Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 107826 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107826 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
“Don’t joke. Not right now. Not about this,” I whisper. There’s a horrible burning in my throat and behind my eyes. I am a Kasios and we don’t cry. I instantly make a liar out of myself when something wet slips from the corner of my eye.
“I’m not joking.” My brother scoffs, but Theseus just leans closer and lowers his voice. “I won’t pretend I know what proper love looks like. I’m just feeling my way. I want Adonis in my life. At my side. I want the same with you. I want you to feel like you can be with Pandora, too.”
It’s too good to be true, and yet all I can see are pitfalls. “We’ll never be safe. The city is coming down around us, and Minos isn’t going to stop.”
“He’s not going to stop,” he agrees. Now, he finally looks at Perseus. “Find out what he had in those ships and you’ll get an idea of what he’s planning. He’s going to continue to destabilize the city. Probably has something up his sleeve for the barrier, too. The enemy isn’t at your gates today, but you can bet your ass they’ll be there the second they can get access to the city. At the rate you’re going, there won’t even be a fight. They’ll show up, off you and whoever is left standing, and take over. All they need is a good story and the public will welcome them with open arms.”
“I am aware,” my brother bites out. “If you have nothing more to offer by way of information and you’re no longer one of the Thirteen, what’s to stop me from making you disappear? You’ve caused me and this city nothing but problems.”
“No.” It hurts to raise my voice, but I do it all the same. “Don’t you dare.”
He looks frustrated enough to rip out his hair. “You know the cost, Aphrodite. The city comes first. Before our personal happiness. Before everything. That man is a threat to Olympus, and he needs to be removed before he can cause more harm.” When I just glare, he curses. “Even if we don’t kill him, you have to get a divorce. You’re Aphrodite. If you’re married, you need to be married to someone with power. If he’s not Hephaestus, he’s no one.”
He’s right. I hate that he’s right. I stare at my hand linked with my husband’s. Right now, the thing to do is free myself and declare that I want a divorce. To rise from the ashes of this catastrophic relationship and set my sights on someone who will help stabilize the power structure in Olympus as much as possible. One of the scions of a powerful legacy family. Someone who will be firmly in my pocket and whose alliance will benefit the city.
I…don’t want to.
Theseus runs his thumb over my knuckles. “Aren’t you tired of being a weapon they pick up and use until it’s beaten and broken? I sure as fuck am. You’ve sacrificed so much for this city, and the first thing they do to thank you is try to kill you and take your power for their own.” His voice goes low and fierce. “They don’t deserve you, Eris.”
“Shut the fuck up,” Perseus snaps. “You don’t know what you’re talking about. What we’re trying to accomplish.”
“Trying and failing from where I’m sitting.”
“Stop it. Both of you.” I don’t yell, but they both obey. I look at my brother, at the blatant evidence of the price the city demands written across his face. He won’t bend, and he won’t break, but he might do exactly as he threatened and turn into the monster the city requires.
If someone asked me a week—even a few days—ago, I would have said I have the same resolve as Perseus. That I’m willing to pay whatever price Olympus demands as long as the city benefits. Maybe I was naive, but I never expected the burden to be so heavy. “What if I wasn’t Aphrodite?”
Perseus flinches. “Aphrodite—”
“Her name is Eris.”
I don’t look at Theseus, even as my heart feels like it just sprung wings. Instead, I hold my brother’s gaze. “We can’t lose Helen as Ares—she’s too formidable and she’s proven to be a good fit—and you’re Zeus. But with three of us in the Thirteen, it’s put some of the legacy families on the outs with us. We need them if we’re going to unify and survive this.”
“Don’t.”
I clear my throat. “I won’t pretend this isn’t selfish, Perseus.” I gingerly touch the bandage on my stomach. It was very foolish to skip those pain meds, but at least my mind is clear. Even if it feels like I’m free-falling. “I’m so tired. I was suited to battles of public perception, not ones with guns and knives.” My throat burns and I swallow a few times. “Please don’t make me do this. Please.”