by Linsey Hall
“It will,” Maximus said. “Chaos begets more chaos.”
“We need to stop the Titans,” Bree said. “They’re the key.”
She was right.
Sophie arrived at our table and set down a tray of coffee mugs. There was also a plate of scones and butter and jam. She smiled apologetically. “They’re just from the shop down the corner. Pre-made. But they’re all we’ve got.”
I grabbed a scone greedily, my stomach growling. “They look fantastic.”
I took a big bite, not bothering with the butter and jam. They were a little dry, but I couldn’t have cared less.
After I swallowed, Jude caught my eye. “What did you learn from the Amazons?”
“Ah, that.” I set the scone down. “You’ll be surprised.”
She raised her dark brows.
“The Titans told me where they are.”
“What?” A chorus sounded from around the table.
“They told you?” Bree asked, incredulous.
“Yep. Apparently when I was with them last, they created some kind of connection with my soul. It allows them to deliver a message to me whenever they want to.”
“They waited until now, so they were clearly preparing for something,” Maximus said.
“And the message was their location?” Jude asked. “Why the hell would they give that up?”
“They want me for something. Maybe just to kill me, but I think it’s more.”
“They sent the army to the gates for you,” Bree said.
“Incentive to come to them. They want me to fight them, and they say they plan to kill me.”
“But to give up their location?” Jude asked. “That’s insane.”
“They’re confident,” I said. “I don’t think they can catch me otherwise—they can’t get through the castle walls, after all. And I’m always on the move, so catching me is hard.”
“They know we don’t have the numbers to defeat them.” Bree scowled.
“Not yet.” A grim expression crossed Maximus’s face. “We’ll need an army.”
“Definitely.” I described the number of people I’d seen in the compound. “And they’re about to collect more followers. They’re working on a spell that will release their dark magic again. There’s so much of it inside them that they would convert the earth to evil, all in one fell swoop. And they’ll be worshipped again—I think that’s a big deal to them.”
“What kind of spell?” Jude asked.
“Just a sec.” I got up and asked Sophie for a pen and paper, then sat down and drew the golden crystal contraption I’d seen on the top of their tower. “I think this is part of their plan, but they need more ingredients for the spell to make that thing work.”
“They just told you all of this?” Jude asked, skeptical. “They sound like villains laying out their plan in some bad movie.”
I nodded. “I know. It’s weird.”
“It could be as straightforward as it seems,” Maximus said. “They want to kill you so they draw you to them. But I doubt it. They want you for something. They want you badly enough that they invited you. Knowing that you could bring an army.”
“It’s going to have to be a big army.” Bree sat back, her expression grim. “But you can’t go to their fortress. No way.”
“According to the Amazons’ Great One, I’m the only one who can defeat the Titans.”
“Fate decrees it.” Jude scowled. “But it’s so risky.”
“It’s risky for everyone,” I said.
She rubbed a hand over her face again, weariness personified. “We need to figure out what that contraption is.”
Maximus pulled my drawing toward him, studying it. “You said the crystal was golden and that it rotated?”
I nodded.
“I think it’s a bind-breaking device. It’ll destroy the magic on their binding. But it can’t be strong enough to destroy the spell we placed on them.” He sighed. “Unless they have a powerful enough power source.”
“There aren’t many of those in existence,” Jude said. “Most are protected by the Order of the Magica.”
“I’ve heard of one in Thailand. An ancient one.” He shook his head. “But even it may not be strong enough.”
“We need to go get it anyway,” Bree said. “Beat them to it.”
Jude nodded. “You go, Bree. You’re fast. Bring Ana with you for safety.” She looked at Maximus. “Can you tell them how to get there?”
“I can provide a bit of direction, but not everything you need.”
“I got it.” Bree grinned, ruthless. “Nothing will stop me.”
“Good. If you can get it before them, it will seriously slow them down. We need to raise an army before they complete their device and release their power.”
