I have to do this.
“You’ll go out first to open the crossroads…” Juliet says.
“We can’t let him go out there himself!” Kiwi says, a bite in her voice.
Juliet stares at her. “We went over this plan at the compound. I need you to stick to the plan. Can you do that?” She flips her hair.
Kiwi’s eyes narrow. A red spark goes off in them, I reach for her arm and squeeze. “She’s right. They won’t open for anyone but a siren. If the gods sense your presence, we came out here for nothing.”
She bites her lip. It’s sexy. I kind wish we had time for one more bang, but like I said, time is a bitch. At least nasty thoughts keep me from terrified ones.
“So, Pike will go out first,” Juliet repeats. “Open the crossroads. Soon as you summon Apollo, we’ll show ourselves.”
Hearing his name sets me ablaze. The bastard. The king of Muses. Total asshole. Cursed his own creations, beings meant to be bringers of light and creativity, to get out of a grudge with some bitchwax goddess. But that’s a tale for another time. Right now, I have to get ready.
As I reach for my guitar, my trident, and my sidearm—not that it will help—I say, “You know you never told us the rest of the plan. You make yourselves known, then what?”
Juliet shakes her head. “All you need to know of the plan is your part.”
I strap my trident across my back and rest my guitar against my shoulder. I stare at her, but she gives nothing away. I have a feeling the plan is to offer me up for the cure.
Not that I’m valuable.
But then again, there might be something I don’t know.
I take in a deep breath, peering out into the darkness. My heart beats like a mad masturbator. I try to regulate my breathing. It doesn’t work.
Kiwi rubs my shoulder. “You should really get going, Pike.”
I nod. Usually that comment would piss me off, but I’m too scared shitless for anger.
The brave hero that’s going to save the world.
As I make my way to the hatch, Kiwi grabs my hand and I glance back at her. The look on her face doesn’t help. It says, don’t go. It says, we’ll never see each other again. I force her expression out, and I picture Sadie. Before all this. Ribbons braided into her hair, flipping through the air, landing on the ice.
That image gives me some of my nuts back.
I squeeze Kiwi’s hands. I don’t say anything, because I don’t want to lie. Not more than I already am lying. Then, I duck through the hatch and step out into nothingness.
I can’t see. The silence from before has become total. Absolute, like an equation for fear. There is no light from the moon. There is no moon. The only thing I can do is smell salt in the air wafting in from what used to be Virginia Beach. But I don’t hear the waves crashing to the shore. And I can’t see the ocean from here.
I take in a deep breath and trudge forward. Toward what? I don’t know. I’m following intuition, hoping to get lucky. My hands are held in front of me like a blind man traipsing through the unknown. After several moments of walking, movement gets harder. It feels like I’m trudging through thick mud. With a grunt of effort, I try to keep moving. Eventually, I have to reach down with my hands and move my legs like I’m a big, black Ken doll. The longer this goes on, the harder it is to move. Soon, I come to a total stop. I peer up at the blank sky and grunt, trying to move my legs.
It’s a no go.
That’s when I hear the first hint of sound.
A low hum, like the buzz of fluorescent lights flicking on. I dart my head around, but I see nothing. I reach down and try to pull my legs free from whatever I’m stuck in, when I hear it again. This time it is louder.
Closer.
I remove my trident and pose for a fight, as much as I can with my useless legs. A shock of pure, golden bolt strikes the air like lightening. I close my eyes to protect my vision. I can see the glare through my eyelids. A mix of reddish, golden light. The buzz hums louder. A horde of mad hornets.
Slowly, I open my eyes and gasp. Stretched out before me are two intersecting, golden lines. They blaze golden. Pulse with life.
My breathing thickens, becomes in tune with those pulsing lines. In the center of those lines is a golden statue. He holds a golden lyre in his left hand, and a crown of laurel frames his head.
Apollo.
Even though I’ve never seen this, I know what it is. Why I can’t move.
