tha' Emmaline and Conor are not as old as they look?"

  "Oh no, they're much older. Conor was turned in 1914 and Emmaline is even older than tha'. I think she was created durin' the French Revolution."

  Vicky downed the glass of water. "All of this," she said, "is jus' so much to take in. It all seems kind of impossible, you know?"

  "I understand how absolutely mental it mus' all sound to you. But please, Vicky, take every word I say seriously. Nothin' is impossible where the gods are concerned." I squeezed her hand. "Wha' happened to Rupert is testament to tha'." Vicky only nodded and squeezed my hand back.

  There was a knock at the door. "Come in," I said. The door opened and my brother entered. He closed the door behind him.

  "Garrett," I said as he approached the bed.

  "Marie." He looked at my friend. "Vicky. How are you feelin'?"

  "I'm fine, thanks to you," she said. "I hear I owe you my life."

  "You don't owe me a thing. It's his lordship—" He cut himself off.

  "It's okay," I said. "I told her the truth."

  Garrett nodded. When he didn't lecture me about what I had done, I knew he was truly in shock.

  "You're takin' this all well then," he said.

  "I'm not takin' this well," Vicky replied. "But I know wha' I saw, and it turns out tha' you both saw the same thing. So I'm inclined to believe it's all true. Now, you were sayin' somethin' abou' a lord?"

  "Apollo is the god of Healing," I answered for Garrett. "He's the one tha' removed the poison from your body." And kept you from turning into a Gorgon.

  "So I owe Apollo my life, too."

  "Never mention tha', if you know wha's good for you. He's the type of deity tha' will take you very seriously."

  She flashed a smile, then turned her attention back to Garrett. "I know how hard this mus' all be for you," she said. "You were to be married..."

  He shook his head. "I'm fine. I'm jus' glad tha' you're okay. Marie wouldn' have ever gotten over losin' you. I'm so sorry abou' Rupert. I wish I had been in time to help him."

  "Thank you."

  Garrett nodded, and then turned to leave.

  "Garrett."

  He stopped and turned back to me. I stood and flung myself into his arms. They immediately wrapped around me and pulled me in close.

  "I'm so sorry, Marie," he murmured. "I never meant any of those horrible things I said."

  "I know," I blubbered. "I'm so sorry abou' Melissa."

  "Me, too. I loved her."

  "I know you did."

  "I was such a fool, Marie. How did I not know?" I couldn't reply because I had no answer to that question. "But a lot makes sense now, I guess."

  I pulled back to look at his face. "Wha' do you mean?"

  He glanced at Vicky. "She and I were never...intimate. She wanted to wait until we were married..." He dropped his head in shame. "I called you the fool and I'm the biggest one of all."

  "You're not a fool, Garrett. None of us knew. Not even Apollo. Ares hid her from us."

  "Ares?" Vicky said.

  "Another god. But it's not your fault, Garrett. Please don't blame yourself."

  But I knew he would, just as I would.

  "I don't want to be the head of the family," I declared. "Not anymore. You can have your title back."

  "I don't want it back."

  I gaped up at him. "But you're the heir. Not me."

  "You're going to be a mother, Marie, of two amazin' little demigods. Who better to protect this family than you? Who better to look out for all of our best interests than you?"

  I shook my head. "I can't take this from you, Garrett. I can't take your birthright. I was wrong before and I'm sorry."

  "You're not takin' anythin' from me. Hell, I've never felt more free! Now I can do all the things tha' I ever dreamed, like travel the world and see the sites. But tha' doesn' mean I won't be here for you. I'd be proud to be your right hand man."

  I smiled up at him through my tears. "I love you, Garrett."

  "Aye, little sister. I love you, too."

  "Promise me you'll always be there?"

  He placed a hand over his heart. "I promise."

  He hugged me close, kissed my forehead, then turned and left the room.

  My parents came in to check on us and eventually, we called Vicky's parents, but not before I told her about Strafford and Isolde and what they were going to be. She asked a lot of questions and I answered them the best I could until her parents arrived and I left them in my room to deal with everyth
ing in private. I wondered what story she would tell them about Rupert, not that it mattered. I would go along with whatever she decided.

  Apollo still waited for me in the hall. He was dressed like a mortal and I assumed it was because he hadn't wanted to alarm Vicky's parents.

  "How is she?" he asked, looking concerned.

