Cameron nodded at her and turned his eyes up toward the ceiling. “We’ll wait until the sun sets. It’ll be easier at night. It would be even easier if the gift shop had any clothes in your size that didn’t virtually sparkle but we’ll ditch those for something… less likely to blind pilots... once we’re out of the city.”
Selena pinched the fabric of her t-shirt between her fingers and smiled at him again. “I don’t know. I think I pull off gaudy.”
Cameron snickered and smiled back at her. “Selena, you pulled off swamp water and algae.”
Selena felt her cheeks warm and cursed her pale complexion. Why couldn’t she have been born into a Mediterranean pantheon? Or pretty much any pantheon that would have blessed her with melanin in her skin to hide how often she blushed?
“Sorry,” Cameron said softly. “Made you uncomfortable again, didn’t I?”
Selena shook her head but she couldn’t meet his eyes. She was only embarrassed about her own constant embarrassment around him.
“No, it’s not… you have to remember I grew up mostly alone. My aunt raised me and she knew we were demigods but had turned her back on her heritage long before I came along. She was also telekinetic and that was easy to hide. She knew I couldn’t hide what I am though, so she homeschooled me. I didn’t have many friends and even fewer boyfriends. I just never had the chance to learn how to handle even innocent flirting.”
Cameron nodded in commiseration. “I went to school, but I told people I had a skin condition. So I stayed covered up so no one could even accidentally touch me. I got exempted from P.E., too. For the record, that’s not really a better approach. I only didn’t get the shit beaten out of me all the time because I convinced people it was contagious. That went over well.”
“Kids are terrible,” Selena breathed.
Cameron lifted a shoulder at her and offered her that sexy grin. She studied her hands as they played nervously with the pillow in her lap.
“I thought about dropping out in high school, especially since I actually could have kicked the collective asses of all those guys’ who teased me, but decided to graduate and went on to college. I met a girl I really liked my first year there, and she was the first person I ever told the truth to. Sort of, anyway. I mean, I kinda had to, you know?” Cameron added.
Selena nodded and ran her fingers over the stark white pillowcase. She’d never had the opportunity to go to college. Her aunt had insisted it would be too dangerous for her, so she’d stayed in her small hometown of Villa Rica, Georgia, and had gotten a job as a cashier at the Walgreen’s. She’d met her first boyfriend there. She still didn’t think he was the one who had turned her in to the New Pantheon. It’s not like she’d broken his heart or anything. He’d moved away and they’d decided a long-distance relationship wasn’t practical, especially since neither of them could afford the airfare across the country to see each other.
About a year later, Ukko walked into the pharmacy and waited in her line even though there were half a dozen people impatiently waiting for their cigarettes and candy and gallons of milk so they could hurry home after work. She didn’t pay much attention to him, assuming his empty hands were simply because he intended to purchase something behind the counter.
When he reached the front, he addressed her by name, which also wasn’t unusual since she was wearing a nametag, and asked her for a pack of Marlboro Lights. She didn’t know yet, of course, that he was a god and he didn’t smoke. She pulled the package of cigarettes from the rack and scanned them then placed them on the counter. She never handed a customer anything since she didn’t want to accidentally touch anyone.
But Ukko stared at the cigarettes then looked up at her.
“That’s not very polite,” he said.
Selena took a deep breath and licked her lips, glancing at the cash register before forcing a smile back on her face. “That’ll be $5.97.”
Ukko handed her the money then extended an open hand. Selena looked at it because this guy had already freaked her out. She was always careful when giving a customer their change, but there was something unnerving about this man. She slowly counted out the bills and plucked the coins from the drawer then held the bills at one edge as she always did. As she reached across the counter to put the money in his palm, he suddenly flipped his wrist and grabbed her hand.
Selena gasped and tried to call for help, but she had no voice. She wasn’t just too scared to scream; her voice had vanished. She stared back at the tall blonde man who smiled at her and let go of her hand.
