I would’ve found that more comforting if I thought the Hercules was actually following ancient Greek guesting practices, rather than making up his own version to suit his needs. After all, he’d called us guests before the bloody room incident too. And he hadn’t exactly respected that.
“Now I have a question,” the Hercules stated, in that same calm, dangerous voice that told me nothing. “You took a hero’s trophy from a lucky kill. What did you do with it? Mount it on a wall, perhaps, in that quaint little human custom?”
A trophy kill. It had never occurred to me how they might interpret our collecting tissue from a dead animal, with their lack of familiarity with modern scientific research. Maybe it shouldn’t have been surprising that they’d seen it as collecting a trophy, like Atalanta and the Calydonian Boar. Or Hercules himself and the skin of the Nemean lion. But I hadn’t seen it coming.
What was I supposed to tell him? He wouldn’t understand the truth, and I didn’t think I’d be able to get my mouth around the word ‘trophy’ long enough to encourage his interpretation. Not to mention, that was what had pissed him off in the first place. I decided a truth he didn’t appreciate would hurt us less.
“We studied it.”
He raised an eyebrow. “How? For what purpose?”
Yeah, I certainly wasn’t going to get into the intricacies now. “So we could learn about it, learn about how to deal with it,” I said, before realizing that this was why his House had tried to kill us. Because our research might make it possible for humans to roam farther, without fear.
His eyes grew cold, and he scrutinized me for a moment, before turning to Xanthe.
I let out a breath, still feeling the effect of that deliberate stare.
I wasn’t about to ask any more questions, because I didn’t want to push my luck too far. And I definitely didn’t need him thinking I knew too much that he didn’t—though I clearly did. The man hadn’t even thought of taking our phones.
Which, come to think, didn’t add up. This was basic technology, available to anyone. Well, to anyone in the human communities I was familiar with. The House of Hercules had somehow cut off our ability to contact anyone during the chimera incident. The Hercules hadn’t been involved in Xanthe’s plan, but Xanthe’s people were still on his side. If any of them realized that we could still communicate with the outside world, they would have told him. And they would have taken that from us.
Or would they have? The House of Remus was familiar with tech. I’d just assumed the House of Hercules wouldn’t be because that was what I expected, but what if I was wrong? They could have left us with our phones on purpose, could be breaking the encryption on my text messages—but why? They wanted hostages, not information.
My mind went back over everything I’d seen in Tivoli. There were no vehicles of any kind, only flying horses for transportation. I’d seen sundials and water clocks. A loom, but no sewing machines. Dinner had been cooked over a fire. They couldn’t have hidden everything just for us—well, technically they could have, if I was willing to go the conspiracy theory route. But the simplest solution was they didn’t use modern technology in their daily lives.
They hadn’t taken our phones, even though there was no advantage to listening in. Therefore, most likely, no member of the House of Hercules who was in Tivoli right now understood this technology. So why hadn't we been able to reach anyone during the chimera attack, when we'd needed help?
They couldn’t have been responsible for that, I realized. They had confessed to orchestrating the murder attempt, but they couldn’t have disrupted our communications. Not on purpose, anyway—but I couldn’t think of any way an invisible wall would coincidentally knock out our ability to communicate.
There must have been someone else involved. There had to be. Someone who wasn’t in contact with them right now, who couldn’t advise them about how to keep us imprisoned.
My heart pounded, as I tried to keep any of this from showing on my face. No one was paying attention to me, so it must have been working. Or maybe they just weren’t particularly concerned with me, which I really hoped was true. The less time they spent thinking about us, the better.
A disconcertingly growl-like sound from the Hercules drew my attention back to him and Xanthe. “It would have been fine if they had actually ended up dead before anyone realized our involvement,” the Hercules said, with the first hint of real anger I’d ever heard from him.
“No one would have been able to prove our involvement at all if you hadn’t called us in to abduct these people in plain view of the House of Remus,” Xanthe snapped back, not bothered by her brother’s temper.
“You used my House in a strike against another community without so much as my knowledge.”
“Had I succeeded, it would have protected you,” she insisted. “It would have made you look strong like the old Hercules was strong. You’re in a dangerous place. You’ve already spit on our traditions—”
The Hercules slammed his hand down on the table with a bang that nearly had me jumping out of my seat. I felt like a frightened rabbit ready to dart for any exit, if only we weren’t trapped here.
Sending a fierce glare towards his sister, the Hercules’ tone came out strained, barely controlled. “I am trying to free us,” he said. “I am trying to save us from forcing a way of life down our children’s throats, from twisting them into the image of our founder, whether they like it or not. Because of me, this coming generation will grow up to be their own men and women. They will not be trapped striving for an ideal we forced upon them.”
“You couldn’t live up to our ideals,” Xanthe replied, her words scathing. “So you tried to strip away our way of life. You are wrong. You have always been wrong. But you are my brother, and I will stand by you until the end. Which is why you need to listen to me—too many of us believe in the image of our founder. You can’t destroy those parts of us purely because you don’t like them.”
“Because they are archaic,” the Hercules disagreed. “Because they limit us.”
