by Zoe Forward
She put down her fork, careful to avoid clinking it against the plate. “I know this comes from your need to protect me. Mom sent me down here to find help, which I’m pretty sure is Merck. He’s a key part of understanding all of this.” Only, I might’ve messed up any chance of him helping by sleeping with him. “We don’t know if the gods are messing with his life or mine.”
“Why would they mess with his life?”
“He’s Poseidon’s descendant.”
“What? That doesn’t make him any better. The bastard could be in cahoots with Poseidon. What the hell were you thinking?”
She bit her tongue against giggling. Only her dad would say “cahoots.” She touched her father’s hand. “Please, calm down. I know you and he had some sort of fight when he was younger, and you don’t like him. I’m worried having you down here. There’s so much going on. I don’t want you hurt.”
He sandwiched her hand between his. “I’m here. I’m not leaving. You’re all I’ve got left. If you died and I wasn’t here…well, I couldn’t live with that.”
“Then you have to let me do what’s needed to figure this out, even if it involves working with Merck. You have to trust me.”
“All right.” He nodded. “I still don’t like you dealing with him.”
“Did Merck really ask to take me out in high school?” She pulled her hand from between his.
Her father’s gaze dropped. “You were too young for him.”
It’d happened. Merck had marched across the creek, knocked on her front door, and intended something more. So many years lost. If they’d had a bit more time together back then, she might’ve discovered they were destined. Sure they’d been so young, but her life may have gone differently. Her mother might still be here.
She and Merck weren’t over. The horror of both of them on a countdown to death meant figuring all this out had to happen right now. “Why did you call him a criminal? What’d he do?”
“He egged my car. He and his friend Chad. Do you know what egg does to a car’s paint?”
She struggled to keep her face serious. “He threw an egg at your car? What’d you do to the poor guy after this dire incident?”
“Poor guy? He was a menace. I hauled them to the police station.”
“Did you press charges?”
He shook his head. “I asked the police to keep them locked up overnight so they wouldn’t do something worse. It was Halloween, and they were fifteen. I had to save us from the toilet paper and who knows what else was on their agenda.” He waved his fork in the air at her. “He was a bad egg.” A smile broke across his face. “Bad pun. Sorry.”
“Oh my God. He egged your car and you flipped out. You were so psychotic about that BMW.”
“The car was one of a kind.”
“Isn’t that the truth. It was in the shop every other week. Lordy, remember when you turned it on, the exhaust smoked like a rocket at takeoff? A real gem.” She burst into laughter.
“You just don’t get it,” he grumbled.
“It almost exploded that one time when Mom drove me to go shopping.”
“Your mother didn’t know how to drive a stick shift.”
“You’re holding a grudge over a kid prank that happened over fifteen years ago?”
He smiled. “Yep.”
She released a pent-up breath, knowing her father was willing to let it go. He might not like Merck or trust him, but he’d trust her.
Eli breezed in and loaded a pancake onto his plate from the pile of cooked ones. “Pancakes. I love your pancakes, Shannon.”
“Thanks.”
“And your strawberry sauce. Bloody hell, I missed this stuff.” He licked the spoon after drowning his pancakes.
Her father didn’t bark at Eli to leave as Shannon was sure he wanted to do.
Eli glanced between the two of them. “What’s on tap for today?”
“Dad said he found someone I can talk to. We’re Skyping in an hour.”
***
Merck’s boat rocked on the offshore waves while he gazed up into the sunny morning sky. The light was so bright it burned his retinas. A few scant clouds lazed high overhead. He leaned over the side and touched the water. All still remained stable. Two dolphins appeared. He recognized their leader, having known the old guy since he was a teenager. The whole pod swam around the boat. He touched the nose of the leader, instantly understanding one of the younger dolphins had an injury. The hurt dolphin bobbed too far away for Merck to reach it.
“I’m not going to hurt you, buddy. If you want help, it’s yours.”
The juvenile didn’t move to get closer.
