"There are women you can pay for that," I gritted out between my clenched teeth.
His fingers gripped the table and the wood beneath groaned from the pressure. That should have been my warning. I wasn't playing with some little boy. I was playing with a man who was powerful and strong. It didn't make any difference in that moment. Just when I thought he couldn't possibly piss me off any more, he upped the notch of my disbelief.
"What do you want from me? Do you want me to declare my undying love? You want prissy poems and flowers?"
I shook my head, my mouth dropping open in disbelief. "For fuck's sake. Maybe I do! Maybe I want to be romanced instead of clubbed over the head and dragged into a god damned cave."
He snorted at me and handed me his napkin to wrap around my hand. "Maybe, I want someone who doesn't put me into a rage with his insensitive bullshit. You know you're never nice to me unless you want something from me." I whipped my hand out around me to encompass the surrounding patio. "You want a quickie so I get wined and dined. My heart wants to be in love with you Hephaestus, but my head wants you to go fuck yourself with a rusty iron spike right now."
I stood up and threw the bloodied linen back down on the table. As I turned I saw the shocked faces of the wait-staff bringing in our food. I shook my head and swallowed the solid lump forming at the back of my throat.
The happiest place on earth, my ass.
Turning back for one last parting shot, I said, "Whatever this is? It's done. We won't be doing this anymore. Moving forward, it's professional or nothing."
I teleported as soon as I could and landed in the middle of my hotel room.
"Mom? I didn't expect you back so soon. Was it a trap like you suspected?"
The stone lodged in my chest thumped a few times before I could answer. "Naw. It was just a boring dinner party."
"Are you lying to me?"
I nodded. "Yeah."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
I turned and smiled at the enigma that was my child. "No. But thanks for asking. Is it okay if we go home?"
He nodded and grabbed my uninjured hand squeezing my fingers. "It's totally okay. Grandma and I went on the rest of the rides today anyway. Why do you want to go though?"
"You cleaned my clock yesterday, kid. I think it's time for me to get serious about this stuff. I have a bad feeling in my gut and I just want to be prepared."
He nodded solemnly. "I can help you with that."
I smiled and pulled him in for a hug. "I would love that. With you training me, Nyx is toast."
Diana poked her head into the room. "Grace, can I talk to you a moment?"
I gave the kid a quick hug and nodded. "Sure. What's up?"
She came in carrying a large syringe filled with a milky liquid. "Well, first I need to give you this shot."
I backed up. "Whoa. What did I do?"
She shook her head. "Not what you did. That bite mark on your arm is in need of attention."
"Oh. Well okay. Where do you want me?"
"Right here is fine. I just need to inject it near the entry site."
I gritted my teeth and waited for the needle to sink into my arm. I hated needles. "Will this make it all better?"
"Well it will stop you from turning into a Gorgon at least," She jabbed the needle into my arm and pushed the plunger down.
"G-What?" I shuddered at the pinch and stepped back.
"Gorgon. It doesn't happen with all Gorgon bites but when Medusa hits you with her venom, someone of our race has a good chance of turning into a Gorgon if it's not treated. She sent along this present as an apology." She waggled the syringe in front of me.
"Well, it's nice to know that she wasn't intending to kill me."
Diana shrugged. "Not this time at least. Did I hear you talking about going home?"
I nodded. "Yeah. I need a vacation from my vacation. Oh, and I need to figure out how to keep from getting my ass handed to me every time I get into a serious fight."
She paused a few moments and then nodded. "You should know that the anger you've been exhibiting over the last two days has been because of the bite. That's a nasty side effect of her toxin. The angrier you are, the faster the toxin moves through the system. Are you sure you don't want to try for a normal vacation?"
It didn't take me long to think about it. "I'm sure. I think that Dylan and I have a nice long talk coming and I don't want to be surrounded by babysitters when it happens. Also… well… just yeah – I want to go home."
I'd think about Heph tomorrow. Twice now he'd stepped up to the plate and through timing or sheer stupidity, nothing had come of it. We had long lives. Maybe he'd smarten up, I'd stop being so pissed off at his misogynistic ass and the third time would be the charm.
In the meantime, I had a relationship with my kid to repair, a war to prep for, a novel to write and a thousand other reasons I couldn't concentrate on the wreck that was my love life.
It would all be okay if I just ignored it right?
Right.
Epilogue
Not long ago in a gala… er… I mean right here on Earth
Over a year has passed since Grace defeated Hypnos. She's continued on with her life, training and trying to prepare herself for a battle she doesn't even know will come. Things seem quiet, but little does she know that a nefarious plan is in effect.
A plan that will ensure she never realizes her destiny…
The ink was barely dry on the letter when she folded it quickly and sealed the envelope with a glob of her own saliva. She'd have spit into the letter as well but she didn't want her words to be smeared. No, this letter had to be taken as seriously as she intended.
"Well that feels good," she said and stretched her arms high above her towards the archway of the ceiling. She'd been kept cramped for too long. There would be no more captivity. No more ignoring. They would answer for their crimes against her.
A knock sounded at the door and she slid behind a cabinet and listened.
The door opened and her beloved's voice echoed through the room. "Hephaestus? You around, man? I've got to head out but I wanted to check on the seals."
His booted steps rang through the chamber and she crouched into herself and blanked her mind. He'd hear her. He could hear her from miles away when they were first wed. If she weren't so afraid of what he'd do to her, she would have snorted her derision. He didn't hear her much anymore. She'd been shouting for him for months with no answer.
The scratching of pen and paper said that he was writing a note, oblivious to the intruder in the room. As much as his ignoring her hurt, she didn't want their interference until it was too late to distract or capture her.
