I TORE PAST Bart, who was polishing the floor near the stairs, nearly bowling him over as I went. I had to get away from Roth. One more second in his arms would have ruined everything. I knew that as surely as the sun rose in the east. His effect on me was intensifying to an alarming degree. I should be angry—first mauled by Paris and then Roth. But I knew they were two far, far different things. Paris was a momentary trespasser, one who did not tempt me. Roth, on the other hand, fed my darkest passions, something I had vowed never to give in to again. My body kept betraying me, needing the touch only Roth could give. I’d never missed a male’s caress, never so much as looked twice at any male since Farrow. I had learned my lesson well, keeping myself cold and standoffish at all times. But Roth stripped away all my armor, piece by piece, until nothing was left except that young, foolish girl in the Forgotten Forest, desperate for love and affection.

Damnit! If I didn’t snap out of it, I would have no chance of being reunited with Artemis and my sisters. Instead, I would be Ares’s slave and likely wishing for a death that would not come. He would use me until the last ounce of my soul was twisted and broken before casting me into Hades. One look into his cruel eyes was all it took to know the depth of evil within him was bottomless. I’d set up the game and would have to play by its rules, no matter the cost.

I bounded up the stairs and cloistered myself in my room, crawling into my bed and starting up my laptop. Ares was breathing down my neck, forcing my hand. It had been over eleven months since their meeting in the Valley of Thrace. I had spent every day since then tracking down Roth, a quest that took me all over the world and even into the Underworld. When I’d finally lighted upon him in France, I had only a short time to return him to Ares before the god claimed me. That was the deal I had struck and the one I intended to keep. The memory of the blood-filled hourglass and Ares’s promise of untold tortures for me if I should fail, made me feel like a trapped animal—as if I were the incubus inside Roth, aching to get out.

Roth, who had been nothing but kind to me. Who awakened feelings in me I thought were long-ago dead and buried. His mouth… I shook my head violently. I needed to start working to stop my mind from straying to thoughts of Roth’s hands on my body. Writing was the only thing that could get me back on track and silence the fear—and desire—inside.

Cracking my knuckles, I leaned back into the pillows and propped the computer on my lap, waiting for inspiration to hit so I could begin the first chapter. I sat for a while, staring at the white screen as the blinking cursor silently mocked me. I knew I would never finish the book, never titillate the Underworld with tales of the incubus, because I would be back on Olympus with my sisters. But still, I needed to get something down, something to memorialize these fleeting moments. As much as I wanted to leave this world behind me and return to my sisters, writing would always be a part of me.

It took a while, but eventually, the ideas began to come. Roth’s complicated beginnings made for an interesting opener, and I was careful to build suspense until the moment of his death. Perhaps I embellished a bit, making Roth’s killer out to be more of a vicious brute than what Roth had described, but history was written by the victors, and Roth had long outlived his murderous Roman commander.

In the retelling, I felt the same stab of betrayal that stung me when I was deep in the catacombs with Roth. I too knew something about being betrayed by the boss, as it were. Funny, I’d never really thought of it as a betrayal until now. I had always believed Artemis was infallible and her decrees—though sometimes harsh—were inherently fair. But after what happened to Roth, I wasn’t so sure that those in charge of the fates of others understood the weight of their decisions. Not by half.

The hours crept by as I labored over my manuscript. I chewed my fingernails at intervals, though they grew back within minutes. When the sun was well up, I sat back and gave the whole thing a quick read through.

I had to admit it was some of my best work, though riddled with typos and random bits of atrocious grammar. The only problem was that I’d made Roth too sympathetic a character. He needed to be more ruthless devil than heroic victim, but I couldn’t help the facts of his story. I was certain the subsequent chapters would devolve into scenes of gratuitous sex and all manner of deviant acts, so the scandalous tone would have to steep a bit before coming into full flavor.