“If only our binding spell had been stronger,” I said.
“We bought ourselves time we desperately needed.” Jude looked at me. “And what’s your plan? You clearly still have something on your mind.”
I nodded. “I have to go to Mount Olympus to complete my transformation to Dragon God. Only then will I be strong enough to defeat the Titans.”
Jude nodded, a smile spreading across her face. “I like the sound of that.”
“More magic is always good.” Though I felt like I was about to burst at the seams, I had so much magic now. I looked at Maximus. “Will you come as backup?”
He nodded. “Of course.”
“Good.” Jude nodded. “We’ll work on getting that power source before they do and growing an army. When you’ve completed your transition, Rowan, we’ll attack. But be fast. We’re running out of time.”
Jude was so right about that. I could feel it pressing on my shoulders. The Titans had been clever about their offer, seeding it with just enough urgency and hope to really get me moving.
I was going to have to be cleverer than they were, that was for sure. Or we were screwed.
An hour later, Maximus and I stood outside of the bar where I’d first met Prometheus. I’d needed to collect a few more healing potions to replace the ones I’d used, and we’d wanted to give Prometheus time to get to his favorite bar. It was three hours ahead in Istanbul, so it was nearly noon here.
The Menacing Menagerie sat at my feet, clearly unwilling to let me go it alone here.
Maximus looked at me, his brow creased with concern. “You sure you’re okay? That was a nasty fight back there.”
“Fine.” I smiled at him. “Let’s go around back. I have an idea.”
He nodded, and followed me through the narrow alley at the side of the building. The back entrance was unguarded. Just a heavy wooden door with a few rubbish bins next to it.
I leaned up to whisper in Maximus’s ear. “I’m going to try to talk to the waitress real quick. Will you wait here?”
He nodded.
I looked down at Romeo, Eloise, and Poppy. “Hang out here, okay? I don’t know how they feel about critters in the kitchen.”
All three of them looked dreadfully offended, and I gave them an apologetic smile.
Romeo huffed. Fine, then.
I pushed open the door and stepped into the dimly lit hallway. My eyes adjusted, and I scanned the space, spotting the doorways to the bathrooms. This was the hallway I’d come into before when I’d needed to take my Sober Up potion. The entrance to the bar was about six feet away, and I crept up, peering inside.
Little tables crowded the space, but they were mostly empty. Prometheus sat at the same table he’d occupied last time I’d found him. He was as big and imposing as ever, but this time, he was far soberer. His clothes were clean and tidy, his face shaved and his dark hair swept back from his forehead. He sat hunched over a notebook, scrawling something. A small cup of steaming coffee sat at his elbow.
Yep.
My suspicions weren’t fully confirmed, but I was getting there. When I’d met him last, I’d taken him to be a drunk and worked on that assumption, trying to drink him under the table.
I’d b
een successful—sort of. I’d ended up with the info I’d wanted and a massive hangover. But I wasn’t entirely convinced he’d been the drunk I thought he was. I was even less convinced now. He looked pretty dang sober.
I hurried toward the fourth door in the hallway. It was shut, but if my guess was correct, it led to the kitchen.
I slipped inside, grinning at the sight of a cook quickly chopping vegetables behind a counter. He scowled at me.
“Can I speak to the waitress?” I asked.
He scowled again, but I spotted the same dark-haired woman who’d served our drinks when I’d been here last. She was fiddling with a strange little pot that steamed, and I hurried to her.
I stopped at her side, and she looked up, startled.
“Ayse, you need help?” the cook asked.
The waitress turned back to him. “I’m fine.” She looked at me. “What do you want?”
Magic sparked about her, a signature that I hadn’t noticed before. It smelled of lavender and felt like cold snow falling on my face. She was far more powerful than I’d realized.
I squinted at her. “You’re not a regular waitress.”
She arched a dark brow. “And you’re not a regular patron.”