He finished the note and paused for three heartbeats before opening and closing the door quietly behind him. Hope breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed her shoulders.
"Do you think he heard us?" She turned to whisper to her concealed companion deep within the shadows of the room.
"I don't think so. Hurry and finish addressing the letter. I promised you a day of fun. You deserve it after all you've been through, my poor darling."
The woman sidled up against Hope and softly pushed a stray hair up behind her ear, caressing the silken skin along the nape of her neck.
Hope had been without any form of affection for so long that she couldn't hide the visible shudder of longing from the woman's touch. Neysa sighed and pulled Hope into her arms. "It's okay. Everything will work out the way it was meant to."
To be fair, Hope should have died long ago, so the promise wasn't completely false. Hope had been teetering on the edge of madness for years before her unfortunate siblings had gotten involved. It didn't help that Hypnos and Lyssa had utterly destroyed what was left of this woman's sanity. Now, any expectation for her recovery was little more than a pipe dream. This all made the path easier to follow. Hope was yet again an unwitting pawn in the war Neysa's mother had begun millennia ago.
"Amateurs," she muttered quietly.
"What was that?" H
ope asked, leaning closer into the embrace.
"Nothing, darling. Don't worry about a thing. I will take care of everything now. All you need to do is trust me and continue doing such a good job of keeping our visits secret." Neysa cupped Hope's face and masked her face in sincerity and empathy. It was imperative that she keep Hope calm. It would have been a kindness to kill her now, but she was crucial to the plan.
Sneaking Hope out of the prison had become increasingly difficult and she knew that this would be the last time. It would have to work this time or the plan would fail. Had she been involved since the beginning, none of this would have been necessary. But she'd stayed out of it, hoping that for once she wouldn't be called in for to clean up her siblings' messes.
She had her own life to lead and frankly, there weren't many people in this world that wanted Nyx to stay at the bottom at the bottom of the ocean more than Neysa. Unfortunately, nature (and her mother) had a way of forcing a person into the role they were born with.
It didn't matter that she had no interest in seeking retribution for the stupidity of her siblings, Nyx had ensured with her magic and force of will that Neysa would follow through in this plot of revenge.
The task at hand settled over her like a mantle. She straightened her shoulders and turned to Hope, oozing compassion.
"Come, Love, let's see what we can do about making your dreams come true." She withdrew the pearl from her pocket and slid it between Hope's lips.
"I don't like it. It makes me feel ill," Hope whined.
Neysa twisted her fingers, closing off the other woman's airflow and waited until she swallowed. Within seconds the pearl had been transferred.
"If it's easy then it's not worth it." She ground out.
Neysa could feel when the magic took hold and she sighed with profound relief. One more block fell neatly into place and she wouldn't have to risk breaking Hope out again. The pearl would do the work of creating suspicion, fear and chaos for her.
She'd promised Hope a day of fun but now that the magic was active, she didn't want to waste more time. Neysa walked over to the desk and hastily scrawled Grace's name onto the envelope and tucked it into her pocket. It wasn't time to deliver this little bomb yet. Discoveries needed to be made in their own painful fashion. Perhaps if she routed the letter through the author's publisher, it would give the plan time to come to fruition.
She smiled as the pieces of the puzzle clicked into place. Now all she had to do was deposit Hope back into her prison and wait for the fallout. Despite her protestations for this mission, there was a small spark of satisfaction for a plan well executed. It was her nature after-all. She was the goddess of vengeful fate, the seeker of retribution.
"Where are you taking me today?" Hope asked.
"Oh dear, I forgot that I have an urgent task that needs my attention. I'll have to put you back."
"No!" Hope tried to scramble away but Neysa held her fast. "You promised. You promised me a day."
Neysa sighed. "Fucking amateurs, always leaving me to clean up their failures." She pulled Hope's face close to hers and started chanting. In a few moments, Hope wouldn't remember anything until prompted.
Soon her mother would rise from the depths and Neysa would finally be free of her.
Authors Note
Catalyst is actually a big chunk of work that I cut from Illusions, but I realized as I got halfway through Illusions that it explained a bit about the reasons Grace is having such a difficult time with her relationships right now. So I dug it out of the depths of my trash pile hell and cleaned it up and made a few changes to allow it to be a stand-alone story.
This story has been written, re-written and poured out through what can best be described as one of the toughest periods of my life. I couldn't have written this without the support and love of my friends and family.
Troy and Ray (Whom you may have noticed this book is dedicated to) have lifted me up and made me realize that just because you fail at one thing doesn't mean you're a failure. They're the reason I'm still here writing. I love them more than words could even begin to describe.
As for sj, I owe her big for making this better even while going through her own personal crap. Thank you sweets.
My alpha readers, Jenn Upton, Dia Massey, Laura Pa, Isabella Dollar and Delanna Shipp Minter – you ladies make this worthwhile. I always appreciate your feedback and excitement for what comes next. Thank you for being there for me.
Save an Author – Read More
If you picked this up because it was cheap and the cover wasn't too bad but you haven't read the other books, you still have time to catch up before Illusions comes out.
Huntress – Book 1
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00528HXSM
Rifts – Book 2
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005YP46WE
Volcanoes – Book 3
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008TSWYNQ
You can keep up to date on what's coming out when either on my Facebook FanPage - www.facebook.com/thenicolehamlett
Or on my Website
www.nicolehamlett.com
If you liked this book, please take the time to rate it! Thanks as always for giving me a read!
Table of Contents
Catalyst - A Grace Murphy Novella
Catalyst - A Grace Murphy Novella
Dedicated to Ray and Troy
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Epilogue
Save an Author – Read More
Catalyst (A Grace Murphy Novella) Page 6