“Nice to meet you, Selena,” he cooed.
He left his change and cigarettes on the counter and walked out of the store.
The next day, she found a letter on her windshield from the New Pantheon and brought it to her aunt who told her to run and to never let the New Pantheon catch her. Six months later, she met Alan and thought she’d found someone who was as desperate to avoid them as she was.
In so many ways, Cameron reminded her of those first days with this handsome stranger who told her exactly what she wanted to hear and promised her safety and companionship and, eventually, love. For eighteen months, he let her believe all those things.
Cameron reached over to her fingers that were still tracing patterns on the white cotton-polyester blend of the pillowcase. She jumped and looked at him.
He nodded toward the pillow in her lap. “What was that pattern you were tracing?”
Selena turned her attention to the pillow again but she hadn’t been aware she was tracing any pattern. “Nothing. I was just thinking. It was probably just random shapes like a person doodles on a notepad.”
Cameron didn’t let go of her hand and she was sure she was blushing again. God, she hated herself sometimes.
She didn’t know which god she was offering that information to either.
“No,” Cameron insisted, “it was a pattern. I was watching you.”
Selena shrugged and hugged the pillow to her chest. “I don’t know. I was just remembering the first time I met Ukko. Maybe it was something I saw on him.”
“Ukko isn’t stupid. He doesn’t wear anything distinctive so he doesn’t stand out and he certainly doesn’t wear anything that would identify his pantheon. He’s been chasing you for three years and you didn’t even know his name.”
“I don’t know what to tell you, Cameron. I was just distracted,” Selena snapped. She closed her eyes and sank against the headboard, embarrassed this time over losing her temper with him. It wasn’t his fault so many painful memories had resurfaced.
“Sorry,” she mumbled.
“It’s ok,” he assured her. “After everything you’ve been through lately, I shouldn’t push you. I was just hoping…”
Selena opened her eyes and waited. He sighed and pulled a glove off so he could run his fingers through his dark brown hair.
“Some things are just in us, you know?” he asked. “I was hoping it might have something to do with your heritage. The more we know, the closer we get to our pasts, the more it will help us.”
“After what Alan did to me, you have no idea how hard it is to even trust you,” Selena whispered. “You may be telling the truth. You may actually be risking your life for me, but if you are with them, then you already knew I brought him back. It’s not that much for them to ask of you.”
Cameron bit his lip as he studied her and she couldn’t help thinking he would storm out of her room and tell her she was on her own after all. But he didn’t storm out. He reached for her hand again and gently squeezed it, promising her, “I get that. But I don’t want you to bring me back. I already told you I’d rather die than become part of their pantheon. If it comes down to it, don’t save me, Selena.”
“Cameron,” she breathed.
But he shook his head and let go of her hand, reaching for the room service menu and dropping it between them on the bed. “Let’s go ahead and eat on their bill. It’s the least they can do for us. It’ll be dark out soon enough.”
/> Selena picked up the menu but none of the words made sense to her. They were just symbols on a page. If it comes down to it, don’t save me, Selena.
And what if she did save him? Would he ever forgive her? Would he become so embittered by her betrayal that he would decide to become one of the New Pantheon anyway?
“Are you waiting for me to recommend something?” Cameron asked, that devilish grin reemerging. “Fried crawfish po-boy. No, wait. That’s what I’m getting. I’ll let you try it and if you like it, you can have half. Order the shrimp and we can share.”
Selena blinked at him then looked at the menu again. “All this food, and you’re going to order a sandwich?”
“Hey,” Cameron argued, grabbing the menu out of her hands, “a po-boy isn’t a sandwich. It’s… a fancy sandwich.”
“Doesn’t sound fancy.”
“You’re a heathen.”
Selena snickered and shrugged, “Well, yeah, we all are actually.”
Cameron waved her off. “I mean about the stuff that really matters. No football, no appreciation of the art form of sandwiches. Don’t worry, Caterpillar. I can train you.”
