Giving It Up for the Gods

by Kryssie Fortune

  Lindy chased Saul as he ran after Merc. The stone corridor spiraled steeply upward. She thanked the stars for the luminous stones set in the walls. Their soft glow kept the darkness at bay and showed her the way. Even using her Siren speed, she couldn’t catch the gods she followed. Her feet hurt. Her bare breasts jiggled with every step she took. She panted hard and ran until she developed a pain in her side. She didn’t dare stop, not until she found her companions, but she longed for Jase to catch up.

  To Lindy, Jase was safety and shelter, so strong that she wanted to throw her arms around him and snuggle up close. If she could just run her finger down his chest or inhale his earthy essence, it’d ease the pain in her heart. How could he have chosen Cardea over her? That was okay, really. No, it damn well wasn’t. Sirens fought for the things they loved, but sometimes the only solution was to let go. It was time for her to leave, after she found Merc, of course. The kid was obnoxious, but she couldn’t just leave him.

  With a nervous look over her shoulder, she sighed and kept moving until the passage forked. She paused, chest heaving, bent almost double by the stitch in her side. She wrapped her right arm around her breasts and rested the other on the wall for support. Sulfur fumes made her eyes water. Sirens don’t cry. It’s just that the fumes irritate my eyes—honest.

  When her panting subsided, she heard nothing. With a flip of a mental coin, she veered off to the right. At least she was still heading upward. Logically, that seemed right. A few twists and turns later, and the stench of sulfur and death lessened. The rock floor was well worn and smooth now. At least that spared her poor feet. When she looked back, a trail of tiny bloodstains—like Hansel and Gretel’s breadcrumbs—marked her route.

  She sucked great gasps into her lungs and pushed on. She was lost. Alone. In Pluto’s underworld. How stupid could one Siren be? Another stop, a few deep breaths, and she finally stopped panting. Even if she followed her blood trail and retraced her steps, she’d still have to find Merc. He’d taken off like a startled jackrabbit, heedless of anyone or anything. That kid was really starting to get on her nerves. He’d badmouthed her, let her down at Aldborough, and abandoned her in Pluto’s realm. Most of the time she wanted to strangle him, but deep down, she had a soft spot for him.

  Right now, finding clothes topped Lindy’s to-do list. At least she didn’t have to worry about her virginity anymore. She smiled when she thought how Jase had taken care of that.

  Jase… Cardea… Don’t think about them. Stay strong and safe. Stand on my own two feet and get out of here. Once she found her way home, she’d let that trio of gods know she was safe and move on. She’d given her all, but she was collateral damage that they abandoned as soon as she’d served her purpose. Her life had just fallen apart, what with her broken heart, bruised feet, and aching sense of loss. Right now she needed to forget everything and keep moving. That way she’d stay sharp and survive.

  After what seemed like miles of twisting corridors, she finally faced a maze of doors. If she ever needed a god of doors and transitions, it was now, but he was back there in the darkness, dealing with the demons that had tortured Cardea. Besides, Sirens were proud, independent females, renowned for their inner strength. She’d get out of here without any help from men or gods or whatever. She’d keep going if it killed her, but she’d give anything for an unlocked door and a chance to steal some clothes. She rattled every doorknob she passed.

  All locked. Damn it.

  She’d feel safer if she wasn’t bare-ass naked. Slowly, she edged through the vast corridor. Adrenaline flowing, she readied herself for a fight. But one siren? Against a squad of demons? She was so screwed. Maybe literally.

  She paused, listening and checking she was safe. Not like I’ve got anywhere to hide, but forewarned and all that. A door opened. A slender hand grabbed her wrist. Someone jerked her into a pink-painted boudoir. Then the door slammed behind her.

  “Welcome to my parlor.” Circe smiled as she walked to the fire and took a sip of wine.

  * * * *

  Saul chased after Merc, determined to protect the young cub he’d adopted—his grandson, for fuck’s sake. With any luck, they’d find Neptune. It sickened Saul that his children had coveted his rings so much they’d murdered their mother to possess them. What sort of bottom-feeders did I raise?

  He’d watched over them, played childhood games with them, and bandaged up their scraped knees. He’d even helped them master their powers—the ones they’d used to kill Lua. Unfeeling bastards, the lot of them.

