A Curse of Gold

by Annie Sullivan

  It’s nothing like sitting atop a horse. This creature is wider, and it’s harder to figure out where to put my legs because of the wings.

  I wince as my ankle settles into place.

  “Are you okay to fly? Do you want me to take a look?” Royce asks, noticing my distress.

  His eyes are scrunched in concern, and his hand is so gentle where it rests on my knee, rubbing in small circles. His eyes are so kind, so full of concern—so full of love. Love I was just getting used to. Love I don’t want to lose.

  My resolve weakens, and the words are on the tip of my tongue. Maybe he and I could take these pegasi to look for Panacea. Triton could lead the others to Jipper. If he helped us with the pegasi, then maybe he’ll stay and help them fight Dionysus in my place.

  I close my eyes and take a deep breath.

  I can’t. There’s no guarantee we’d even find Panacea anyway—especially without Triton. And Lagonia needs me. The vision of Royce and Hettie dying plays over again in my mind. I can’t let Dionysus reach our shores. No matter the cost.

  I open my eyes and take his hand, giving it a squeeze. “No, it’s fine now.”

  More hissing cuts through the mist.

  “We should hurry,” I say.

  The creases around his eyes soften, but before Royce lets go of my hand, a commotion draws our attention.

  Triton sits astride one of the tallest creatures, and the pegasus is prancing back and forth beneath him, tossing its fiery mane from side to side.

  “Oh, fine, I didn’t mean what I said earlier,” Triton finally admits. “You look very regal. Just stop prancing.”

  The pegasus keeps kicking its feet up.

  “And you are also beautiful.”

  The pegasus gives its head one final, satisfied shake.

  Triton looks up to see us watching. He immediately straightens, his cheeks reddening. “Just a little family misunderstanding.”

  The creature snorts.

  Triton ignores him.

  “Thank you,” Royce says to Triton as he mounts his own pegasus, “for saving me back there and for helping Kora.”

  Triton gives Royce a brief nod. “Of course.”

  Royce offers a small smile in return.

  Hissing sounds from several sides.

  “Save the thank yous for later,” Hettie says. “They’re getting closer.”

  In response, Triton calls, “Lead us out, Lenny. Once everyone’s above the clouds, I’ll let you know what direction to go.”

  The pegasus’s wings unfold and jut outward. Then the creature leaps into the air, big, swooping flaps blasting us all with wind.

  The other pegasi quickly follow suit. I twine my fingers into my pegasus’s mane and hold on tight. There’s time for one breath, and then we’re launching into the air.

  After a few moments, we break through the smog of the island. Crisp, fresh air washes over me.

  Others break through after me, leaving holes in the brown cloud below as we congregate above the island.

  The view is magnificent in the midday sun. Sunlight glints off the water all the way toward the horizon, as though the entire sea is made of diamonds.

  It’s so much like the sunrises I used to watch from my palace balcony.

  A lump rises in my throat at the prospect of never returning to Lagonia. Of never seeing my father again.

  Tears leap to my eyes.

  I close my eyes and take a big breath of the clean air, hoping it will help calm me.

  “Is it your ankle?” Royce asks, bringing his pegasus close.

  I discreetly wipe at the tears. “It’s just so beautiful,” I say.

  He doesn’t take his eyes from me. “It is.”

  I blush as I turn away to watch the sun sparkle on the ocean water. And I try to pretend that it’s not glistening the same way on the tears falling even more forcefully down my cheeks.

  CHAPTER 22

  Flying through the air is like nothing else in the world. It feels as though my entire body has been replaced with air. Cool wind tangles around me as I lean in close to the pegasus’s neck. Every thwap of the creature’s wings echoes the thunder of wings around me.

  We’re like a giant red cloud gliding through the sky. Some men cling to their mount’s neck, eyes clamped shut while they mutter what might be prayers.

  Others, like Phipps, have their arms thrown out wide, letting the wind run over them as they laugh. I half expect him to try standing on the pegasus’s back next.