I tried to get a better hit of her signature, but she locked it down tight. She was hiding something, but maybe it wasn’t my business.
“What do you want?” she asked.
“Just to ask some questions.”
“That’s what they all say.” She shook her head. “Trouble usually follows.”
“I can’t argue that. But I’m trying to get ahead of the trouble.” I tilted my head toward the bar. “The man who is in here all the time. He’s not a drunk, is he?”
She shrugged, but there was knowledge in her eyes.
The more I thought about it, the more this seemed like some kind of secret supernatural headquarters for something. The kind where people pretended to be normal—a waitress, a drunken patron—while actually doing something far more important.
I glanced at the cook, but he was ignoring me now. Without getting closer, I couldn’t figure out if he had any magic.
“I think this place isn’t what it seems,” I said. “And I think Prometheus was helping me last time I was here. Beyond just giving me info because I drank it out of him.”
“Maybe he was.”
“So if I went out there now, he might help me again? Without me having to drink him under the table?”
The corner of her mouth pulled up in a smile, and she stifled a laugh. “You were quite the sight last time.”
“I was a moron last time.” I’d made an assumption about Prometheus that had come back to bite me in the butt. “But I won’t be a moron this time.”
She shrugged. “Maybe you won’t be.” She leaned close. “But if you really need his help, and he’s resisting, remind him of his debt to humanity.”
“Debt?”
“He gave man fire. It was a blessing and a curse, leading us from our blissful youth in the dark into the light of adulthood.”
“What do you mean, exactly?”
“Fire brought many gifts. But it also brought war and greed and rage. He feels guilt over that.”
I remembered the myth. Prometheus had been the one to gift fire to the humans. He’d been punished for centuries, tied to a rock where an eagle ate his liver over and over again.
“Thanks.” I made a circular motion with my index finger, indicating the restaurant. “Good luck with whatever it is you do here.”
“Just saving the world.” She raised a little cup. “One coffee at a time.”
Yeah, something important was definitely going on here. I stopped by the alley to grab Maximus and the Menacing Menagerie, then we entered the bar.
Prometheus looked up as soon as we entered, his eyes narrowing. I smiled and waved, weaving my way between the tiny tables until I reached his.
“Mind if I join you?”
He waved his hand to indicate the chairs. “I doubt I have a choice.”
“Well, no. I do have to ask you for something.” I pulled out a chair for the Menagerie, and they all climbed on. Then I sat on my own.
His mouth flattened and he nodded, then he looked at Maximus. “You were here the other night as well, weren’t you? When she tried to drink me under the table.”
“Succeeded,” I said.
He shrugged. “But only because I let you.”
Maximus sat and stuck his hand out. “Maximus Valerius.”
They shook, and Prometheus looked at the Menagerie. “Who are you?”
“The Menacing Menagerie,” I said. “Formerly the Magical Menagerie, greatest all-animal circus in Europe.”
Prometheus’s brows rose. “You must be skilled.”
The three nodded.
Prometheus looked between Maximus and me. “What do you want now?”
“I need a guide up Mount Olympus, and I’ve been told you’re the guy.”
“Me or Atlas. Go bother him.”
“He’s busy.” And damned hard to find.
“So am I.” He indicated his notebook, and I looked at it. The scribbling writing disappeared as soon as my gaze fell upon it.
“Nice trick.”
He grinned. “I’m full of them.”
I leaned closer. “I really need your help.” As quickly as I could, I explained the threat of the Titans.
“Those bastards?” he asked. “I knew they were making a fuss about rising.”
“Will you help us, then?” Maximus asked.
“What will you do for me?”
“It’s not so much what we’ll do for each other,” I said. “It’s more what we’ll do for the world.”
He scoffed.
“I know you care,” I said. “And I think you’re some kind of secret operative who does good deeds.”
He looked at me like I was nuts. “Like help old ladies across the street?”
“On a bigger scale.”