  Saul lost everything the day he lost his wife, Lua. He hated his sons for that, and he’d never forgive his daughter Juno for the way she’d lured her mother into a trap, then stood by and watched. If she’d just called for him sooner, he’d have given them the damn rings to save Lua—the minor goddess he’d soul-bonded with. Lua had been the best part of him, and when he lost her, he lost the will to live. As the goddess of captured weapons, Lua had been the deity Rome’s legions had honored when they destroyed their enemy’s spears, arrows, and swords. Even as she was dying, she’d protected him. She’d shattered the soul link between them, and that was supposed to be impossible. Her sacrifice meant he’d survived, but he’d rather have died alongside her. Instead of using their soul bond to feed her his life force as he’d wanted, he’d fallen to the ground—stunned and powerless—and seen everything through her eyes.

  Somehow, he’d dredged up every remaining vestige of power inside him and hurled it at his treacherous children. Neptune caught the worst of the blast, and if Circe hadn’t used her dark magic to turn him into Olympus’s version of the green man, Saul would have had one less son to contend with. Instead, Neptune screwed virgin Sirens to stay young and survive.

  Saul had vowed never to love again. It hurt too much. Even friendship left wounds. Jase was more family than Merc, and when Pluto held him prisoner, Saul had turned the world upside down trying to track down his friend; then Jase escaped unaided—unless you counted the demon lord inside him.

  After today, the balance would change. He owed Lindy for going along with the solstice ceremony. Her courage meant he could take the first steps toward reclaiming his powers. His children were shits, and his vengeance had become a seething monster that ruled his life.

  Gradually, as he chased down Merc, a new stink mingled with the sulfur—rotting fish and seaweed decomposing on the beach at low tide. Here in the middle of Pluto’s realm, another of Saul’s sons, Neptune, was close by. Thanks to Lindy and Jase, the god of the sea had aged…badly.

  He raced after his grandson. When he caught a glimpse of Merc up ahead, Saul yelled, “Merc. Stop and think. We both hate him, but we’re outnumbered in the middle of Pluto’s kingdom. No way am I leaving without my ring, but a little caution here, please.”

  Finally the youngster stopped. He threw a door open so hard it banged on the interior wall. Six of Neptune’s elite squad played poker as they sat around a table. They stood. Bodies tense, eyes bright, they fell into battle-ready stance. Behind them, another door led who knew where, but Saul had to go through the guards to reach it.

  Their leader sneered when he spotted Merc. “Looks like the little shit wants back in his cage.”

  Merc backed up. Saul stepped forward. Razor blades shot from the sides of his gloves and the toes of his biker boots as he too fell into fight mode. “Now, ladies, play nice. Dance with me, and the survivors walk out of here. Don’t worry, Merc.” He grinned over his shoulder. “Killing mermaids is like shooting fish in a barrel.”

  The leader swaggered half a pace forward. “Mermen. We’re fucking mermen, you asshole.”

  He lunged at Saul. The god’s swift roundhouse kick drew a bloody green line around his throat. He barely had time to raise his hands before his legs crumpled and he bled out on the floor. The other warriors stepped over the pools of green ichor and the corpse, and homed in on Saul.

  With a grin colder than Pluto’s oubliettes, he demanded, “Who’s next?”

 
The mermen rushed him. Saul spun, twirled, and slashed. Martial arts and knife skills combined in deadly accuracy. Two merfolk down in an instant. Three more to go.

  Merc cast his net, tangling two merwarriors in its folds. They kicked and yelled, even tried to bite through the strands. Crafted by Vulcan, it was indestructible. They didn’t stand a chance.

  The thickset one with legs like tree trunks was still free. For a muscle-bound minion, he was fast on his feet. He ducked around Saul and closed his ham-hock fist around Merc’s throat. One-handed, he lifted the teen off his feet. With a nod toward the trapped minions, he growled, “Release them, or the animal dies.”

  Saul froze. He’d already lost his wife. He wouldn’t lose Merc too. “It’s not my net. The kid’s the only one who can get them loose.”

  The warrior’s gaze stayed on Saul as he choked the life out of the teenager. “This piece of shit should have stayed in his cage. The dumb bastard should respect his betters.”

