"We can’t just mooch off this poor woman forever. We need money!” Nicole said, standing under an olive tree in a grove. The sun shone brightly and a breeze rustled the leaves above them. It looked like a cheerful day, but reality made it far from it. Nicole was feeling desperate, a feeling she hadn’t felt in a long time. And she sure as certain didn’t like it.
“Nicole Taylor,” Ty said. “We can’t access your money. Zeus could be watching.”
“So you think he’s at the bank watching for me to make a withdrawal?”
“He’s not an idiot, neither is Ares,” Ty said. “They know how things work. They’ll be looking for any opportunity to find you.”
“What about Sara? Xanthus could help us—”
“Absolutely not! Do you want to lead Zeus to our daughter? Do you think she’d stand a chance against the king of the gods? Well, you may not know much more about him, other than what’s taught in human books, but I do. Our daughter may be difficult to kill, but she can suffer. And if Zeus thought he could manipulate you by torturing Sara, he would. And don’t forget, Ares is the god of war. He knows tactics that make terrorists look like school children.”
Nicole sighed in defeat.
“It’s not safe for you to even talk to Sara,” he said.
“I know, but we’ve been staying with Hanna for almost two weeks. The fruit I miraculously conjured is gone. She’s too kind to tell us that we’re a burden on her, but I see it in her eyes. We can’t stay.”
Ty frowned. She could see she’d gotten through to him. “I just wish…” he began, but he never finished his words.
“…I could use my powers,” she supplied. “As a goddess, I should be able to do all kinds of things. We shouldn’t be hungry, we shouldn’t be without shelter, and I should have been able to figure out how to use my powers by now. Here I am, supposedly this powerful goddess, and I can’t even whip up a gallon of milk and box of cereal?”
Ty stepped toward her and pulled her into his arms. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart. It’s not your fault; it’s mine. If only I could reach Aphrodite. Without my power, I’m just a lowly human shouting at the empty skies.”
Nicole shook her head. “I’m not any better. I can’t do a darn thing.”
“That’s not true,” he said. “You got me some clothes, and all of us some really juicy fruit.” He smiled, trying to lighten the mood.
She wanted to smile. But she couldn’t bring herself to do it.
Ty lifted her chin so that he was looking into her fathomless eyes. “I love you, Nicole. I have since the moment I laid eyes on you. We’ll figure this out.”
She nodded. He leaned in, and she met him halfway. When their lips touched, Nicole’s whole soul filled with light. His mouth moved in sync with hers. When they kissed like this, she couldn’t tell where she ended and where he began. It was like the two halves of one soul were once again combined. Their love burned so strong that there was no denying they were meant to be together.
When he finally pulled away, longing and emptiness chilled her. “I love you, Ty,” she said, her voice thick with desire. She simply had to kiss him again. And so she did.
She held him tight as he lifted her off the ground. She tugged at his shirt, wanting to feel his skin against hers. He pulled away, but still held her tight.
“Mmm, we can’t, love. I’m sorry.”
“Can’t you just ignore her?”
“You know Sypher better than me. Do you think you could ignore her?”
Nicole frowned, remembering how loud Sypher could scream in her head when she wanted her attention. “Sypher! If you can’t stay out of our business, you can just leave.”
Ty’s eyes darkened. “She said she wishes she could, that it was bad enough having to suffer through your intimate relationships, but being in my head while I kiss you, is like kissing not only another woman, but her own daughter.”
“What? Wait a minute. I thought she could cut herself off from my head. Are you telling me she was there every time?”
Ty nodded. “She never told you before because she wanted you to have a normal life. But now that her days are numbered, she’s laying it all out. She says knowing this might give you more incentive to find a way to get rid of her.”
Nicole stumbled back and sat on a stone bench, stunned. “I can’t believe it. That’s why she won’t let us…” She looked up at Ty and narrowed her eyes, trying to see past Ty into Sypher. “Sypher, you idiot. You should have told me before.”
Ty’s mouth curved with a hint of a smile. “She said if she had, you wouldn’t have Sara.”
She growled. “You still should have told me.”
Ty shook his head. “Well, back to the reason we came here.”
Nicole continued to glare at the ground.
“We need to figure out our next move,” Ty said. “We can’t continue on without food or shelter.”