I wanted to snuggle down into the bed and sleep the day away, but the feast from last night was long gone. After a quick shower, I slowly opened my door and peeked up and down the hallway. The house was silent, and Roth’s doors were shut. Heading down to the first floor, I took care not to make a sound. I snuck into the kitchen and rustled up some leftovers from last night’s dinner, along with some ripe peaches from the fruit tray, and wrapped them in a dinner napkin. Bart was nowhere to be seen, but I was glad of it. I just wanted to stuff myself and sleep away the day and the worries of the previous night.

“Storing up for winter?” Apollo breezed into the kitchen, startling me into almost dropping my stash.

“No, I-I-I…”

Apollo held up a patronizing hand. “No worries. I’ve left many a maid speechless.” He gave what he must have thought was his most charming smile and positioned himself between me and the door, leaving me no room to pass.

“So, a little birdie told me you were in Artemis’s service.” He grabbed an apple from a dish filled with fruit. Taking a large bite, he chewed while looking at me expectantly.

I didn’t know what to say. Though a god, and Artemis’s brother, Apollo was a classic scoundrel. “What of it?”

“I was just wondering why a sweet little maiden like yourself would ditch my sister.” He pored over every inch of my body.

“Why do you care?”

“Just curious.” He edged a little closer, offering me a bite of his apple with a lascivious grin.

“No, thank you. If that’s all, I think I’ll be going.”

“Don’t make me pull the ‘I’m a god, you must do what I say’ thing on you.” He still blocked my way. “That got old ages ago. Besides, I knew what the runes said the second I saw them. Remember, when I was in your bed?” He winked at her, as if they shared some sort of inside joke.

I blanched. “You’ve known the entire time?”

“Of course I did. I just wanted to see what you were up to. What can I say? I like intrigues starring brooding brunettes.”

“What does it matter to you?” Exasperated, I wished I’d tucked a blade in my jeans before coming downstairs. Though even I didn’t have the balls to pull a knife on Apollo. That would lead to a definite smiting. “Why is everyone so interested in why I got the boot from Olympus?”

“So you were booted?” He once again gave me that schoolboy smile that was far more roguish than winsome, in my opinion. It had none of Roth’s seductive qualities.

Realizing Apollo wouldn’t let me escape without giving him what he wanted, I decided to tell him. At this point, I wasn’t entirely sure he didn’t already know all my secrets. “Yes, I was. I stupidly bound myself to a male who turned out to have an unrepentant nymph addiction. I was humiliated in front of all my sisters. Left to die but then sent to the mortal world instead. One minute I was waiting for her dogs to come rip me to bits, the next minute I’m flung to earth, landing in a puddle of filth in the middle of a New York street. I made my way in the world and now I’m here.” I recited it like a litany. The pain in my chest started its relentless beat, reminding me of the sisterhood I’d lost. It had been almost silent the past few days with Roth, but now the familiar guilt and hurt washed over me, as if telling it made it happen all over again.

“Do you miss it?”

“Of course I do! There isn’t anything I wouldn’t give to be back there again, with my sisters. Nothing I wouldn’t do to see them again.”

“You’d do anything?” He stepped so close I could smell the apple on his breath, tart and sugary.

“Anything,” I put the force of my conviction into the word. “And I would appreciate it if you kept that information between us.”

Now I was eager to escape, and the burning humiliation in my cheeks made me want to fight him, no matter that he could strike me dead in an instant. I tensed, planning my next move.

After giving me an appraising glance, this one curiously devoid of his usual lust, he moved aside so I could pass. I hurried by, still on edge with my purloined leftovers in tow.

“It was her loss, you know.”

The remark took me by surprise, even more so when I turned and found an earnest look on his face. Right then I saw Zeus in him, the features of the king of the gods written plainly in the lines of his son’s face. It was Apollo’s true nature—something noble lurked inside, the playboy facade crumbling for a split second to reveal the god within.

But it didn’t last. Noticing my frank look, Apollo let his gaze wander south to the peaks of my breasts beneath my pajama top. So he is just like his father.

“Want some company in your room? I absolutely love eating peaches.” He rubbed a hand over his mouth.

I didn’t even bother to answer his question as I left the kitchen. I made my escape so quickly I nearly bumped into Roth, who’d been listening outside the door.