Selena folded her arms and arched an eyebrow at him. He waved her off again. “You have the potential to be a butterfly, but you need some serious help first.”
“Give me your phone. I want to look up what gods waged battle by annoying the hell out of their enemies.”
Cameron picked up the hotel phone and grinned at her. “You’re my enemy?”
“Depends on if this fancy sandwich is really worth blowing my one opportunity to order whatever I want from a room service menu at Ukko’s expense.”
A knock on her door startled them both and Cameron dropped the handset. He cursed under his breath and picked it up, setting it back on the base of the phone.
“We’re kinda busy,” he shouted at the door.
Selena shot him a look that she intended to convey now-what-are-we-going-to-do-if-he-just-opens-the-door-anyway-and-sees-us-both-sitting-here? but she wasn’t sure all of that could actually be conveyed in a single look.
Cameron held his hands up, either because he meant to tell her he’d panicked or well-it’s-too-late-now.
“Order dinner,” Ukko called back through the door. “We’re leaving in two hours.”
“Two hours?” Selena yelled. “I thought you said I could have twelve hours here!”
“Things changed,” Ukko said.
Cameron and Selena looked at each other and he grabbed the phone again but leaned closer to her ear to whisper, “I’m going to place this order and then you’re busting us out of here.”
Chapter Seven
Selena eyed the popcorn ceiling above her and wondered how the hell she was supposed to remove just a small section of the ceiling quietly. A complete collapse she could do, but a virtually silent escape route? She’d decided Cameron’s plan was definitely not brilliant.
“Think you can speed this up?” Cameron whispered.
Selena glanced at him then turned her eyes toward the ceiling again. “I, um… I don’t actually know how to do this.”
Cameron sat closer to her on the bed and stared at the ceiling with her. “How does it normally work? Can’t you just imagine a saw or something and cut through it?”
Selena stopped staring at the ceiling to stare at Cameron. He just shrugged at her and said, “You gotta try something. We placed our order fifteen minutes ago. We’ve got to get out of here now.”
“Ok,” Selena breathed. She focused on the ceiling again and even though she thought it was an incredibly stupid idea, she pictured removing a circular hole above them as if it had been sliced through with a saw. Pieces of fiberglass and the Styrofoam-like material of the popcorn ceiling rained down on them, and Selena covered her head as larger chunks collapsed.
Apparently, subtle removal of objects wasn’t in her repertoire of telekinetic tricks.
Selena grimaced at the noise of the collapsing ceiling and glanced at the television, hoping the football game was loud enough to cover the sounds of their attempted escape. Cameron grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet on the bed. “Good enough,” he said smiling. He put his hands around her waist and lifted her so she could grab onto the edge of the ceiling. More pieces fell under her weight.
“Move left,” she whispered. “I need to hold onto a support beam.”
Cameron carefully moved a few steps on the bed so she could reach the support beam then Selena pulled herself into the crawl space between the ceiling and what was most likely an attic or service area for the hotel. She stuck her hand out for Cameron and he smiled up at her.
“Seriously? No offense, but you’re like, what… 5’5” and 115 pounds?”
“Yeah,” she hissed, “and I’m also telekinetic. I don’t need physical strength to get you up here.”
“Ah, good point,” Cameron acknowledged. His gloved hand slipped into hers and she easily lifted him beside her. She had no idea why her telekinesis didn’t work on herself either. Maybe it was something unique to Quetzalcoatl’s pantheon that allowed gods to use their powers for their own benefit, or maybe it was something unique about hers that forbade it. But she didn’t have time to sit around pondering why her powers were useless for her own needs. As soon as room service tried to deliver their food, Ukko would discover they’d escaped.
She and Cameron crawled along the support beams until they reached the edge of the building. Cameron tapped the heel of her shoe and Selena glanced over her shoulder at him. He pointed to the ceiling to indicate she needed to provide them with another opening.