  His words broke something inside Merc. Even as the youngster struggled to breathe, his face contorted in fury. He threw his head forward and shattered the warrior’s nose. He arched his back and kicked his feet into the warrior’s groin. His captor dropped him as if he were on fire.

  Merc lay on the floor, gasping. The warrior doubled over. A swift flash of Saul’s blades, and more green blood spurted. The merwarrior was dead in seconds. Merc grabbed his net, and as it shrank back to pocket size, he ran for the back door.

  “Wait!” Saul called. The warriors Merc had just released from his net closed in on him, but the kid vanished through the door. Saul’s heart told him to follow, but he’d assumed bodyguard duties. He’d had them thrust on him, more like.

  The two mermen exchanged nervous glances and nodded. Shoulder to shoulder, they slow marched toward him.

  Saul leaped onto the table. The overhead light reflected on his blades. Balanced on the balls of his feet, he raised one hand and used all four fingers to beckon them closer. They charged the table. Saul scissor-kicked upward. The blade from his left foot took out a merwarrior’s eye. The other ducked sideways, but the knife in Saul’s shoe slashed a green stripe across his cheek.

  The first fell screaming, his hands covering his empty eye socket. The second lunged for Saul’s feet. Saul’s leap cleared the warrior’s head. He tapped him on the shoulder. The merman turned, and Saul’s fist slammed into his face. The merman’s eyes rolled back in his head. His knees crumpled, and he lay unconscious among green slime and corpses.

  Saul kicked a bloody corpse aside, determined to catch up with Merc.

  Before he took two paces, a red-skinned demon filled the doorway. “Where the fuck is she?”

  Saul paled. “Jase? I thought she was with you. Go find her. I’ll go after Merc.”

  “I’ll kill him,” Jase bellowed, and, horns erect, skin glowing, he shoved Saul aside. He yanked the back door open. Inside, pinned to a bed by Merc’s net, Neptune shrieked and bled. The youngster brandished Neptune’s trident and danced wildly around the bed.

  “Animal?” he yelled as he thrust prongs into the pillow alongside Neptune’s head. Feathers flew upward, then floated to the floor like snowflakes. Merc shook the pillow off the trident and stabbed it into Neptune’s hip.

  “Stop, son!” Neptune screamed. “You’re family. Don’t hurt me.”

  “Dumb piece of shit?” Merc shrieked. He twisted the trident and opened a gaping wound in Neptune’s flesh. Trapped in his ancient body, Neptune screeched, but he couldn’t fight back.

  “Worthless, useless punk?” Merc pulled the trident loose and continued his war dance around the bed. With a triumphant yell, he stabbed the trident deep into Neptune’s chest.

  Another scream. A gurgle of air sucking into a death wound. And silence. Utter silence. Neptune’s eyes dulled, and his mouth gaped like a beached fish. Neptune’s trident, another Vulcan-forged weapon, quivered back and forth in his chest as Merc released it. The youngster stared at the dead god, and as his adrenaline rush of anger faded, his skin paled, and his blank stare was as stark as his shocked expression. Another look at his victim, and he dropped to the floor.

  Shaking, he rocked back and forth. “I’ve killed him.”

  Jase punched the kid’s shoulder so hard Merc rocked backward and rolled into a fetal position on the floor. “And I’ll fucking kill you if you don’t carry a message to Lindy. Tell her I love her. Now get your scrawny ass out of here.”

  Merc buried his face in his hands and wept. “I killed Neptune, Grandpa. I killed him with his own trident.”

  Saul walked calmly to the bed and pulled a slender gold band from Neptune’s finger. “So you did, kid. And don’t call me Grandpa.”

  Jase bellowed, “Find Lindy. Now!”

  Saul ignored him and slid his first ring of power back on his finger. He sighed as a shudder ran through his body. Almost, he could touch his long-lost powers, but even with the ring, they slipped through his fingers like a spider web.

  Beside him, Merc wailed as he rocked back and forth. “I killed him.”

  “He deserved it, kid.” Saul grasped his shoulder. “Now try to calm down. You’re the only one who can find Lindy.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Circe took a second sip of her wine. With her slender body and waist-length blonde hair, she looked like a Hollywood diva. Naturally graceful, she moved like one too. “Don’t worry, honey. I don’t plan on summoning Pluto’s minions. There’s a robe on the chair, and I’m certain you’ll feel more comfortable clothed.”