  We head away from the gorgon island and fly out to sea, toward where Triton expects Jipper to surface. But we have a lot of distance to cover.

  Eventually, the sun sets, turning the sky around us into an imitation of the sunrays imprinted on the seashell around my neck. Deep pinks and light reds drip around us, cradling us into the evening.

  They’re the same colors creeping up my leg. When the itching started around my bite, I’d taken a look. At first, I thought the maroon coloring on my skin might be a reflection of my pegasus’s hair, but I can feel it in my body, a rising heat slowly pulsing outward. It clenches at my stomach and throbs through my head. Sweat dots my brow, only to be whipped away by the wind. If it weren’t for the breeze, I’d be burning up.

  I take slow, long breaths as pain sears through my chest. I focus on the horizon, on the darkening sky, as stars melt into view.

  I count the stars over and over again to keep from closing my eyes, from letting the burst of fire that rises every time I close my eyes consume me.

  But as calming as I find the stars, I know someone who doesn’t enjoy their presence.

  My eyes go to Royce, and I urge my pegasus closer to his.

  He used to dream the stars would fall from the sky and turn into coins—the same coins that buried his father after he’d wished for a pile of money so big he’d never see the top of it.

  “They can’t hurt you,” I say loud enough for him to hear me over the beating wings.

  Royce extends his hand out to me.

  I lean over to grab it, but my body seizes beneath me at the sudden movement. My head spins and my stomach tightens. Warmth curls through me.

  I look at him, a small gasp escaping from my lips as pain paralyzes every inch of me.

  One minute my legs are tucked around the pegasus, the next the world spirals around me and I’m falling.

  Somewhere, someone is screaming.

  The sea and sky blur together, one unending loop of twisted blue. Gusts tear through me, ripping my arms away and then flinging them back. My legs kick uselessly against the air. I fight to gain control of my body, of what’s happening, but I can’t fight the torrent of the wind.

  I can’t even scream as my breath gets ripped from my body.

  The ocean rears up below me, ready to swallow me.

  I close my eyes, letting the poison’s heat flood through me.

  Then I crash.

  I expect the pain to be immeasurable, but the toxin dulls it. My chest contracts, and I realize I’m not drowning. I’m breathing. My eyes fly open.

  Somehow, Royce caught me. He holds me tightly against him. “It’s okay. I’ve got you,” he says as his pegasus recovers from its steep dive by skimming its hooves across the water before arcing back upward.

  I cling to Royce as we clear the dangers of the dark waves and bury my face against his chest, barely even noticing the gold buttons on his jacket as I try to steady myself and slow my rushing heartbeat.

  He smells like the island, all dirt and mud, but beneath that, there are hints of the saltiness of the sea. I breathe it in, willing it to force back the nausea welling up in my stomach.

  As the pegasus decelerates to a gentle hover, Royce pulls back to look down at me, his eyes quickly scanning my face. “Are you hurt?”

  “I’m all right. Thank you,” I say, taking a calming breath. “I must’ve—I must’ve gotten dizzy so high up.”

  “Is she okay?” Triton questions, the loud thundering of pegasi wings signaling his arr
ival along with Hettie and Rhat.

  “She’s all right,” Royce confirms, and Triton visibly relaxes back against his pegasus while Hettie lets out a relieved sigh and shares a reassuring look with Rhat.

  “Do you want to stop for the night?” Triton asks.

  I shake my head. I can’t let them stop. We barely have two days before Dionysus reaches Lagonia. And I don’t know how long I have. “No, I’m fine now. We should keep going as long as we need to tonight.”

  Triton studies me for a moment, and I think he’ll see through my lies. But slowly, he nods. “All right. We’ll keep going.”

  “Why don’t you ride with me until we stop, then?” Royce says to me.

  I nod. Not only do I not want to risk falling off again, but maybe this way I can save some energy by not having to focus on staying alert atop my pegasus. “Thank you.”

  “I’ll always be here to catch you when you need it,” Royce says, planting a gentle kiss on the side of my head. “And I’d carry you to the ends of the earth if you needed me to.” Then he urges his pegasus higher as the others do the same to rejoin the herd thundering across the sky.