This is the crossroads.
This is where I’ve come to die, or worse.
When I try to look directly at the statue, a weight presses down on me. Forces me to avert my eyes. The air around me is harder to breathe in. It’s like I’m standing under some pressurized system.
Like my skin is about to get ripped off.
I suck in as much air as I can and, moving like a wooden doll, twist my guitar so that it’s in front of me. I grit my teeth from the effort. When I’m finally able to place my hands on the strings, I let my power flow out of me and into my weapon.
Gip pulses with it, almost vibrates out of my hands. When it’s fully charged, it stops and I almost smile. The power always makes me a little giddy. Then, I start plucking a tune that I never learned, but has always been in my blood.
It’s intricate. Elegant. And sets me on fire with lust.
A paean. A hymn to the motherfucker that created me with a thought.
As the music dies down, the air grows thinner. It’s easier to breathe. I can move. I walk along the pulsing lines of light, my skin buzzing with power. I sling the guitar back against my shoulder. Rumbling fills the air. The earth starts to quake as the statue of Apollo slowly twirls until its facing me.
I pause for the briefest second before moving forward. They are letting me in, I have gained access to the crossroads. Now comes the hard part. I’m about to signal for Juliet and Kiwi to come out and meet me when a short figure walks out from behind the statue.
She wears a white hood and is pulsing with that same blinding, golden light. She stares at me with a wicked half smile on her cherry lips.
The air leaves my lungs and I fall to my knees. My head bows like I’m worshipping on Sunday with my momma. Only, I’m not in control of my movements.
She is.
And she isn’t Apollo.
Fear presses against me. I have no idea what’s going on. I can’t see her, but I can feel her walking toward me. The closer she gets, the more out of control I feel.
Have to signal Juliet and Kiwi.
Have to signal.
Have to…
Sweat drops down my brow, and just like that I forget what I’m supposed to do.
“Pike Richards,” a female voice says.
Her voice is like pine needles in my ears. Hard to listen to. Hard to focus. I feel a hand under my chin. She raises my head and stares at me with unnatural eyes.
Golden and red, swirling to the center of her eye, blending into ocean blue. They are beyond hypnotic. I feel my mind bending, pulling me out. Pushing something else in.
“I didn’t think you would make it,” she says.
It’s pain itself to focus on her voice. The only reason I can look at her is because she’s in a different form. A child’s form, the easy on the eyes form for a god or goddess to take.
“Many of my brother’s enemies didn’t want you to make it. They knew what we know. That you can change things.”
I open my mouth to speak, even though I know nothing will come out. Not until she allows it. She turns around and gazes toward the statue.
“You really are quite lucky I arrived before you. The gods meant all manner of things to be here. Grogans, dragons, lamias, nasty beasts! Most of them would have succeeded, I’m afraid.”
I scrunch my face up. The longer I have to listen to her speak, the more it feels like rusty nails are biting into my skull. I want to bring my hands up to cover my ears, but I’m stuck bowing like a little bitch.
She turns and frowns. “Is something wron
g, dear?”
I grit my teeth, try to shake my head. Nothing.
“Oh! I wasn’t thinking. The power coming from you is unlike anything I’ve ever seen from a siren. My apologies.” She waves her hand across her throat. A brilliant, golden spark ignites. “Is that better?”
Her voice sounds normal now. No more pain. I still can’t move, but it’s progress. She raises a sculpted eyebrow at me when I don’t respond.
“Sorry, again. It’s been awhile since I’ve been around a descendent.” She raises her hand through the air, and I stand with it.
Without looking directly at her, I wipe the sweat from my brow and clear my throat.
“Yes, it’s better,” I say. “Thank you.”
She smiles. It’s almost as blinding as the golden light cast all around us.
“So polite.” She saunters over to me. Runs a finger down my forearm. “Such a nice specimen.”
I shiver. It feels like she hit me in the face with a big bag of the creeps. She’s beautiful, sure. Almost all of them are. But she looks like a beautiful child. She pulls her hand away and I breathe relief.