“Show me what’s wrong.”
The young dolphin surfaced, exposing his tail and entire backside, which were covered in fresh, deep lacerations indicative of a propeller collision. The leader of this pod kept his group away from all boats except Merck’s. This meant someone ventured close, maybe even chased them. He wanted to hit something, but took a deep breath, knowing any outward sign of anger would terrify the young dolphin.
“I’ll help you.”
The older dolphin pushed the juvenile toward Merck. He kept his hand steady, hovering a few inches above the water. The juvie touched his nose to Merck’s fingers. Merck envisioned the wounds healed, and within seconds the dolphin scurried away. It did a flip and chirp before disappearing below. He smiled, relieved to see the damage repaired.
The older dolphin returned to Merck and touched him in thanks. As if the dolphin spoke, he heard a warning in his mind. Athena. Ericthonians. Onshore and fighting.
His heart pumped hard as worst-case scenario images flickered through his mind. Stupid of him to think Athena done. What better time to go after Shannon than when he was offshore.
Damn it.
He whipped out his phone. No text from Danny. The Ericthonians must’ve come in from the shore side then.
He said to the dolphins, “This fight is about more than the Trident. I don’t know if Athena understands that.” The pod leader blinked up at him, offering help. “I don’t want you or your pod hurt. I need to convince Athena this is much bigger than getting the Trident for its power.”
He waited for the dolphins to swim away before cranking the boat and pushing her to top speed. It wasn’t a speedboat, but she could move when asked. Merck calculated time to shore at fifteen minutes. The bow slapped against the water. He wove through the familiar buoys into the coastal channel and toward the Randolph property dock.
He hoped he wouldn’t arrive too late.
Chapter Eighteen
Merck tied the boat to the closest piling and hopped off, but paused, detecting a disturbance in the water. Water bubbled on either side of the dock.
A green ichthyocentaur rose from the water as if propelled from a cannon to land on the dock. Seconds later a blue ichthyocentaur alighted next to him. Both transformed to human form immediately prior to landing, clad in leather battle gear.
“Bythos?” Merck asked of the used-to-be green ichthyocentaur.
“This is Aphros. My brother.” Bythos waved at the other guy who towered above them both by at least a foot or more.
“Are you guys here to help or dissuade me?” Merck asked.
“You think we’d miss out on a chance to kill some Athena underlings? We’ll even settle for a decent fight, which we haven’t had in ages.” Bythos tossed his huge sword from hand to hand.
“Good enough. Try not to scare the straights too much, though. There’s bound to be a few druids around,” Merck said.
“All right.” Bythos stretched while Aphros gazed toward the forested area ahead.
“I’ll get to Shannon.” Merck palmed his knife.
Bythos grinned. “You like her. That’s progress.”
“You’re a real pain in the ass,” Merck mumbled.
A deep sound rumbled from Aphros’s belly and erupted into a laugh. “I like this kid. He’s a hoot.” He leaned down from his ultra-tall height to ruffle Merck’s hair
.
Merck rolled his eyes and pulled his head away from the hair ruffling. “We’re in a bit of a hurry here.”
“Are you going into battle with that toy?” Aphros nodded to Merck’s knife.
“It’ll get the job done.”
Aphros pointed at Merck’s face. “That’s why you got those from them in the past. These things must be fought at a distance.” He handed Merck a huge sword off his back. Merck accepted the blade, expecting it to weigh too much to be useful, but it felt no heavier than his knife. Magic.
“Do us proud and you can keep her.”
“Thank you.” I’m better with a knife. But one didn’t scoff a god’s gift.
Merck sprinted in the direction of the house. No noise other than the impact of his tennis shoes breaking sticks echoed around him as he tore through the forest. Eerie. Not even a bird or the wind. Not a peep from the now-absent Ichthyocentaurs. He’d lost sight of the two during his dash and didn’t see them anywhere.