Nicole sighed and looked up. “Well, since we have no money, and you won’t let me access mine, we’ll have to improvise. You can find us shelter, and I’ll do a little shoplifting.”
Ty’s jaw dropped. She’d obviously shocked him. Well, he didn’t know what it was like living on the streets. She did. “Reality bites, doesn’t it?” She raised an eyebrow.
“Gods don’t steal.”
“If I recall, Hermes stole cattle from Apollo as a joke.”
Ty frowned. “How did you know that?”
“Oh, I have lots of useless information floating around in my head. Sypher used to tell me stories about the Greek gods to lull me to sleep.”
Ty shook his head. “And do you know what I just realized?”
“No. What?”
“Hermes is your grandfather, on your mother’s side. No wonder you’re prone to thievery.”
Nicole laughed. “Hey, a girl does what she needs to do to survive. And I never stole from someone who would have suffered going without.”
“Well, I’d prefer if we didn’t have to steal anything.”
“Okay goodie-two-shoes, what do you propose we do?”
“There’s one last option I haven’t tried out yet.”
“Why haven’t you tried it? We’ve been sitting on our butts doing nothing for weeks!”
“I haven’t tried it because it’s a long shot. And…”
“And what?”
“It might be dangerous.”
“And things aren’t already dangerous?”
“Yeah, but so far we’ve been somewhat safe, like hiding in the kelp fields. This option may be equivalent to chumming the water around the kraken’s lair.”
Nicole frowned. “Well, it’s got to be better than mooching off an old, poverty-stricken, grandmother living in a falling down house.”
Ty shrugged. “Yeah. Well, you’ll need to stay one more day with that poverty-stricken grandmother, because I’m going alone.”
“Not a chance!”
“Nicole, there’s no way I’m bringing you. If they don’t believe I am who I am, it could be real bad. These people don’t take lightly to someone impersonating a sea-god.”
“And that’s why you need me,” she said. “If you go alone, they’ll just believe you’re delusional. If I come too, they can’t dismiss us both.”
“Sure they could.”
“Alright, they could. But they’ll be more likely to believe you if you have someone to vouch for you. Besides, I’m overdue for another crazy show of power.”
“You have no control over your power.”
“It doesn’t matter. I’m coming.”
Ty looked her over, frowning. He didn’t say anything. Looked like he’d admitted she was right. He didn’t look happy about it. Truth be told, Nicole wasn’t too thrilled about going into a dangerous place. But she couldn’t see any other option. And she wasn’t about to stay when going could help Ty stay alive.
“Alright,” he said, “you can go. But follow my lead. Don’t say anything, anything at all, unless I give a nod of my approval.”
“You can’t be serious.”
“Perhaps you should just stay behind.”
“I’m coming.”
“Then you keep quiet.”
“When we get back, we are having a serious discussion about how I feel about you giving me orders. You may be a king, but you’re not my king.”
Ty shook his head. “Alright, now let me tell you what we are getting into.”
***
Triton led Nicole through an ancient tunnel that ran from the entrance east of the town of Litochoro, and led to the sea. He hadn’t visited there in years. There would be none alive that remembered him.
Nicole’s hand was cold in his grip—a telltale sign of her nervousness. The tunnel was probably not doing much to help her. The way was dark, stank of mold, and he’d seen a few rats scurrying along the walls. He hoped the destination was more welcoming than the entrance, but he wasn’t holding his breath.
A flicker of light reflected off the tunnel walls in the distance as a murmur of voices rose. Triton pushed Nicole behind his back as he kept close to the walls. There truly was no place to hide in here. Danger curled around his body and squeezed his chest. A doorway came into view ahead. There were no guards as there would have been in the past.
As the voices became clearer, Triton could tell they were filled with emotion—a fervent plea rose. Nicole gripped his bicep, and he could feel the warmth of her body close behind his.
“We cannot act unless we know who we are acting against,” a deep voice echoed through the tunnel. “Besides, without help, there is nothing we can do.”
“The seas are in turmoil,” another tenor voice said. “Do you not see them churning? Something is amiss!”
“Rasmus, I understand your concern. But we have done all we can do.”
“Not all.”
“No! We are not monsters.”