  "She knows everythin'," I replied. "Please don't be angry. I had to. She deserved to know the truth."

  "I'm not angry."

  I nodded and stepped into his embrace. A second later, I burst into tears.

  Apollo didn't ask me what was wrong. He just sat down and pulled me into his lap. I wrapped my arms around his neck and buried my face in his chest, letting the fabric of his shirt absorb my sorrows.

  I cried for everyone—myself, my family, Vicky, Rupert, and even Pythia. I cried for the heavens. I cried for the Earth. I cried for the past and the future. I cried for the gods because they did not know their true power. I cried for the immortals and the Influentials because we were all too aware of the gods' power.

  I cried because I just didn't know what else to do. And Apollo just held me and let me get it all out because he knew my tears were far from over and that this was just a taste of the anguish I would feel in the years to come. Because he knew I was sad. Because he knew I was scared.

  Because we both knew the end had just begun.

  XIX. LOVER DIVINE

  Apollo told me demigods were sometimes born very early, sometimes born very late.

  Strafford and Isolde were born over two months early in perfect health during the moon of the Scorpio. The exact day didn't matter. Only the Zodiac sign.

  Demigod newborns were much more lively and aware than any mortal newborn babies. Their eyes were open and I swore they could recognize me only a few hours after their birth. But I was sure every mother of demigods wanted to believe that.

  Apollo had remained by my side the entire time, easing my pain and being a comfort to me. He even brought me candy to cheer me up and to settle the rest of the our deal. Strafford was born right into his hands and although Dr. Life delivered Isolde, he still beamed at our daughter like the proud father he was.

  I slept most of that first day, waking every few hours to nurse my beautiful babies. My parents, Garrett, and Vicky spent a considerable amount of time with me, helping me acclimate to being a mother of twins. Luckily, Strafford and Isolde operated on different schedules and I could devote my full attention to one baby at a time. Even though we were still mourning Rupert's death, Vicky was absolutely ecstatic to be an "aunt," so it was an easy decision to make her the twins' godmother. Garrett accepted the role of godfather and I enjoyed watching them argue over who got to choose the twins' middle names.

  Emmaline took care of the twins overnight so I could rest and I woke the next morning to their happy coos and Apollo's gentle chuckles. I didn't want to interrupt the time with their father, so I just watched silently from bed and tried not to cry.

  After a few minutes of gentle play, Apollo lifted our daughter from her crib. My little Isolde was already a beauty with her crystal blue eyes and soft crop of yellow hair, and she exhibited a fiery personality that I knew would serve her well throughout her life. I watched with curious eyes as Apollo held her up, kissed her forehead, spoke words over her and drew an omega in the air. It gleamed gold for a moment, then branded itself on the back of our daughter's neck. My beautiful baby girl didn't even whimper. In fact, she giggled.

  Strafford kicked and squirmed when his father lifted him from his bed, forcing a smile out of Apollo. I teared up at the sight of them together, smiling when Strafford cuffed his father in the chin with his tiny fist.

  Apollo spoke the same words over Strafford and branded our son with the omega. But then he did something he hadn't with Isolde. He placed a glowing hand over Strafford's forehead and mumbled the words, "He is yours."

  Maybe it was the drought Dr. Life had given me, but I swore Apollo looked very sad. I'd never seen such misery in his eyes, and I wondered what upset him. After he kissed Strafford's mane of black hair, he returned our son to his crib. That's when he turned to look at me.

  "I love you," he said.

  "I love you," I replied.

  He smiled at me, glanced down at our children, then turned and walked out of the room.

  I didn't see Apollo again until six months later.

  Strafford and Isolde blossomed into two bubbly, out-of-this-world strong baby demigods.

  They broke everything they touched, including several of Garrett's fingers, and not even being able to walk yet kept them in their cribs. Strafford was an absolute terror, which was only made worse by his stormy gray eyes. They always seemed to be trying to figure everything out, which made for some pretty awkward moments whenever I caught him staring at me.

  Isolde was no sweetheart and had already declared herself the leader of the two. Strafford didn't seem to mind and often conceded to playing with whatever toy Isolde chose for him. I found their baby babble a bit strange since they seemed to perfectly understand each other, but that wasn't so unusual for twins, I guessed. It was just that they were only six months old, having full conversations and making decisions. My parents thought they were darling and innocent. I knew they were crafty and dangerous.

