by Tamara Gill
“Liar.” Chloe stepped away from Cian and clasped her hands. “You’re in love with him. Were you not, you wouldn’t be here asking for help. Because that is why you’re here isn’t it, Cat? You need my help.”
Cat nodded and swallowed the hard lump which had formed in her throat. There was something seriously wrong with her. She was a goddess, not some blubbering, female mess who cried over a male. Not that Lelantos was just a male, he was a Titan. Her enemy. “I do,” she said at length.
“Love him?” Chloe asked, smiling.
“That too.” Cat couldn’t stop the grin that formed on her lips at her sister’s obvious enjoyment at her declaration. “Will you help me get him back? It’ll be impossible for me to do it alone.”
Chloe nodded and started to walk toward a room that ran off the entrance hall. Cat followed and heard Cian behind her. The room they entered was a library with books from floor to ceiling. Leather, dust and the smell of burning wood greeted them, giving the room an air of warmth and homeliness.
Cat sat beside Chloe before the hearth and wondered how to ask a sibling she hadn’t seen in years to take part in a dangerous task that could leave them both imprisoned at Mount Olympus or worse, Tartarus.
“What is it you need, Cat? You know I’ll do anything I can to help.”
Chloe’s words, as much as she had longed to hear her agreement, spiked a tremor of fear through Cat’s stomach. Looking at Cian watching them silently, Cat was certain should anything happen to his precious wife she’d pay dearly for it.
“I’ve discovered Lelantos has been imprisoned, but not in Tartarus as I’d first thought. Father has been cunning enough to hold him in Mount Olympus instead. He knows I’ll come for him and it’s his way of capturing me as well. Lelantos is being used as bait, I’m sure.”
“I understand only too well what father is capable of.” Her sister’s gaze flicked to Cian and softened. “I owe everything I have to Lelantos and I promised him I would do anything for him should he need it in the future. I’ll help you, Cat, no matter the risk.”
Cian growled his displeasure and Chloe winked at him.
Tears welled in Cat’s eyes and she blinked to clear her vision. “The prison cells of Mount Olympus are protected with powerful magic. Should you enter them, the spell Lelantos placed on you to be unseen by the deity will cease to exist. Are you sure you wish to come?”
“I am,” her sister said, nodding.
“Thank you so much, Chloe. I’ll owe you after this.”
“No you won’t. No one will be under anyone else’s debt after we free Lelantos. But that leads me to my next question. How do you intend to free him? Zeus will be watching, waiting for you to strike. What is your plan?”
Cat smiled. “Well, as to that, let me explain exactly what I wish to do...”
CHAPTER
Twelve
Cat shimmered into the form of Zeus and thought of the prisons hidden deep beneath the beautiful landscape of Mt Olympus. Moments later Chloe appeared behind her in the guise of their brother Hermes. Not for many years had Cat altered her appearance into that of another, and changing into her father, the most powerful deity of all wasn’t something she’d ever do again.
Zeus would kill her. There would be no more immortality when he discovered her treachery.
“Up ahead and to the left.” Cat started at her own voice, deep and layered with eons of history and knowledge. She walked toward the cells where the gods kept their most influential and prized prisoners.
When they strolled past a guard standing before an ornate door, he stood to attention and bowed his head as Cat passed. Neither of them spoke, and Cat hoped she was heading in the right direction. Surely they would not house Lelantos in what she called the ‘pits’. The cells in that area of the prison were damp, cold and often the prisoners were left to starve to death, only to be given life once more just for the gods’ amusement.
A shiver stole down her spine that she’d once captured enemies for Zeus and left them here. When her duty of hunter was complete, she’d never given a second thought to the poor souls left to fend for themselves here. Worse off were those imprisoned when Zeus took offence over a trivial matter, one not serious enough for such a severe punishment.
And she’d helped him for years. Shame swamped her but she pushed it aside. She was here to help free Lelantos. A Titan who had admittedly run from the battle of the gods, but had gone on with his life and never made strife for anyone. Had in fact, merged well with humankind for thousands of years. Not until Chloe asked for his help had he showed his hand to Zeus, not even once. It seemed that Lelantos was soft at heart. A Titan that believed enough in love to help Chloe and Cian.