He pulled up at the tree line and viewed the chaos. Ericthonians and snakes were everywhere. Six or seven druids were fighting on the porch of the house and around the lawn. There was a lot of blood, but he couldn’t tell whose. Two druids were down, possibly dead, but neither was Brian Randolph or Eli. More than twenty dead snake men littered the lawn. Kudos for the druids.
Weapons were up and firing round after round into snakes and snake men in a snowstorm of bullets. Bullets didn’t kill these guys, although it might slow them down. These things only stopped when they bled out, but there’d be more. It was an endless army. Getting rid of them required giving Athena what she wanted.
He sighted Shannon at the far edge of the porch using her preternatural skills to keep the creatures off her, pushing them away with wind. Pride filled him as he watched her manipulate the air like a pro. Powerful, directed, and effective. No hesitation. No doubt. God, she was spectacular. Her face showed strain though.
His senses worked as fast as possible while he ran toward her, but he felt as if he were underwater. He dodged free-flying bullets, his movements so quick that the bullets appeared to move at a snail’s pace, as if they were hovering mosquitoes. He leapt, hurtling over the bodies of dead snakes and a few live ones, to strike the snake creature threatening Shannon. With a whirl, he sliced off the head of a lunging snake. The borrowed blade’s sharpness impressed him.
The creature fell. A second snake man sprang at him. He was too close for a sword swing. He rammed it as hard as he could. It rocked back, but not very far. Damn these things were strong. It swiped at him with its ultra-sharp nails, nearly tagging his shoulder.
“Behind you!” he yelled at Shannon. She spun, but too late. A snake creature swiped Shannon’s side. Direct hit. She had an hour or so before the change to snake creature started and one to two hours before the change was permanent. This entire shitfest needed to end so he could get her the antidote.
She dodged another strike, whirled, and lodged a small blade into the snake man’s neck. Good for her.
It got her again as it went down. Shit and super shit.
He threw himself back at the creature leaping for him. It ripped down his chest with its nails and jumped out of range of his sword. He gasped, his gaze lifting to the sky. The Ericthonian was coming at him again. No time to dwell on pain. He lunged forward, his blade striking its target in the neck this time. The snake man hissed in pain, gripped its neck, and struck out again, but missed. Finally, blood loss too great, it collapsed.
It wouldn’t be down long. Snake creatures resurrected themselves after about ten minutes, like a hydra with its many regenerative heads. Bleeding out paused them for much longer than hacking them to bits, but nothing killed them since they were the creatures of Athena. The druids couldn’t defeat an immortal army.
A new Ericthonian approached him, flanked by two serpents.
Shannon’s father fought alongside two druids at the opposite end of the porch. They were covered in bloody scratches. All of them would need the remedy to prevent the change. He had a small bit at the office, probably not enough for this many people. No time to fly to the one shaman in Greece who could brew the right healing potion.
This had to end. He protected people. It’s what he did, who he was. Above all, he protected Shannon.
This entire business with Poseidon reeked of gods fucking with his life. His fault. His responsibility.
Merck pointed the sword at the approaching snake man. In Greek, he said, “All of this needs to stop. Take me to Athena. I am the only one here who knows about what she seeks.”
The creature halted, cocking its head as if considering his words. It gazed at the blade he held and then nodded.
Shannon grabbed his arm. His gaze met hers for an instant and then resumed his stare on the snake man.
“I’m going with you,” she said. “This is about me.”
“We don’t know exactly what this is about.” He met her father’s gaze over her head. “Stay with your father right now. I’ll deal with this.”
“You can’t stop me from going with you.”
“I might not make it, darlin’, but I need for you to live. You still have a chance to survive all of this.” His breath came out a harsh rasp. “Please. I need for you to be somewhere safe while I speak with Athena. Go.” He nudged her toward her father. All the Ericthonians looked to be backing out of the fight.
Her gaze darted around the yard. The breeze carried the stench of blood. Streaks of red painted the front of the white house, and the porch rails like a B-grade horror film.