She laughs. The sound is the loveliest thing to hit my ears in I can’t remember how long.
“This form bothers you?”
I open my mouth, then hesitate. It never ends well to insult a goddess. Or to make her think you’re insulting her.
I clear my throat again. “I’m sorry, but who are you?”
She frowns. “You, of all people, should recognize me.”
I open my mouth again, unable to do words. I bow my head because I’m not trying to die at the hands of what looks like a twelve-year-old.
It’s just not how I want my story told.
She laughs again. “Pike, you must learn to relax. You’ve probably only seen me in my true form.”
My eyes open wide. Fear clenches its fist around my throat. For a moment, I think she’s going to show it to me. Her true form. Better men than me have died looking upon a goddess. Her form doesn’t change.
Instead, she says, “I am Apollo’s sister.”
I shake my head at first, understanding washing over me slowly. Then I raise my eyebrows.
“Artemis,” I say.
“Very good.”
“Goddess of the hunt.”
She points her long, ivory-flecked finger at me. “I like you, Pike.”
I sigh. “Well, that’s a relief.”
She laughs again. I wait until she’s finished before I ask, “But why are you here? Why hasn’t Apollo come to meet me? He guards these crossroads.”
Her eyes darken. I take a step back. The gold and red of her eyes swirls into black and bruised purple.
“He no longer guards these crossroads.” She looks toward the nothingness in the sky. “But he will. That’s where you come in.”
I frown. “I don’t understand.”
She looks down, a sort of demented smile twisting her lips. “Do you know why you came to be cursed, Pike Richards?”
Anger rolls through me, but I keep my face composed. I don’t want to cross her. I don’t want her to see or guess how much I hate the gods. Especially her brother.
“Yes.”
“Tell me.”
“Apollo traded us, specifically my blood line, to get out of a grudge with Demeter and Zeus. He cursed us to cover up the fact that he failed to escort Persephone to Kore tower. He failed and now she has to spend half her time in the Underworld. Demeter demanded that something be done to Apollo. Apollo offered up his most precious Muses, the sirens, to be cursed in his place.”
She nodded. “Very good. Only one fact in your tale is untrue.”
I furrow my brows. I know this story like my own heartbeat. I have no idea what she’s talking about.
“The untruth, something very few people know, is that it was I who failed to escort Persephone. Apollo covered for me. He helped me avoid a term in the Underworld, a sentence he is still serving for me.”
My mouth gapes open. Didn’t see that shit coming.
“So, I am here, Pike, to pay a debt. To get my brother out.”
I nod. “Okay.” It’s all I can think of to say.
“And for that, I will need your help.”
I back away a few more inches. If there is one thing I know, it’s not to get into the middle of the gods shit. Nothing good can come from what she’s about to ask me.
“I know you will be reluctant to help me,” she says.
No shit.
“That’s why I need you to tell me what you came here for.”
My mouth opens wider. I remain silent.
“Come on, siren. Let’s make a deal. And let’s not waste each other’s time. We both know you’re going to make this deal.”
The fuck I am.
She smiles and waves her hand through the air. Another blast of light, and there she is. Sadie. With ribbons braided into her wild hair. Ice skates slung over her shoulder. That look I saw in her eyes at the compound is gone. It is replaced by innocence.
She is my Sadie again.
I reach out, taking a step forward, stumbling. Just like that, she is gone. I crumple to my knees and cry out.
“Oh, Hades.” She waves her hands up. I stand at her command. “Be a man, I don’t suffer weakness. You are here for her, correct?”
I just stare at her. Her face darkens.
I speak quickly. “Yes, yes I’m here for her.”
“For a cure?”
“Yes.”
She glides over to me and places a hand against my chest. “A siren with heart. Do you know how rare that is?”
I stare down at her. “I don’t have much of a heart.”