  I release a breath and soften against him as we take our place amongst the cloud of pegasi, but the constant pounding of wings makes my head throb. I snuggle closer to Royce’s chest, trying to drown out the noise by focusing on finding his scent again beneath the stench of the island. But the wind steals it from me, leaving me nothing to concentrate on besides each new blossom of pain caused by every jostle of our pegasus.

  I fixate instead on keeping my arms locked around Royce as he cradles me, on how truly grateful I am to have found him, to have someone who’s willing to catch me when I fall, to carry me onward when I need it most.

  But that thought sends a sudden recollection spiraling through my mind—one that must have been jogged loose by Royce’s words.

  The Oracle tests.

  Specifically, the one Royce figured out about picking out and carrying the most valuable thing you could find in the cave. The Oracle had said that test proved we’d carry each other when we couldn’t carry ourselves. I hadn’t thought she’d meant it literally, but as more pain snakes up from my ankle and bites its way into every muscle, I have a feeling I’m going need him to carry me a great deal more than I ever could have expected in the coming days.

  And I know he’ll do it, that he’ll carry me anywhere, but I also know those moments I’ll spend clinging to him—and this one right here—might be some of our last few close ones.

  Tears prick at the corners of my eyes, but I blink them away. I chose this.

  So I don’t waste time. I melt into him, feeling every movement of his body, memorizing how my arms feel wrapped around him, enjoying just resting against him, wishing I never had to let go.

  Still, it seems all too soon, all too unfair, when Triton calls, “I’ve created a sandbar over there with more weapons for those that lost theirs. We can rest there for the night.”

  Royce’s pegasus touches down lightly on the sandbar. He slides off, holding me against him, and lays me gently onto the sand. He smooths back my tangled hair as I reluctantly release my grip on him.

  “How are you feeling?”

  “Fine.” I force a smile and hope he doesn’t hear the weakness in my voice.

  “Are you sure you’re okay?” he asks. “You look flush.” His hand goes to my cheek.

  I put my hand over his, pulling it away before he can feel the heat there. “Must be windburn.”

  Next to us, Phipps slides off his pegasus and helps Lenny down. Then he starts shouting orders, telling everyone to brush down the pegasi as best they can with their fingers. “I want their coats to shine. These guys need to be in top shape.”

  Royce rolls his eyes. “I better go deal with those two before the crew turns on them.” He gives my hand a squeeze before heading toward Phipps.

  As much as I want to call him back, to have him stay with me, I don’t. I let him go.

  Triton takes his spot, settling into the sand and staring out toward the dark waves lapping at the edge of our temporary oasis.

  “Looks like you humans don’t get sea legs or air legs under you easily,” he jokes.

  “Very funny,” I say.

  “I thought it was funny,” Triton says. “And you would’ve too if you weren’t in pain.”

  I sigh. Maybe yesterday I would’ve thought it was funny, would’ve seen that he was trying to be friendly. But right now, I’m just trying to hold myself together and upright while the rest of my body screams to curl up into a ball and wait for the pain to stop.

  “If it’s swollen, maybe I can wrap it in some water to cool it,” he says.

  “No,” I reply, trying to hide the bite under the hem of my pants, but Triton’s already sent a trail of water to lift up the edge.

  “No objections, and don’t say I’m breaking the rules,” he says playfully. “This is one of those ‘friends things’ where they do kind things for each other. I think I am getting the hang of it. Turns out all it takes is for me to do for you what I would do for me—well, what I would do for me if I had a weak, human body like . . .” He trails off and stills as his attention lands on his handiwork. Something shifts in his eyes. The usual light that plays there dims, and his smile sinks. His eyes drag to mine. “When did it happen?”

  “After we helped Hettie.” I don’t meet his gaze. I busy myself fixing my hem over the anklet of water wrapped around my skin, the one that does bring a tiny cooling sensation with it.

  “You know what this means?” His voice is still, unnatural.