  Lindy shrugged on the robe. “So what now?”

  “Now”—Circe’s smile warmed the room—“I get to chat with my niece.”

  Lindy actually looked over her shoulder, but they were alone.

  Circe sat in the fireside chair and gestured at Lindy to take the other. “Oh honey, didn’t your mother ever talk about your father?”

  With a second puzzled glance over her shoulder, Lindy sat. “Mum can’t remember a thing about him. Guess he didn’t make a great impression.”

  Circe almost choked on her wine. “No one forgets my brother Aeetes. I guarantee she remembers every time he fucked her, but she daren’t admit the truth.”

  “She can’t have known he was related to a bitch like you,” Lindy snarled back, her fingernails extended into sharp talons.

  Circe covered her yawn with a graceful wave of her hand. “It’s not like I haven’t been called that before. I asked my brother to mate with the feistiest Siren he could, and you, honey, along with a couple of others, are the result. Relax and let me explain.”

  Lindy pulled her shoulders back; then she sank back down in the chair, satisfied she could hold her own with Circe. “I know Sirens are über-sexy and smart, but really, having a sorceress for an aunt kinda stains my rep.”

  The enchantress blushed. “Matricide sucks; besides, Saturn’s Lua was a minor goddess like me. We were close once; then we both developed a passion for Satu— Never mind. I didn’t foresee her death or the things it set in motion, but for the sake of my former friend and her husband, I intend to see her murderers suffer.”

  “Come on,” Lindy taunted, “like you actually had a friend. And matricide sucks? Odd you say that, when you tried your hand at genocide. Good thing us Sirens turned out tougher than you thought.”

  “You’re like old boots, honey,” Circe agreed.

  Lindy did a double take, not sure where this was leading.

  Circe poured more wine. “Sure you won’t have some? Honestly, Lindy, I hadn’t planned on us meeting just yet, but Saturn and Janus Bifrons slip in and out of my visions, seemingly at will. The man you know as Saul was once an all-powerful, primordial god. His children turned out to be major shits, despite everything he and Lua did for them. For her sake, I intend to see he gets back his rings.”

  Yeah, right. Like I really believe that. Lindy glowered at the enchantress. “Look, lady, your spell fixed up Neptune and left him free to prey on Sirens. Don’t expect me to
think anything good about you.”

  Circe curled her feet under her. “Ah, but did it? Perhaps he’d have healed completely if my enchantment hadn’t weakened him, but I guess you’ll have to trust me on that.”

  “I’d rather trust a king cobra,” Lindy snapped.

  “You pain me.” Circe clasped her hands over her heart. “You see, I thought if I cozied up with Juno, I might get my hands on the ring she’d stolen from Saul. Then one of her pet seers shared a foretelling I’d known for years. From her, Juno learned that the Sirens would bring about her and her brothers’ downfall. That’s why she rigged the singing contest between the Muses and Sirens.”

  Outraged, Lindy answered quickly, “And didn’t you enjoy it? I’ve heard how you smiled at Juno’s side and enjoyed my sisters’ distress when they fell. And you really expect me to believe we’re on the same side?”

  Again Circe seemed unfazed. “Lindy, honey, haven’t you ever asked yourself why the Sirens changed forms as they fell? Didn’t you wonder whose enchantment gave you two legs and limitless sex appeal? That spell almost drained me. When I finally recovered my powers, I foresaw a way to help Saul. He thinks his informant is one of my handmaidens, and while I’d like to keep this our little secret, it’s me. See, I trust you a damn sight more than you trust me.”

  Unable to accept Circe’s version of the truth, Lindy shook her head. Then she realized that, all things considered, some magic had been at work when the Sirens fell. She stared at the minor goddess who claimed to be her aunt, but for once words failed her.

  Circe appeared unconcerned. “My brother grew up alongside Lua too, and he wants vengeance for the terrible thing her children did to her. When I shared my foreseeing, he set out to father you. I’m proud of you, Lindy. Your heritage drew in Neptune, but your love for Jase destroyed him.”