Cat hoped she had the ability to release him from the cells that held the divine captive. The prison walls were protected with ancient spells that ripped all powers from those they housed. Once Tartarus, Hades or the prison here on Mount Olympus was your home, it was your home forever. And she couldn’t allow that. She had vows, unspoken thoughts and needs she wanted to share with Lelantos. He needed to hear how much she sought, respected and loved him.
“Open the gates,” Chloe, in the form of their brother Hermes, yelled from some distance away.
Cat watched the guard fumble with the lock before swinging the gate wide. A long passage ran before them, lit by sconces along the stone wall. Chloe went ahead, but Cat stopped and turned back toward the guard. Fear crossed his face and she raised her brow in the way she was used to seeing her father do. “Where is the Titan being held?”
“Turn left at the end of the passage. He’s locked in the first cell on the right.” The guard bowed his head and Cat took the opportunity to move on. At the corner of the passage she waved her hand and removed his memory of seeing them.
Other prisoners, at seeing Zeus in the bowels of Mount Olympus, huddled back against the wall as if trying to become a part of the mortar. Shame pricked her once more that her father left these immortals here. Some for hundreds of years before he called them up to answer to their crime. He was cruel. An unforgiving god and no longer would Cat live by his rules.
From today she would no longer be a part of the immortals. Her future wasn’t on Mount Olympus anymore.
Chloe stopped before a cell and Cat followed. Relief swamped her at seeing Lelantos lying on a thin mattress on the floor. She looked about the cell and noted he’d been looked after better than others with a water bowl and cup.
He opened his eyes and Cat watched as wariness flickered in his gaze. He stood and came to stand before the cell bars. Cat’s stomach somersaulted at seeing him again. Still dressed in his battle attire, he looked just as hot as he did in Thessaly, his strong muscular arms bulging when he crossed them.
“What do you want?” He asked.
Cat bit her lip to stop herself from smiling. Considering he was standing before the most powerful of the gods - one who could kill him stone dead - not an ounce of fear could be heard in his voice. Only hatred and contempt.
Never had Cat loved him more.
“You,” she said, shimmering back into a goddess.
Lelantos stepped forward and reached for her through the bars. “What are you doing here? Zeus will not forgive you for such treachery, Cat.”
“I do not care.” Cat flicked her hand toward the lock and it fell to the ground in pieces. She slid the cell door across and pulled Lelantos against her. His warmth soothed her and she reveled in the fact she was holding him again.
“Cat, we must go,” Chloe said, looking down the passage.
“Your brother can’t be trusted.” Lelantos pulled Cat behind him and she smiled.
Chloe shimmered back into her normal self and laughed. “I said I would pay you back one day, Lelantos. I never forget a promise.”
Lelantos smiled and nodded. “Thank you; you are truly a goddess. But you’re right, we must leave.”
Chloe walked into the cell. “You’re welcome, Lelantos. You’re a good and kind person. I cou
ldn’t let you rot here in this jail, especially when you have so much to live for now.” Chloe met Cat’s gaze and smiled. “Please do come and see us now and again. I’ve missed you, Cat.”
Cat let go of Lelantos and pulled Chloe into an embrace. “I’ve missed you too. And thank you truly for helping me. I know you’ve put yourself in danger by coming here. I don’t think Cian will ever forgive me for asking.”
“You leave Cian to me. He knows I’m more than capable of looking after myself.” Chloe winked. “I’ll see you around.”
“Not so fast, daughters.”
Cat gasped and turned to find Zeus and Hermes watching them from the cell door. Chloe came to stand beside her and raised her sword. “Father, how lovely to see you again.”
“Stupid of you to come back here. You do realize daughters the moment you stepped into that cell, you lost your powers. Not to mention, the fact that your invisibility, given to you by the bastard Titan standing behind you, vanished, Chloe.”
Cat met Chloe’s gaze and read the fear in her eyes. “We’ll not go down without a fight, Zeus,” Cat said, wondering if her father would actually worry about such a threat.