She smiles. “And yet here you are. For that little girl. And you had to know you wouldn’t leave this place, where you are banned, alive.”
I keep staring.
“Like I said, siren with a heart. You will be very powerful, and useful to me.” She steps a few paces away and peers up at me. “And I will help you save the world, Pike Richards. All you have to do is agree to come with me.”
I raise an eyebrow. “Come with you where?”
She laughs. “But you can’t ask questions. Obviously.”
Fuck my life.
I pictured a great battle on these grounds. Slaying dragons. Getting to the cure and leaving my life behind. I’d rather that than this shit.
“Well? I don’t have much time. The other gods can’t guess what I’m up to. Or that I have you.”
I sigh, thinking. Hell, I don’t even know what there is to think about. If I don’t agree to this, Sadie is dead. The world remains a self-made hell. And Kiwi…
Kiwi.
My thoughts rest on her face. That bang that always falls into her eye. The red lights that sometimes flash in them, I feel the want to say fuck it to this goddess and get far away from here. With her.
But Sadie.
Sadie is my life.
I can’t fail her. I’m her monster. I have to come through.
I sigh again and nod.
“Wise choice, Pike.” She grabs my hand, and an energy stabs into me.
I gasp. My skin flattens against my bones. I start to rise in the air. Pressure is going to crush me. It’s going to cru…
And just like that, I’m released. I fall back to the ground, land on my feet, and suck in a deep breath. Then, I lean over. Rest my hands against my knees, panting.
“What the.” Huff. “Fuck did you.” Huff. “Do to me?”
She circles me as I struggle to get my breath back right.
“You just swore a troth. It can only be broken by death.”
I manage to half stand up, all my weight resting on the right side of my body.
“Peachy,” I say with a cough.
“And now, it’s time for me to uphold my end of the bargain.”
I nod and stand all the way up.
“Shall we bring your companions over?”
Before I can respond, another flash of light. Then, J
uliet and Kiwi are standing on the golden crossroads with us, glancing around, eyes wide.
“Kiwi Grunder and Juliet Burke,” Artemis says while they’re still looking around. “Welcome to the crossroads. Let’s get on with saving your world, shall we?”
Kiwi and Juliet glance at me, then look back at Artemis and nod. The goddess strolls over to Juliet and places her hand on her cheek.
My eyebrows furrow in confusion.
“You are tied to him, which is to be tied to death.”
Juliet nods.
“But you knew what would happen when you got here, correct? What the gods require. What we always demand?”
Juliet nods again. Her face is blank. Poker faced ass Juliet.
“Good, let’s get this over with, shall we?”
Before anyone can do or say anything, Artemis produces a golden blade from under her robe. She slashes out toward Juliet.
I blink.
A line of purple fluid forms from a gash in Juliet’s neck. She clutches her throat. A gurgling gasp fills the room. My heart pounds, and my eyes widen. The blood gushes from her wound, and all the time, the look on her face never changes.
Even in death, the bitch gives nothing away.
When her body hits the ground, I am too stunned to do shit. I barely register Kiwi screaming beside me. A blur of movement flashes across the side of my vision. I blink, realizing it’s Kiwi.
Then I realize it’s Kiwi lunging at an ancient goddess.
I reach out and grab her. She struggles in my arms, still screaming. Artemis looks at the both of us, an amused smile coating her face.
“What the fuck did you do that for?” Kiwi growls, flailing her legs, trying to get out of my arms.
I tighten my grip around her so that she can’t move. Placing my lips against her ear, I whisper, “Shut the fuck up before you get yourself killed.”
She goes limp in my arms. As Juliet’s blood runs along the crossroads, the lines of golden light alternate between blue and red. I can almost smell magic in the air. I should have known, the gods always demand blood. They always will.
Artemis is still smiling her ancient, smug smile. “Ah, one of Hades little bitches.” She kicks Juliet’s body. “You mourn this thing? This thing that made hell on earth. Who rounded up your kind like slabs of beef?”
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