by Kristie Cook
“No. She gave you a gift?” He looked flabbergasted.
“There’s an inscription.” She opened the locket and tucked in her chin so she could read it. “The most common way people give up their power is by believing they have none.” She closed the locket and lifted her chin. “I guess she wants me to believe in myself more.” Then she added, “Too bad you weren’t there. It was really awesome.”
“Yeah, I left as soon as she transformed from the snake.” He swallowed a sip of his sweet iced tea, loaded with extra sugar. “I didn’t want to anger her. She would have sensed my presence.”
“Did you know she was the snake all along?” She loaded her fork.
“Not at first. I sensed her later, when we were walking home from the Holts’, which is part of the reason I didn’t go into depth with you about how I was feeling. I didn’t want her to overhear.”
“Oh. That makes sense now. But you scared me, you know. I was so hurt.”
He looked penitent. “I’m sorry. I really was thinking of you and all that you would sacrifice.” He kissed the tip of her nose and asked, “Can I make it up to you with a sunset cruise in Honolulu?”
She wiped some crumbs from her nose, which he had put there with his kiss. “The sun is setting in Honolulu?”
“Yes. If we hurry, we won’t miss it.”
She gave him her biggest smile. “That could work.”
***
The wind lifted her hair from her back before she opened her eyes and found herself on a catamaran holding Than’s hand with the sun setting in the distance behind the Honolulu cityscape. A tourist beside her jumped and muttered, “Excuse me. I didn’t see you there,” and Therese stifled a giggle. God travel was amazing.
The catamaran sailed along Waikiki Beach. The ocean glistened with an orange hue, and three dolphins leapt from the water with the volcanoes spread out on the horizon behind them. According to Than, Diamond Head, its vast silhouette resembling the profile of a tuna, was the largest of the volcanoes.
She quickly called her aunt—it would be later in Durango—and told her she was next door at the Melner cabin and Than would walk her over in a half hour, when the movie he and his sisters had rented was over. She hated to lie, but who could pass up a third sunset in one day?
Over a loud speaker came a series of clicks and long and short tones, and the captain of the vessel explained that a hydrophone enabled them to hear the dolphins speaking to one another underwater.
Therese couldn’t believe she could hear them so clearly. “Wow. I wish I could understand what they’re saying.”
“They’re excited about the boat,” Than said. “They get bored easily, and racing the cruise ships gives them something to do.”
She smirked. “That’s one theory.”
“It’s no theory, Therese.”
She looked at him with her mouth dropped open.
He laughed and turned to watch the dolphins.
In a low voice, she asked, “You can understand what the dolphins are saying?”
He answered softly, so the other mortals couldn’t hear, “Gods can understand all languages, including animal languages.”
She couldn’t speak for a minute. She had to let that sink in.
He put his face close to hers and pushed her windblown hair from her eyes. He spoke softly, again, tenderly, “That’s how I knew about the snake that night with Dumbo.”
“What a wonderful gift,” she murmured. She looked at him intently. “That just makes me more certain of my decision.”
He covered her lips with his.
***
Outside of her house in the dark night at half past midnight, while clouds obscured the stars and the moon, Therese and Than walked up the gravelly drive. Therese didn’t want the day to end. It had been so perfect. “When will I see you again?” she asked as they approached the steps to the front of her house.
“Tonight, if you want, after you visit a while with your aunt and her boyfriend. I suspect they waited up for you. I could wait for you in your room.”
Therese heaved a deep breath, desire prickling her skin. Would he touch her again the way she longed to be touched? He must have sensed the mood washing over her, because he pulled her body close to his, nearly crushing her against him, and let out a sigh.
“Mmm,” she purred. “That sounds good. I’ll be right up.”
He gave her a sideways grin. “Talk with your aunt first.”
“Right. Good idea.”
Than walked her in and Therese found that Carol and Richard had, indeed, waited up for them, and she wondered if he had other powers, like seeing the future. Luckily, her aunt said she was glad Therese was having fun. They spoke briefly before Than said goodnight to Carol and Richard and then left through the front door. Therese followed him back out through the screened front porch. “Later,” she whispered with a smile.
“That’s a promise,” he whispered back. He pecked her cheek and vanished.
Therese sighed and crossed back into the living room, taking her favorite chair by the empty fireplace. Clifford jumped in her lap. She wondered if he had anything to say to her. She’d have to ask Than later.
“Hi boy. Did you miss me?” she asked her dog.
He panted and wagged his tail.
She laughed. “I’ll take that as a yes.”
“Did you have fun today?” Carol asked from beside Richard on the sofa. Carol’s legs were curled up beneath her, and she and Richard shared a quilt. They had the television turned on to a movie.
“One of the best days of my life,” Therese said. “I wouldn’t have thought it possible a month ago.”
Carol and Richard exchanged looks of amusement, but then Carol said, “Be careful, Therese. You’re at that age when a person gets her first broken heart.”
“I’m not worried,” Therese said with a sly smile.
“We might also want to discuss a curfew. Eleven o’clock sounds more reasonable than after midnight for a fifteen-year-old.”
Therese sighed.