Selena concentrated on the exposed beams above her and flinched as the splinters of wood blew past them. A narrow hole allowed her to see the early evening sky outside. She pulled herself onto the ceiling and Cameron quickly joined her.
“Goddamn it!” a man’s voice shouted. Selena and Cameron looked at the street below them to see one of the men from the New Pantheon looking up at them. Apparently, they’d decided to keep more than one side of the hotel under surveillance.
“Which god?” Cameron yelled back. “This has been driving me crazy for two weeks now!”
“Cameron,” Selena hissed. “Not now!”
She grabbed his hand and started running. The man on the ground ran on the sidewalk, dodging the occasional group of drunken tourists sashaying down Chartres Street. They were pretty sure all five gods would soon be on the ground following them.
“Now what?” Selena asked breathlessly as they reached the end of the hotel. The narrow street that intersected the buildings meant they couldn’t just jump across. Around the corner of the hotel, Selena spotted the tall blonde head of the Finnish thunder god.
“We are so screwed,” she muttered.
“I’m going to throw you,” Cameron said.
Selena shot him a sharp look and asked, “You’re going to what?”
Cameron shrugged and nodded toward the building across from them. “Trust me. I can get you across. Ready?”
“No!”
But apparently Cameron was attempting it whether she was ready or not. He grabbed her around the waist again and took a few steps back from the edge of the roof then lifted her. Selena’s feet dangled in the air and her heart seemed to rise through her throat into her ears. The honking of the cars on the streets below and the loud, boisterous conversations of the New Orleans’ partiers vanished.
Lovely. I’m going to die as road kill.
Cameron stepped forward and threw her body into the air. Selena had the brief sensation of floating like she was back in Quetzalcoatl’s whirlwind before she slammed onto the rough texture of the roof. She had just enough time to roll over and look back across the street as Cameron backed up again then ran off the side of the building. She thought she may have screamed, but she still wasn’t convinced she’d survived.
Cameron landed next to her and scrambled quickly to his feet. He slipped a hand around her arm and pulled her up, reminding her there
were still five pissed off gods on the streets below.
“How did you…” Selena stuttered, but Cameron waved her off.
“Later. Given our luck lately, the snake-bird dude is probably after us, too.”
Selena tried to scan the sky, barely illuminated by the combination of twilight and city lights of the French Quarter and the lights along the river to the side of them, but it was difficult to properly survey a darkening sky while running across a roof. She hadn’t thought it was possible for something to scare her more than the New Pantheon until she met Quetzalcoatl.
They reached the end of the roof and another narrow potholed street intersected the buildings.
“You’re going to throw me again, aren’t you?” Selena groaned.
Cameron looked at the gods who had been running along the sidewalks below. Ukko put his hands on his hips and shot them both a now-what? glare. Cameron shrugged at him.
Selena watched him as his gaze shifted from the thunder god to where the lights of the ferries and barges twinkled in the distance on the river. “We need to get to the Mississippi. We’re going to have to change directions. We’ll take a right on Conti and that can get us to the river. ”
Selena glanced at the street again where a small crowd, tall purple drinks and plastic cups of beer in hand, had gathered to watch the spectacle, most likely assuming it was one of the oddities of this city.
“Oh, that’s not good,” Cameron exclaimed.
“What?” Selena twisted around to see one of the gods climbing a fire escape to reach the roof of the building they were standing on. She took a step closer to Cameron as she dislodged the metal rungs of the ladder from the brick and the shrill shriek sent “oohs” and “aahs” from the growing crowd. Ukko shook his head at her and the ladder righted itself and landed against the side of the building with a sharp crack.
The god with the cropped brown hair kept climbing.
“It was a good try,” Cameron said, sounding far too lax about their impending recapture. She bit her lip and waited for Cameron to do something, but he just stood there watching.
Shadows of the Gods (The Unbreakable Sword Series Book 1) Page 6