  I didn't return to the university or the orchestra, which made me sad. But I knew I had a bigger purpose now. Music wouldn't have as a big a role in my life as I had always assumed it would, though I knew I would never stop playing the violin. I promised myself that I would go a round on the drums as often as I could as well. Music had to remain a part of my life, even if it was just a tiny one.

  I missed Apollo terribly for the first couple of months he was gone, but when I realized he wasn't coming back, I moved on. I didn't have the luxury of sulking anymore and feeling sorry for myself. I was a mother now and I had two little babies depending on me...when they weren't plotting to take over the universe with me as an accomplice.

  One morning after a rather tiring play session, the three of us rested on my bed. Isolde had long kicked Strafford out of my arms, so he lay sprawled on the bed beside me. He wasn't a baby who was much for cuddling so I think that suited him just fine. My baby girl loved to be cuddled and was always happier in my arms.

  I was enjoying the silence and quite invested in my romance novel, when there was a gentle knock at my door.

  "Come in," I said just loud enough not to wake my children.

  The door opened...and in walked Apollo.

  Covered in black leather, he was as stunning as always. His blue eyes still took my breath away and I found my body still wanted him, still craved his touch. No matter how many months had passed, I still needed him.

  Apollo walked over to my bed and sat down on the edge. His eyes moved from me to Isolde, and then to Strafford. He reached out and stroked our son's dark hair in such a gentle way it brought tears to my eyes.

  "He's beautiful," he said.

  "Yes," I replied, setting aside my book. "They both are."

  "Of course."

  Our eyes met and held on.

  "I missed you," he said.

  "Your hair is longer," I replied.

  He cocked his head. "You don't like it, do you?"

  I shrugged. "It suits you, I suppose."

  Apollo stared at me for a moment, then gave his head a quick shake. Just that fast, the long hair was gone and his short locks returned.

  "I'll never wear it like that again," he said. "At least, not when I'm with you."

  I wondered why it even mattered what I thought of his hair. This was probably the last time I would ever see him in person.

  "I came to see the twins."

  "You could have done tha' before now." I couldn't help but sound snarky. He'd stayed away for six months without a single word. Did he expect me to just welcome him back so easily? I wanted to, I really did, but I just couldn't.

  "You declared them at birth," I said. "I saw you. Why did you do tha' then disap
pear for all these months?"

  Apollo didn't answer me. He reached for Strafford and I reluctantly let him pick up our son.

  "A handsome lad you are, Your Highness," Apollo said, cradling our baby.

  I blanched. "Your Highness?"

  Apollo's gaze never left our son's face. "Sun children," he said. "You gave birth to demigod Royalty. Surely you've noticed by now."

  The twins enjoyed being outside, but other than that, I hadn't noticed a bloody thing. What kind of mother was I? I tightened my hold on Isolde. "How do you know?"

  Apollo didn't respond. Instead, he snatched a beam of light streaming in through my bedroom window and gently brushed it against my baby's skin. Instead of scorching him to the bone, Strafford cooed softly, never waking, and snuggled up against the beam as if it were a pillow. I gasped in surprise.

  "Did you know?" I questioned. "Did you know they would be born this way?" I could feel the dread rising in me. I knew what this meant. Demigod Royals were so rare...

  "Yes. That's why I didn't come until now." He looked at me. "I wanted you to have as much time with them as possible."

  "No," I said, tears springing to my eyes. "You can't take them away from me."

  "It is the way of the Royals, Siobhan. They have to be raised by their celestial parent."

  "No," I said again, cradling Isolde to my chest. "No."

  "I'm not taking them away from you. They will be allowed to see you whenever they want. But they're Royals, my love, leaders to the demigods, and they have to learn what that means. In Myth."

  I just squeezed my eyes shut and wished that Apollo would disappear. Without my children.

  "Strafford is going to be the guardian of the Oracle." That statement forced my eyes open and I stared at Apollo, waiting for him to continue. "He is the only one that can protect her and keep her safe from our enemies. He will treasure her and hold her to the highest regard. He will love her, Siobhan. That is the future."

  "And Isolde? Wha' abou' her?"

  "She will walk her own path, separate from Strafford."

  "Wha' does tha' mean?" I feared the worst and dreaded the answer.

  "Strafford is going to live with me at the Delphic Chateau. Isolde will be raised in Olympus. By Athena."