Carol and Richard asked more about her day, and Therese made up stories about sightseeing in Durango. She turned her Parisian cruise into white-water-rafting and her London-Bridge-gazing into a lift over Purgatory Mountain Resort.
“Oh, what good ideas,” Carol said. “Richard and I should have come along. He’s never done those things.”
“You and I can go tomorrow, then,” Richard said. “You can take a day off, can’t you?”
“I don’t want to leave Therese here alone all day.”
“I won’t be alone,” Therese pointed to the back deck. “The officer will be here. Plus, Than and I are going to …” an idea hit her. “Than said he’d help me sort through mom and dad’s clothes and things. I’ve decided to donate most of them to charity so someone can get use out of them.”
Carol got up and crossed the room. “That’s a great idea, sweetheart.” She kissed Therese’s cheek. “Oh, I’m so glad to hear you’re ready for that.”
“Maybe you want to go through mom’s stuff?”
“I took one sweater I gave her a few years back.” Carol returned to the couch. “I don’t really want anything else, I don’t think. And you should keep her jewelry and pass it on to your daughter one day.”
“I guess you’re right. But I won’t keep all of it. So let me know if there’s something you want.”
“Maybe one ring to remember her by—the opal ring my mom gave her as a graduation present.”
“Sure.” Therese couldn’t wait another minute to meet Than upstairs in her room, so she faked a yawn, said she was sleepy, wished them good night, and used every ounce of self-control to resist running up the stairs.
Chapter Thirty: Hope
Than popped down to his rooms to wash and change into some fresh clothes and then popped back up to Therese’s room to wait. He felt lighter in spirit and more joyful in heart than ever in his life. Never had he imagined that Death could find a companion willing to spend eterni
ty by his side. Lonely and desolate he had felt, though he had found some satisfaction in knowing he was bringing an end to pain and suffering, offering peace to tormented souls, and ushering in justice to the evil ones. As much as his duties had sometimes pleased him, never had they made him feel this good. Surely nothing could compare to the feeling that one is loved by and devoted to another.
He imagined now how he would alter his rooms to bring pleasure to his new bride. He would fill them with the souls of animals and plants. He glanced over at Puffy, the hamster, and Jewels, the tortoise. He could hear Clifford downstairs with the humans. He would be waiting for them and would bring them directly to his chambers. Perhaps Clifford should come down with Therese. That would make the transition easier for her, and the dog would be happier to remain with the soul his had so rigidly imprinted upon. Puffy’s time was near, Than sensed, but Jewels would live another fifty or more years; nevertheless, when the time came, he would bring her soul to Therese.
And there would be music! Than would encourage Therese to play her flute in his parents’ palace. Hermes and Apollo would be invited to join her. The Underworld will become a better place with her presence.
And they would swim together. He had never before thought to glide through even one of the many waters of the Underworld. Each river played a part in helping the souls of the dead to deal with their afterlife. The Acheron was a transit river on which Charon moved his ferry. The Lethe helped the souls to forget. The Cocytus provided a place for souls to wait when the judges could not reach a proper decision; it was a kind of holding place, like the human concept of purgatory. The Phlegethon was full of fire, though it didn’t burn or produce heat, and helped bring light to the darkness that would otherwise envelop them. The Styx was a sacred river on which the gods made their oaths. Than had always seen the rivers as practical functions in his duties and not features to be enjoyed. Because his godly form was less sensually perceptive than his mortal form, it just hadn’t occurred to him. But now that he could feel, really feel the world around him, he would remember these feeling and use them to further enjoy his surroundings down there. And he would help Therese enjoy them, too. They would play together in the Styx, which ran right by his rooms.
He would spend the rest of eternity thinking of ways to please his wife.
Chapter Thirty-One: A Lot to Sort Out
Than was waiting for her on the chair beneath her window. He had changed into a comfortable t-shirt and loose cotton trousers. He smelled clean, and his hair was wet.
“That’s not fair.” Therese leaned over and took in his scent, touched his hair. “You took a shower.”
He gave her a devilish grin. “We have all night. Go ahead and shower, if you want.”
As anxious as she was to be in his arms again, she wanted to smell good, too, and after all their travels, she could use some refreshing. “I won’t be long. Oh, and while I’m in there, I want to try something.”
He stood up and gave her a look of surprise. “What?” He shifted his weight from one foot to the other and clasped his hands together like a juror about to read the verdict.
She could tell then that he was as inexperienced as she. Of course he had never been with anyone, she thought. He said she was the first to ever touch him, to ever kiss him. “Relax and wait here. I’m going to try to pray to you, to see if you can hear me.”
“Oh.” He seemed a little relieved, but disappointed, too, as he unclasped his hands and fell back into the chair.
She turned on the shower and undressed as she waited for the water to get warm. Once inside with the curtain closed, and as she shampooed her hair, she whispered, “Than, I hope you can hear me. I figured out how I can thank Aphrodite and Pallas Athena for their gifts. We’ll have to go to Greece, though. I hope that’s okay. I want to donate my parents’ clothes to charities that support their temples or their memories or something. I’ll have to do a little research to get the specifics straight.” She rinsed her hair and babbled on, hoping he could hear. She soaped down her body and rinsed herself, all very quickly and eagerly, and turned off the water. “Anyway, my aunt and her boyfriend will be gone tomorrow. I told them you were going to help me go through my parents’ clothes. You should have seen my aunt. She seemed really glad.”