“There is no need to fight.” Zeus flicked his wrist and the cell door slid shut. “I’ve already won. I’m simply going to leave you all in there until I’ve decided how best to punish you for your inability to act like the gods you were born. The Titan is excluded from that decree of course. He shall be left in here to rot.”
Zeus laughed and disappeared. Hermes stared at them and then turned to leave. Cat grabbed his arm and pulled him against the bars. “If you were any brother to us at all you wouldn’t leave us here. I’ve saved you countless times, Hermes. I even taught you how to hold your sword correctly when you were young. Do not turn your back on me.”
Her brother’s gaze flicked over them all before he yanked his arm free. “You do not know what you ask, Cat. The price is too high.”
She nodded. Hermes was right. The price was high. But, for her, a life with love was worth fighting for. Hermes had never been in love and hadn’t yet known what it was to love another with all his heart and soul. To know that you would, literally die for another. “Please, brother.”
“I cannot. I’m sorry.”
Cat watched him walk down the passage until he disappeared from view. She looked back at Lelantos and Chloe, who was wringing her hands and pacing the floor. “Shit.”
“You still have your sword?”
Cat felt for her weapon. “It’s gone.” She reached into her boot and realized with some shock that her dagger was missing also. They were stuck here.
Cat sat on the thin mattress and wondered how they could get out of this mess. That she had involved Chloe and she too was imprisoned made it doubly worse. “I’m so sorry, Chloe.”
Chloe shrugged and sat beside her. “It wasn’t your fault. I knew the risks before I left. I’d outsmarted Zeus before and thought I may be able to do so again.” A frown crossed her forehead. “Cian will be frantic.”
Cat met her gaze and clasped her hand. “I know.”
“Zeus said that inside the cells, your powers no longer exist. But check anyway. You are his daughters. If anyone is going to keep some semblance of their power it should be you.”
Lelantos pulled Cat to stand. “Try something.”
Cat visualized the fountain that stood in the centre of Mount Olympus’s prized garden and usually she’d be there within a moment’s thought. Not today. “It’s not working.”
Chloe stood and shut her eyes. Nothing. “We’re stuck,” Chloe said.
“Barter with Zeus. Tell him you’ll agree to anything. Tell him you’ll marry and live in any way he wishes. Make him believe you’ve accepted his decree and wish to be a true and faithful servant to him. Wait until he’s content and then make your move. Release me and we’ll leave and go where he’ll never find us.”
“Time moves so fast here, Lelantos. By tomorrow weeks would have already passed on Earth. Cian will be beside himself if I delay my escape any longer. I can’t do it to him.”
“If you don’t, you won’t see him anyway,” Lelantos said, running a hand through his dark hair.
Cat wrapped her arms about his waist and hugged him. “We’ll work something out. Just don’t panic. Anyone. It doesn’t help the situation.”
Chloe swore and sat back on the bed. Cat looked up at Lelantos and rubbed away the frown line between his eyes. “Chloe’s right. We don’t have the luxury to work Zeus into believing we’re obedient daughters once more. He could take years to trust us again, if he ever does. No,” she said, patting his chest and walking to the cell doors once more to look up the passage, “we must do something now.”
Three days later they were still there. Chloe sat silent against the wall, the worry of knowing Cian would be wondering what had gone wrong, seemed to be gnawing at her sister’s soul. Cat had to do something. But what she wasn’t sure. For days she’d worked on the guards. Used her history with them as a means to create a friendship, but they were wary and not brave enough to cross Zeus.
Clever guards.
“Come and sit, Cat. There is nothing to be done.”
She frowned but did as Lelantos bid. “How long is Zeus going to leave us here? I’m starting to feel like the walls are closing in on us.”
Footsteps sounded down the passage and Cat stood up again. Her body thrummed with hope when she noted who was striding toward them.
“Hebe! I’m so glad you’re here. Please help us.”
Her younger sister smiled and unlocked the cell door. “Well, it wouldn’t be very loyal of me if I left my family to rot down here.”
