Dolos rubbed his cheek. "I guess I had that coming."

"Thank you. For..." I couldn't even form the words, I had so many emotions warring inside me. But gratitude had somehow displaced anger all of a sudden.

Dolos nodded. "I did it for her as much as for you. And for myself, as well. As you may have gathered, I do most things for myself." He shrugged. "It's in my nature. Gods have very little say in who they are."

"Are you looking for sympathy?"

"I'm not saying there aren't upsides - eternal life, immense power - but if you're the god of tricksters then you are a bit of bastard whether you like it or not." He shook his head. "Anyway, you shouldn't be thanking me. If I could have helped your mom, I would have done so years ago. It wasn't my contrition that changed Zeus's mind, it was you."

"Me?"

"He likes humans, especially strong ones. Especially strong women. Come to think of it," he pulled a face, "I know I'm a little late to pull the whole 'Dad' thing, but try not to be seduced by any swans or bulls or shafts of light; it's probably Zeus."

I couldn't help smiling.

"I really would have helped her before if I could," he murmured. "She's a remarkable woman, your mother. An extraordinary capacity to love."

"Then why did you leave her?"

Dolos stared at the ground. "Because I have no capacity to love. God of bastards, right here. When women become attached, I move on. But your mom... You can believe me or not, and I wouldn't blame you if you didn't, but with her it was harder. I kept track of her, kept looking back. I saw the two of you together and knew what I had thrown away. That's not something I often do. It doesn't make it better. And certainly doesn't excuse what happened next."

"Why her?" I asked; why had he used my mom when he needed to contact someone to save mankind.

He shrugged. "She was ideal. She was strong, and she cared more deeply than anyone I had ever known." He shook his head. "If I had known the effect it would have on her mind, then of course we would never have done it. Never. But..." He paused a moment, collecting his thoughts. "I see now, that although I never meant to do her harm, I didn't try hard enough to prevent it. I never considered what might happen, and once it had happened, I never tried to help you. I cheated myself out of getting to know an extraordinary girl. It's hard to believe that you're my daughter."

"Not so hard," I admitted.

We sat in silence awhile before I spoke.

"I don't think I can forgive you."

"Good. That's how it should be. Gods shouldn't be forgiven their mistakes."

"I won't forget, either," I added. "You didn't have to help me in the trials. You didn't have to help my mom today. I won't forget and," I drew a deep breath. "I am glad you're my father."

The look of happiness on my dad's face was something to behold. "Really? Like, really?"

"Honestly? I don't know. I am who I am because of you. Oftentimes, I hate who I am, but it's who I am, you know?"

Dolos nodded. "I'll take that."

As we walked back towards the car, I felt Dolos nervously brush my hand, and I took it. The feeling of betrayal that would once have plagued me at even the notion of holding my father's hand was nowhere to be found, I had laid that ghost to rest.

"Sorry for taking your human effigies," I said. "Zeus just gave them to me."

"I'd have given them to you myself," Dolos replied. "On which subject; would you like the apartment?"

"Seriously?"

"Provided you keep my portrait," he said, adding, "it is, after all, stunning."

I laughed and Dolos went on.

"It's been my bachelor pad and... I'm not sure that's the life I want anymore. You'll put it to better use. And," he added with a twinkle in his eye, "seems like you'll need the space."

We could see the guys up ahead, waiting patiently for me by the car.

"They're not strictly human, you know."

I shrugged. "Nor am I, strictly.”

"You could do a lot worse."

"I don't think I could do any better."

"There's money in the bank, too," Dolos continued.

"You can't buy me, you know."

"I know, and that's the point," explained Dolos. "If you're going to change the world, then you'll need some cash to do it, as well as the guys' help. Changing the conscience of earth isn't an easy task. Zeus was right about that. I can't do it for you - anything I do turns bad because of my basic nature - but I can give you a good start."

"I won't let you down."

"Never mind me, don't let yourself down." He turned to face me and put a hand on my shoulder. "The world isn't full of bad people, but it is full of selfish ones, people who can't see the cost of their own pleasure, who don't get the harm they do by filling their pockets, who haven't the empathy to understand the misery of those they mistreat. I don't know if you can grift humanity out of its greed and selfishness, but if anyone can, then I daresay it's you."

"Will I see you again?"

"If you want. And in the meantime, I'll be watching."

He smiled at me, and for a moment I saw the truck driver who had saved my life, and the dog catcher who had saved my life, and the father I used to dream about when I was a little girl who would magically come back and make everything alright. Real life doesn't work like dreams, nothing is that simple, but as real life goes, this was pretty damn close to perfection.