Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 89763 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 449(@200wpm)___ 359(@250wpm)___ 299(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 89763 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 449(@200wpm)___ 359(@250wpm)___ 299(@300wpm)
I expect Hera to leave the same way Asterion did, but she motions for me to stand. When I raise my brows at her, her lips curve in a way that feels like a threat. “Olympus isn’t nearly as safe as it used to be. You and your father made sure of that. I’ll walk you home.”
Home. What a joke. Dionysus doesn’t seem to be a complete monster, but his penthouse will never be home to me. Despite everything, I find myself missing Aeaea. It’s just as corrupt as Olympus in its own way, but there were happy times there in my childhood.
I’m not naive enough to ignore the fact that those memories were with Icarus and not my father. How we used to play prince and princess of the castle, racing about in games of pretend as we explored the villa. The way old gardener Doris showed the patience of a goddess in teaching us how to garden. Icarus wandered off after only a few days, but I found peace with my fingers in the dark earth. In watching the seeds I planted grow into vegetables that nourished the body.
I doubt I’ll have much time to garden in my new life.
It’s only as we exit the coffee shop that I notice Hera’s personal guard. There isn’t a single man among their number, and they fall into ranks around us with military precision. I study them on our trip across the street. Their black uniforms could be mistaken for Athena’s or even Ares’s, except for the patch on their shoulder. A crown and two peacock feathers. Hera’s crest.
I’ll look into them when I have a little time, but I would wager a significant amount of money that these people came from Demeter’s ranks or perhaps from the countryside that surrounds Olympus. Hera seems too smart to surround herself with people who are loyal to anyone but her.
I wonder what Zeus has to say about that. He’s not a fool; surely he realizes that his wife hates him. If he doesn’t… Well, I have enough to worry about.
We stop outside the doors to Dionysus’s building. The wind picks up Hera’s long dark hair, giving her an otherworldly appearance. She studies me. “You’ve come this far, Ariadne. Don’t falter now.”
There’s a threat beneath her words, but I’m too tired to force her to speak plainly. Instead, I make myself meet her gaze. “If I do this, you will also promise to protect my brother. Not with the Thirteen, not with some half-baked security squad. You personally, Hera.”
“He’s hardly my domain.” She shrugs. “I’m not in the habit of kidnapping folks. The best I can promise is that I will extend him an offer of protection. It’s up to him whether he decides to take it.”
Icarus will take some convincing. Even then, Hera’s protection is hardly all-encompassing. There are no guarantees. If Olympus falls, I’ll have to think of something else to keep my brother safe. A problem for another day. This is as good a deal as I’m going to get. Honestly, she could just demand I do what she wants and I wouldn’t have a choice. I have no power here; a pawn being moved back and forth by Asterion and Hera, subject to the whims of people more powerful than me. Just like I’ve always been.
I extend my hand. “You have yourself a bargain.”
9
The Minotaur
With time to kill and no desire to face off with Minos again, I spend the next day stalking Dionysus. He’s the one among the Thirteen who I never paid much attention to. He was ordered off-limits at the party and therefore beneath my notice. The few interactions I’ve had with him have done nothing to convince me of his worth. He’s a thin white man who dresses in inexplicably fancy clothing and always seems to be in an altered state of mind. At the party, it was alcohol, but in the time I’ve spent following him today, I watched him take no fewer than three different kinds of drugs.
Or at least I assume the pills he’s been popping are drugs. I am certain the line he snorted is.
It doesn’t seem to affect him, though. He bumbles through his meetings with a carelessness that aggravates me. This is one of the thirteen most powerful people in this fucking city, and he doesn’t seem worried in the least he might be a target for assassination or that the city itself is about to be under siege. Not that he would know that last bit, but the rest of the Thirteen walk around as if they have targets on their backs or with a fierce bravado, daring someone to try them. Dionysus does neither.
As best I can tell, his meetings today in the dingy bars of the warehouse district are regarding the importation of the substances he’s testing. Publicly, his prestige comes from the entertainment he offers. He’s partners with several of the largest businesses in the upper city and a handful in the lower city and has exclusive distribution to said businesses when it comes to alcohol. I’ve tasted his vintages, and they’re fine. I’m not really a wine guy, though.