Cat walked free of the cell and felt the sizzle of energy coarse through her veins, her power once more a part of her. “What will you do if Zeus finds out about your treachery?”
Hebe shrugged. “Don’t worry about me. I’m a big girl, I can look after myself.”
Chloe stepped free and pulled Hebe into a fierce hug. “Thank you. If I had to stay in there a moment longer I think I’d have gone crazy.” Chloe turned to Cat and took her hand. “I’m going to go before Zeus catches us again. Cian–”
“Go,” Cat said, smiling. “Thank you, Chloe and please give my apologies to your Highlander when you see him. I really never meant to put you into harm’s way.”
“I know. It wasn’t your fault.”
Cat watched her disappear and welcomed the warmth of Lelantos at her back. “We must go. Are you ready?”
“Are you kidding?” Lelantos asked, his laughter rumbling against her back.
“Promise me I will see you again, Hebe,” Cat said.
“One day. But now, I must return to the throne room. I sort of created a diversion I wish to watch unfold.”
“What diversion?” Lelantos asked.
Hebe studied her nails and smiled. “Hermes and Hera are trying to explain to Zeus why I found them fucking today in Hermes room. If it wasn’t so serious it would be actually quite diverting.”
Cat chuckled. “We had better go then before they drag Hermes down here to be our cell mate.”
“My thoughts exactly,” Hebe said.
“Please tell me Hermes and Hera are not related by blood,” Lelantos asked.
Cat watched as her sister returned the way she came. “Hera is neither mine nor Hermes birth mother.” Fear of being caught standing outside the cell walls made her nervous. She clasped Lelantos tight and thought of the one place Zeus would never look for them. Her apartment at Mount Olympus.
“What are we doing here?” Lelantos gazed about the room and then strode toward the door and locked it.
“I want to grab some things. There are certain items a woman just can’t live without, Lelantos. Even with everything she’s ever wanted right before her.”
“You mean me, don’t you?”
“What do you think?” Cat met his gaze and heat spiked toward her groin. He was so hot. The events of the past few days together with th
e danger of dallying in Mount Olympus had every nerve on end and her body quivered with the adrenaline. Lelantos’ chest rose and fell as his breath labored and her own caught in her throat. They’d not made love for two weeks. It was a very long time.
“Stop looking at me like that, Cat, or I’ll act on my lust right now and take you where we are.”
Cat grinned and untied the silk knot holding one side of her gown up on her shoulder. “Promise?”
In three strides, he was upon her. His mouth devoured her, his tongue seeking, demanding a response. Cat surrendered to his onslaught of desire which spiked her own. Her breath caught as his hand slid against the silk of her gown and wrapped about her breast. He pulled back and ripped the gown down the front, exposing her aching flesh. He licked her pebbled nipple before paying homage to her body.
Cat held him against her, not wanting an inch to separate them. He lifted her and sat her upon a golden desk and she wrapped her legs about his hips, smiling as he slid her dress up to bunch about her waist. Heat and need radiated from his every pore and her body hummed to be with him. How could she not? He was everything she ever wanted in a god, or in Lelantos’ case, a Titan.
“I didn’t think I’d see you again, Cat.” His words, whispered against her ear, sent shivers of delight down her spine.
“You should’ve known I wouldn’t leave you there to rot.” He feathered kisses down her jaw before lightly kissing her lips. Cat met his serious gaze and wondered what he was thinking. “What is it?” she asked.
He hesitated before he spoke. “I’ve fallen hard for you, Caitlin and I don’t want to lose whatever this is we have together.”
Cat felt tears prick behind her eyes. Wow! Never had anyone sounded or looked more sincere than Lelantos did right at this moment and her heart thumped hard in her chest. She ran her hands across his jaw and into his hair. “I love you too.”
Fire ignited in his gaze and he took her lips in a searing kiss. Cat shuffled forward on the desk, her body yearning for Lelantos to take her. Two weeks was turning out to be a very long time. Using both hands he pulled up her gown and stepped between her legs. Lelantos yanked her against him and she gasped at the hardness that sat hard against her flesh.