“Yet you’d let your families die? The elements are in commotion. The gods have forgotten us. And why have they? Because we’ve strayed from the ways of old. We must act, before anyone else dies.”
“If we do act, someone will die.”
“A necessary sacrifice.”
Triton clenched his fists as the horror of their discussion revealed itself. They spoke of human sacrifice. And here he was, practically offering up himself and the woman he loved as easy victims.
Nicole tugged Triton down and whispered in his ear. “I think we might have come at a bad time.”
He nodded. “Let’s get out of here.”
They turned and started back. They moved quietly, careful in their silence as they made their way out. The exit came into view just ahead, and the clamp around Triton’s heart loosened. They were nearly safe. That thought disintegrated when a group of cloaked men rushed inside. The men stumbled to a stop, shocked at Triton and Nicole’s presence. Less than a second later, there were a half a dozen guns pointed at them.
The smallest of the six stepped forward. He made up for his lack of height with his fierceness. “What are you two doing here?”
Nicole stepped forward. “Um, I’m sorry. We were just looking for a place to be alone. We didn’t know this was private property.”
“What—did you think it was a public walkway?”
“No, I just thought it was a good place to… be alone.” She trailed her finger provocatively over Triton’s arm.
The man seemed to relax as he lowered his gun and raised an eyebrow.
“Sorry we disturbed you,” Triton said. “I was just telling her a hotel would be better.” He pulled Nicole toward the door, anxious to get her to safety.
“No problem,” the man answered. “In fact, you may be just what we need.”
Triton pushed her in front of him as he rushed them toward the door.
“Oh, now, don’t go running off so soon,” the man behind them said.
Nicole was pulling the door open when an ear-shattering crack echoed off the stone walls. Pain stole Triton’s breath as he dropped to his knees. Nicole turned, her eyes widened as she screamed, “Ty!”
“Go,” he shouted. “Run!”
“No,” she screamed. “I won’t leave you!” She threw her arms around him and tried to pull him to his feet.
Arms clamped around him as pain shot through his chest. The men dragged him away as two other men pulled Nicole off him. “Get your filthy hands off her!” he snarled.
Nicole fought them, shouting out threats against them. Triton closed his eyes and searched for his power. He had to have some.
I’m sorry. You won’t find any.
Sypher, if you have any humanity at all, give me some of my power back.
It doesn’t work that way. Believe me; I would give my own life to help you right now. But I can’t.
Triton and Nicole were dragged into a cavern filled with cloaked men. Shouts of surprise and shock echoed off the walls.
“What is the meaning of this?” a grey-haired man in a blue cloak shouted. He was standing alone in the center of a round room rimmed with stone benches, three levels high, and packed with people.
“These two were found wandering the tunnel,” the man who’d captured them said as he held Nicole, who squirmed in his tight grip.
“It’s a sign from the gods!” a man shouted from the crowd. “They want a sacrifice! We should kill the woman!”
A young man stood looking desperately around at all the faces. “No! What are we? Are we servants of the gods, or a raving mob? How do we know they weren’t sent to us? How do you think the gods will react if we kill their messengers?”
“Baccus is right,” the blue-cloaked man said. “We need to find out who these two are before we decide what to do with them.”
“And if we find they are not messengers?” a middle-aged man with long, black hair streaked with grey stood up. “Hector, will you be willing to take the next step?”
All eyes were on the old man, who sighed—resigned. “Yes.”
Most of the people looked happy with that answer. That was not encouraging. Triton turned to Nicole and willed her to look at him. She was too engrossed with the crowd around her to pay attention. She looked terrified. He hoped she would stick to their original plan and try to convince them who they were.
The dark-haired man stepped forward. “I volunteer to question the woman.”
Hector frowned, but he nodded and said, “And I will question the man. But, Rasmus…” He paused as if to gauge his words. “She’s not to be harmed. If she is to become a sacrifice, she must be unblemished.”
Triton knew they would be separated, but knowing it didn’t make it any less painful. Nicole screamed, kicked, and cursed at her captors as they led her away. Triton wanted to fight too, but he was having a hard enough time staying conscious as it was. He didn’t want to lose a moment. He needed to communicate with the leader before the other, more radical members decided to take matters in their own hands.