She took her nightshirt from the hook on the back of her bathroom door and slipped it on along with a pair of fresh undies. Then she opened the door to her bedroom. “Did you get that?”
He smiled at her from the chair. “Every word. No one has ever prayed to me like that before.”
She crossed the room and sat on his lap, appearing more confident than she looked, for she still found it hard to believe that this handsome god was her boyfriend. “Do you like my idea?”
“As a matter of fact, yes. There’s a group in Acropolis devoted to memorializing Athena and supporting her values of peace and justice. They clothe the poor. There’s another group on the Cyprus Island that raises money to hold an annual festival in Aphrodite’s honor. They would take your donations as well. The goddesses are going to love you for this.”
She played with his wet hair and kissed his forehead. “I’m glad you like my idea. So can we go to Greece tomorrow?”
“Absolutely. And that gives me an idea as well.” He gave her a playful look.
She narrowed her eyes. “What are you smiling about?”
“While we’re in Greece, we can go to Mount Olympus and maybe persuade my parents to meet you. My mom should already be there, so it would just be a matter of convincing my dad to leave the Underworld.”
She frowned.
“What’s wrong?”
“I’m a little nervous. You’re my first boyfriend. I’ve never had to meet the parents of a boyfriend before, and, well, meeting yours sounds a bit, I don’t know, daunting.”
“Don’t worry.” He kissed her neck. “You’ll do fine. Maybe we’ll take your flute along.”
Like the notion of performing for the gods of the Underworld was supposed to make her less worried. “And chocolate?”
He laughed. “Yeah. And chocolate.”
She kissed his cheek and sighed. “I want to know more about you,” she said.
“Like what?”
“What’s an average day like for you as the guide for the dead? I mean, do a lot of people die in one day?”
“On average, and only considering the past ten years, about a hundred thousand people and maybe twice that amount of animals.”
Therese frowned. “Per day?”
He nodded.
She looked down at the floor, her mouth suddenly dry.
“What?”
“That’s so sad. What do they mostly die of?”
“Hunger.”
“That seems so … preventable.”
“Yeah.”
She continued to gaze at the floor.
“Is there something else bothering you?”
“This is going to sound so selfish.”
“Tell me. I want to know.”
“Well, how would you ever have time for me?” She blushed. “Sorry. That sounds so, selfish and immature. But, I mean, think about it. When would we ever be together? It sounds like you have to work nonstop.”
He laughed. “Now don’t freak out, okay?”
“What do you mean?”
“I can be in several places at once.”
Her mouth dropped open. “I don’t understand. How is that possible? I mean, are you somewhere else right now?”
“Right now you have my undivided attention, but when I’m acting as the death guide, I can be at many places at the same time.”
“That’s hard to grasp. So there’s like a whole bunch of your clones running around?”
He shook his head. “No, no, not clones. In each instance, it’s me, only me, and completely me, and not an imitation of some sort. I disintegrate into many selves. Right now I am integrated into one.”
“I still can’t picture it.”
“You know how
you can be on your computer, on the phone, and listening to music at the same time? You might also be petting Clifford, eating a snack, and glancing out the window.”
Therese nodded. “So?”
“Well, I can do a million more things at the same time as a human, even though I have one brain that is aware of the million things I’m doing and the million places I am at.”
“Okay, I think I’m beginning to understand. But then why can’t you be with me and be the guide for the dead at the same time? Why did Hip have to take over for you?”
He moved a strand of hair from her face and pushed it behind her ear. “Because as the death guide, I would endanger your life. As long as one part of me is acting in that capacity, no human could survive my company.”
“Oh.” She thought about that for a moment. “Then why can’t you do Hip’s job and be with me?”
“Because then you’d fall asleep around me.”
She laughed. “That’s hard to imagine.” She touched his cheek. “So is there anything you can do while you’re with me?”
He cracked a smile. “Oh, I can think of something.”
She laughed and lightly slapped his chest. “I mean somewhere else!”
“No. As long as I’m in my mortal form, I can’t disintegrate. I have to shift into my godly form.”
Her eyes opened wide. “This isn’t your usual form?”
He shook his head. “No. I’m brighter. Too bright for your eyes. Any more questions?” He leaned in.
She closed her eyes and shook her head.
He kissed her neck again, enkindling her quickly and unexpectedly. Her body felt like it was inflamed, the heat rising within her and flooding all of her senses. She ran her fingers through his soft, wet hair and met his lips with hers. He dazzled her, overwhelmed her, made her want to soar across the sky. Their slow, romantic kisses turned into feverish, passionate ones, and he lifted her up and carried her to the bed. He gently laid her down on her bed without moving his mouth from hers. He moved on top of her, his body hot and hard against hers. She clung to his hair, keeping his face next her hers.
“Mmm,” she moaned.
He pulled away and collapsed beside her on his back.