  I nod.

  “It’s not too late, Kora. We can take the pegasi and look for Panacea.”

  “No.” I latch on to his arm, forcing him to meet my stare. “Dionysus will destroy Lagonia—maybe even the whole world if he frees the Titans. We have to go after him. We have to stop him. We only have two days until he reaches Lagonia.”

  “You only have a few days before that poison kills you. If you go after Dionysus, you’ll die.”

  I look away. “I know.”

  “The others aren’t going to agree to this.”

  I stiffen. “They can’t know.” My eyes drift to where Royce is helping some of the more frightened crew members off their pegasi. “Promise me.” I pull my gaze back to Triton. “Promise me you won’t tell them.”

  “Kora—”

  “You know what it’s like to rule. They don’t. I have to do this for my kingdom. For them. I can’t put my life above theirs.”

  Triton purses his lips and transfers his gaze out to the ocean. He thinks for a long moment before he finally says, “All right. I promise.”

  I relax my grip on his arm. “Thank you.”

  There’s a blankness to his face as he picks up a handful of sand, weighing it in his palm for a while before he speaks again. “You know”—he turns slowly to face me—“you were wrong about human friendship after all.”

  “How?” I ask.

  “Because—” His voice breaks, and he pauses before starting again. “Because they do end. Because you’re all made from sand and dust and fade away in the blink of an eye.” He flings the sand as far as he can into the dark water, and if I’m not mistaken, tears glisten in the corners of his eyes as he turns back to confront me, his voice hoarse. “Why aren’t you like the other humans I’ve met, who care more about themselves, about their own lives? Why don’t you try to save yourself?”

  I drop my gaze and swallow down the lump forming in my own throat. “I can’t. My country is counting on me, and I might be the only one who can stop Dionysus. And I have to stop him at any cost.”

  He shakes his head, his loose hair tumbling forward to cover his eyes. “Do you really think you can beat him? He’s the greatest trickster of all time. Even I couldn’t beat him, remember?”

  “I have to at least try,” I say.

  He pulls his knees in close to his chest, staring down between them toward the grooves his toes l
eft in the sand. “Then I hope you beat him,” he says. “I really hope you do.”

  The waves gently lap at the shore around us, filling in the silence.

  But I don’t have time for silence. Not anymore. I need every bit of information I can get out of him about facing Dionysus—not to mention something to take my mind off thinking about the pain throbbing up my leg.

  “How many bets did you lose to him?” I ask.

  He frowns. “More than I care to count. But there’s one I wish I could take back more than all the others.”

  “The one where you bet your father’s ocean?” I say.

  “I regret that, but that’s not the one.”

  “Which one, then?”

  “The one I told you about the other night. About the Temptresses.” He shakes his head. “Every day, I regret what happened to those women. I mean, I knew they’d become Temptresses if they fell in love with me, but I didn’t know that Dionysus had made it so women would find me hard to resist and be tricked against their will, enamored to the point where if they weren’t in love with me yet, they would be soon enough. I couldn’t figure out why it was happening at first. But I tried to do what I could for them each time. I sent them away from the world, where I thought they couldn’t do much harm.”

  “How exactly did he word the bet?” I ask.

  “Let me think.” Triton runs his hands through his hair. “I bet him I could make any human fall in love with me, and if I did, I could pick anything I wanted from his collection—from the things he’d won from the other gods and goddesses. But if I lost, he got to alter what happened if someone fell in love me, or me with them.”

  “So how’d you lose the bet?”

  “Dionysus always has a trick up his sleeve. He brought a woman to his island. A dead woman. He told me to make her fall in love with me, which was impossible.” He digs his toes into the sand. “Don’t underestimate him. There’s always a catch in his words, some loophole he’ll slip through.”

  “So how do we beat him?” I ask, resisting the urge to rub my throbbing ankle.

  Triton lies back, cradling his arms under his head. “I’ve been pondering that for three hundred years.”

  There’s a low whining sound, and Grax shuffles out of the water, dropping a stick at Triton’s feet.