He scowled, expression skeptical, but I could tell there was more to him. So I pulled out the big guns. “I was told to remind you of your debt to the world.”
His scowl only deepened. His gaze flicked toward the kitchen, where I assumed Ayse was watching. He was clearly considering it, and I held my breath.
“Fine.” He held up a hand. “But on one condition. After this is over, I’d like the help of your friends there.” He pointed to the Menagerie. “With one little thing.”
“Is it dangerous?” I demanded.
Eloise perked up at the idea, and I knew that if he said yes, she’d only be more inclined to help.
“A bit, yes.”
We’ll do it.
I glared at Romeo.
He shrugged. We make up our own minds. We’ll help the big man so he’ll help you. Easy peasy.
“It looks like they’ve agreed,” I said.
A satisfied smile sliced across Prometheus’s face. “Good.”
“Can we get started now?” I asked.
“After lunch.”
“Can we have it on the go?”
He sighed, then nodded. “I rarely let anything get in the way of my stomach, you know. It’s no way to live.”
“Fair enough.”
He polished off his coffee, shoved his notebook in the pocket of his dark canvas jacket, and stood. He was one of the few people I’d ever met who was as tall as Maximus. Between them and the Menagerie, I had some good backup for Mount Olympus.
We swung by the kitchen, where we each picked up a savory pita filled with steaming meat. Even the Menagerie took one despite the fact that it hadn’t been in the bin first.
We ate in silence as we walked out onto the street. Prometheus polished his off in less than a minute, then turned to look at us. “It’s good news for you that I can transport.”
“Fantastic.”
“The less good news is that it’s not a fun journey.” He grinned, and it was just a little bit evil.
“We don’t go via t
he ether?” Maximus asked.
“Sorta.” His smiled widened, and he used his hand to draw a large circle in the air. The space filled with dark smoke, and a cold wind emitted from it. “Come on.”
He leapt into the circle, disappearing immediately.
“Crap.” I scowled at the portal.
Maximus didn’t hesitate. Just stepped in.
Romeo looked up at me. We’ll see you later.
“Wimp.”
He grinned, little fangs gleaming white. Smart.
I couldn’t argue with that. I gave the Menagerie a quick salute, ate the last bite of my pita, then jumped into the portal before it disappeared.
Instead of being sucked into the ether, I fell, hurtling through space as if I’d jumped off a cliff. Icy wind blasted by me as I plummeted through the cold air. A scream tore from my lips, and my stomach leapt into my throat. My hair whipped around my face and my eyes watered.
Holy fates, had we been tricked?
I tried calling on my magic, desperate to develop some kind of flying skill. And where was Maximus?
I tried looking down, but I couldn’t see anything. Just open sky and clouds as the cold wind nearly blinded me.
Oh fates, I am going to die.
4
All I could hear was my scream as I fell. I shrieked like a banshee, unable to stop myself. I fell for an eternity, or so it seemed.
Prometheus’s portal jerked me to a stop, as if I were tied to an invisible bungee cord. I blinked, my eyes watering, and realized that I was near the ground, floating slowly toward it. Prometheus’s portal was one hell of a ride.
I looked down, spotting Prometheus and Maximus standing on the ground. Maximus was white as a sheet, and an enormous inflatable mattress sat next to him. Clearly something he’d conjured.
Prometheus grinned up at me like a maniac. “Fun, huh?”
My feet hit the ground gently, and my stomach retreated to its proper place in my abdomen. I growled at Prometheus. “Jerk.”
He shrugged, a fake-innocent look on his face. “I warned you.”
“Not well enough.”
“The Menagerie was too smart to come?” Maximus asked.
“Yep.”
I turned in a circle, inspecting our surroundings. We were at the base of a massive mountain. Olympus soared into the sky, surrounded by clouds at the top. Down here, there was dusty ground and scrub brush. Slightly farther up were huge gray rock formations that I didn’t like the look of.