Xanthe shot him a reproachful look, as I eyed both of them, trying to piece together where each of them stood. “You are already on dangerous ground. The only reason you lasted this long is that they respect your power, if not your attitude.”
“My judiciousness, you mean. My ability to control my temper instead of frothing at the mouth whenever someone says something I don’t like.”
“This is not who we are,” Xanthe insisted. “Hercules was strong. He never stooped to negotiating with his lessers. He took what he wanted through brute force. Relying on diplomacy and subterfuge, brother? It makes you look weak. And our House’s patience is wearing thin.”
His fists clenched, his jaw tightened. “No,” he said. “Hercules tricked Atlas into holding up the sky again. Do not tell me subterfuge makes me look weak.” Irritation radiated off him, his mouth curling as if the words themselves tasted bitter. But then, he didn’t even believe in emulating his founder’s personality, did he? He’d called it nonsense.
“Atlas was a titan,” Xanthe said, her words ringing with finality. “He was no mere mortal. Mark my words, you can’t afford to look like these humans have gotten the best of you in any way. In any way at all, not even once, or you are finished. The House will not tolerate you anymore.”
“I am the head of this House,” the Hercules said. “No one else.”
With a nod, Xanthe said, “Yes, that’s the right attitude. But aimed in the wrong direction. You need to kill the humans. If you hand them over, if you do anything that looks like an appeasement of Rome, the House will revolt.”
“If you have your way, the House won’t exist! We cannot make enemies of everyone, especially not the most formidable of our legend neighbors. The House of Anna alone...”
“Do not finish that sentence,” Xanthe warned. “Do not ever admit out loud that you doubt us like that.”
The Hercules didn’t appreciate that sentiment either, and soon enough, the two of
them were snapping at each other again. Revealing all kinds of divisions I couldn’t use right now.
Frozen in place, barely daring to move or breath in case it attracted their attention, I barely repressed a shudder. I’d had no idea the House of Hercules was this extreme. No idea they were a powder keg just waiting for a fuse to blow.
But one thing was clear. They’d screwed up. Especially the Hercules. Xanthe had given us enough information to strongly suspect her House, but the Hercules had practically handed us the evidence. And he knew it. He didn’t even try to defend himself against the charge, only condemned Xanthe for putting him in this situation, for not warning him, so he would have been prepared.
Your enemies aren’t united, dad would have said. It’s a weakness you can exploit.
One thing at a time, mom would have argued. This can’t help her now.
No, this couldn’t help us now, not while we were stuck here. It only made things worse. They were in a bad situation, and dangerously close to desperate. Hearing about their divisions didn’t make me feel better. Instead, it made me feel worse.
They talked about killing us so casually.
Tony grew paler and paler as they went on, and I completely understood why. It was like they didn’t even see us as people, just a means to an end. Or some kind of category. Sitting there, hearing these threats and casual insults from people who talked about us like we were nothing—it was every bit as much of a nightmare as the room with the blood.
Once it was finally over, when they tired of arguing, we were dismissed in a cursory manner. But the things I’d heard that night played in my head, over and over again, in my nightmares.
IN THE MORNING, WE found a breakfast of some sort of biscuit-like thing delivered outside our rooms. Tony was alarmingly quiet while we ate. Then, once we’d finished and I marched us upstairs, he was just as alarmingly compliant. But there wasn’t much I could do for him, aside from getting us out of here.
Stepping out into the inner courtyard of the Villa d’Este, I took a moment to let my eyes adjust to the light. This place already had memories for me. That was the spot where I nearly got smacked by a pegasus wing. Over there was where Tony threw up.
Wow, did I not want to be in this place anymore.
Just as I was about to head for the exit, I noticed Xanthe watching us from a doorway. My muscles tensed involuntarily, her presence enough to raise my hackles. Worse still, she chose that moment to approach, coming up next to me and Tony.
Footsteps sounded from behind me before she had time to say anything. I noticed Xanthe’s form stiffening before I turned to find a large, muscled youth entering the courtyard, carrying some kind of rectangular container. Surprisingly, I recognized him. It was the juggler of bowling balls, from the Aventine.
He spotted me and froze. “Uh,” he began. “Hello?” He flashed a nervous smile, before glancing at Xanthe.
She greeted him almost too deliberately. “Good morning, Alcides.”
“Ah, good morning,” he responded to her. Before shooting another confused glance my way.
“These are our guests, for the time being,” Xanthe told him. Her tone was soft, but it wasn’t a good fit for her—like a bull that knew it was in a china shop, and was trying really hard not to crush anything. “The Hercules invited a few of Simonetta Berti’s students to visit. This is Jordan, and Tony. Aside from the work they do for Berti, they have a strong interest in culture—Tony, in particular, is getting a degree in anthropology. So they will be staying for a little while. We’d like them to get an authentic taste of our lifestyle.”
Shit, seriously? She was really going out of her way to make this—and us—appear as benign as possible. Clearly, Alcides didn’t know why we were here. That meant there had to be other people here who didn’t know, either. And the informed members of the House wanted it to stay that way. Oh, wasn’t that just something?
This is exploitable, mom would have said.
You can use this, dad would have agreed.