“The only place I’m safe is with you.” She took a step toward him, but her father caught her arm.
“He’s right. Stay here. With us,” Brian ordered.
Merck wished he could keep her close and promise her the safety she asked of him. Right now he had to deal with a goddess he’d never met face-to-face. If everything went south and Athena killed him, then Shannon would be safer out of view or with the druids in a renewed fight against the snake men. He gazed at Brian for a few seconds, silently pleading he keep her safe, before jogging after the Ericthonian.
He approached the black-haired woman at the water’s edge. Not a woman, he amended in his mind, a goddess. Serious goddess. Everything about her appearance was perfect and toned with dark Mediterranean skin and catlike eyes. Intelligent eyes.
He’d lost sight of Bythos long ago. Right now, it’d be nice to have the brothers as backup.
He bowed when Athena’s attention focused solely on him. “It is an honor to be in your presence.”
“Give me the Trident,” she ordered in an echoing voice that ricocheted painfully between his ears.
Merck’s spine went rigid. Athena’s tone and glower demanded fear and deference. What was the worst she offered? Death. He may not want it today, but he wasn’t afraid of it, even if she could probably dream up a painful way to ensure he died eternally screaming. He’d accept it if the outcome protected his water friends and kept Shannon safe.
He asked, “Why do you want the Trident?”
She frowned as if he was an idiot to question her. “I do not answer to you, but I detect your father’s stubbornness should I refuse to answer. To take Poseidon’s power and kill him, of course.”
Merck shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. He released a long sigh. Athena didn’t get the big picture. “This is about revenge for you, then? For something he did a long time ago?”
Athena scowled a promise of impending pain, but the slight widening of her eyes was a clear yes on Poseidon being a shithead at some point in the past.
Merck said, “Assuming I could get the Trident for you, which I’m not saying I can, and I give it to you, what then? Will you steal all of Poseidon’s power and rise over him, humiliate him, possibly even kill him and ascend to his underwater throne? Then what?”
Athena’s face lit up. Her lips curved into a jubilant, scary smile.
The hairs on his arms stood as chills skirted along hi
s skin. “Are you ready to take on his responsibilities? Do you love all of the ocean and her creatures to the point you would devote the rest of your existence to their welfare? To mediate the battles amongst them and against humans? To fight pollution? To pick up after natural disasters? To heal their injuries?”
“Who are you to question me?” Her voice echoed inside his skull to the point his ears hurt.
“So you want his throne without responsibility? Perhaps you plan to delegate the responsibility of sea life and ocean welfare to someone else. Someone who won’t understand them? Someone equally power hungry?”
“You want this job.” She smiled superiorly as if she had him figured out.
“No, ma’am. I’ve got enough to deal with, thank you. I don’t want all that. That’s an insane amount of responsibility. Without Poseidon or a similarly powerful ruler, there will be chaos underwater. I have visited a world, a dimension actually, where Poseidon doesn’t exist. The animals are scared and hurting. They need what only he can offer them: the assurance of his presence and control. If you swear to me on your soul and the soul of the children you love that you plan to dedicate all that you are to care for those who need their water god, then I will find this Trident for you.”
He and Athena gazed at each other in silence. He expected her to rip off his head or deliver an extremely painful hit now that he’d revealed he didn’t have the Trident and had thrown down an ultimatum.
“I want him to hurt,” Athena finally said. Pain transformed her beautiful face.
Merck said softly, “Poseidon did some dickhead thing to you? He probably doesn’t even remember it or didn’t think twice about it. I’m sorry. He’s a guy and sometimes, honestly, we just don’t get women or we’re so wrapped up in our own shit that we do things without thinking.” He shrugged. Been there, been guilty of it too many times, and may not have even recognized it when he’d done it other times. “Words from me won’t help, but destroying him and the balance of his underwater world won’t help either. Sure, it’ll feel great for about a minute. Then it’ll heap a load of extra duties on you for the rest of your existence. Have you ever told him to his face what he did that pissed you off?”