“That’s...unusual. It’s pretty lucky to get permission for something like this, right?” Alcides asked in the most cautiously prying way possible.
Xanthe nodded. “Berti’s students are just trying to complete their education. We have decided that this is not an issue.”
Alcides must have bought it, because his next smile was more sincere. “That’s interesting,” he told us. “We don’t usually get outsiders. I’m happy to give you a tour, if you’d like.”
I felt a bit bad, because he actually seemed like a nice kid. Naive, but nice. Where was the stereotypical teenage sulkiness I’d been taught to expect?
“Hold on,” he said. “Let me put my things away.” He rushed out of the courtyard.
“Listen,” Xanthe said, with a tense urgency in her voice. “We may be enemies, but he’s still young. He does not need to know about my brother’s pointless games. None of our youths know, and it is not necessary that they do. Your people understand the value of childhood, I take it? We picked it up from you.”
After how helpless she made me feel, her and the Hercules together, I couldn’t even express how much I liked the idea of having some sort of power over her. The additional bonus was, of course, that having a large portion of the House thinking we were guests was a huge plus for us. If anyone wanted to hurt us, they’d have to be careful. And the more the younger members of the House liked us, the safer we would be.
I nodded. “Of course. There isn’t any reason to involve them.” I could be wrong, but I thought Xanthe looked grateful. Gratitude was good. Her suffering would have been even better, but revenge would wait until I’d managed to secure my continued survival. “They aren’t going to run into the blood room, are they? Because I really don’t recommend that.”
“It should be cleaned up by now. No, we would never have allowed them to walk in there.”
Alcides came running back, empty-handed this time. “Let’s go.” He hesitated for a moment, as if something had occurred to him. “That’s okay, right?” he asked Xanthe.
She waved a hand dismissively. “Yes, it’s fine. I will even join you.”
And while I wasn’t thrilled at spending time with Xanthe, the fact that she was trapped in a web of her own making made it bearable. And Alcides almost managed to make it pleasant.
As it turned out, the kid really liked to talk. I didn’t know if it was the chance to show someone the history of his people—the pride in his voice suggested that it might be. Or maybe he was just one of those people who liked interacting with others. But either way, he obviously wanted to share his knowledge of his home.
He reminded me a bit of how Tommy was, as a teenager. Not that Tommy had ever been this social, but he’d believed in the concept of building bridges. Of spreading understanding. Something about the intensity and nearly over-the-top cheer Alcides was presenting...it made me think that maybe that was what this was about. About wanting to be understood, or wanting his culture to be understood. And trying to find a way to do it that people would be receptive to.
As luck would have it, the tour was good for something else, too. I’d had a vague grasp of the streets Tony and I had covered, but that wasn’t the same as being shown around by a local. He added context, pointed out what lay beyond the areas we’d trekked through. He helped me orient myself about where we were at any given location. This was useful, and I barely believed Xanthe let us hear any of it. The House of Hercules really must have thought of us as helpless.
It was like it’d never even occurred to them, that there was more than one way to accomplish a goal.
“I wish I could take you guys down to the Villa Adriana, but it’s a bit far for humans to walk,” Alcides said. “Maybe we could take the pegasi there?”
The thought of being on one of those horses again nearly made me choke. “No thank you,” I responded, more out of impulse than logic. “We already had a quick ride, and personally, I like my feet on the ground.”
Alcides frowned.
“But it’s so much fun.”
Maybe for someone who hadn’t been forcibly thrown over one of those horses, then knocked in the head for good measure. “I guess it’s just not for everyone.” And to change the subject before it got too awkward, I grasped at the other topic presented to us. “Villa Adriana?”
“It translates to Hadrian’s Villa,” Tony put in. He sounded okay, if a little tired, which was better than the dead man walking vibe he’d been giving off when I first dragged him out of his room.
“The Roman Emperor?”
“Yes,” Alcides said. “Hadrian built his villa here. It’s in ruins now, but you can still see the size and basic outline. It’s a shame you won’t take the pegasi there. Beautiful place. Pretty peaceful, too. No traffic in the skies either, since the patrols don’t go there.”
And so the day went. I wasn’t sure how being abducted by people who wanted us dead had turned into acting as an audience for a somewhat over-exuberant teenager, but there I was. Alcides finished his tour in a few hours, maybe. I wasn’t keeping good track of time and didn’t have experience reading sundials.
The rest of the day was spent trying to get a sense of how the House members moved about the area, until Xanthe came to get us for another dinner. Following her back there was not something I wanted to do, after the way the previous night had gone. But I didn’t have a choice.
This evening, the conflict revolved around the day with Alcides.
“They are still too young to be involved in your ridiculous plans,” Xanthe told her brother. “They do not need to be exposed to these sorts of things.” Who knew that even legends with no compunctions over killing people sheltered their kids?
“I don’t disagree, but the advantage of our House must take precedence,” the Hercules counter-argued. “They are still members of the House, and if necessary, they will share in that responsibility sooner.”
“Then find a way to deal with this fast so that they do not have to be here anymore!” She moved her arm sharply to indicate me and Tony.
Terrestrial Magic (Jordan Sanders, #1) Page 18
