by Unknown
were their commands to kill the kin-killer. Lucas hit Hector over
and over, trying to beat him to death.
Helen half flew the last few strides to the battling pair. She threw
herself up into the air and then came crashing back down on top of
them with as much gravity as she could muster. Pushing the two
boys back into the cracked rubble of the library steps, Helen threw
her arms up in a V over her head and summoned matching bolts
for each hand. Before either of them could block her, she brought
her bolts down onto the heads of the warring cousins and shocked
them both into unconsciousness. As they fell still under her hands,
Helen could hear rapid footsteps behind her. The rest of the Delos
family was coming.
Get back, she screamed with her ruined voice as she spun
around to face Ariadne and Pallas, who were both running toward
her from opposing streets.
Hector was unconscious, but he could still incite the Furies in his
family. His sin was so recent that the impulse to kill him would be
urgent and blinding, even to those who loved him the most. Helen
had made peace with the House of Thebes, but she had not become
a part of it, so she was mercifully free of the urge to kill Hector,
who had now become an Outcast. She got in touch with the sensation
that connected her to her lightning and felt a disappointingly
small spark. She had been running around for hours now without a
sip to drink.
She looked back at Hector and Lucas, made sure that they were
both breathing, and then stood up and walked out into the street,
putting herself in between Hectors unconscious form and his infuriated
family.
Dont come any closer, Helen said, forcing what voltage she had
left to spark out of her fingertips in a false show of power.
Helen held out her icy blue hands as she came down what was
left of the steps and looked from Ariadnes sly eyes to Pallass
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bared teeth. They were not themselves anymore, but blunt instruments
for the Furies. She stepped into the street and raised her
glowing hands to warn them off. At the sight of Helens lightning,
they backed off a step or two, but just as they were about to back
off completely, Castor rounded a corner, following the whispers of
the Furies.
Helen was ridiculously outnumbered. She had no idea how far
she would have to go to protect Hector from his own family. She
couldnt kill any of them any more than she could let them kill him.
If they didnt buy her bluff, she was out of options. She had never
felt so alone in her entire life.
Helen, Ive got Hector! Stay between us while I take him away,
Daphne called out behind her. Whatever you do, dont let them
lay eyes on him or we will lose this fight!
Helen sighed at the sound of her mothers voice, so relieved that
she had someone on her side that she found the strength she
needed to make the only choice that she could.
She didnt care if she drained every last drop of water out of her
body. The only thing that concerned her was stopping the vengeance
cycle before it devoured a family that she loved. She flung
her arms out wide and with a last gasping push made her lightning
dance in a great, blinding circle around her body. Ariadne, Pallas,
and Castor threw up their arms to protect their eyes from the one
kind of light they had no control over.
Helens halo of ball lightning was hotter than the surface of the
sun. It melted the pavement under her feet into lava and heated up
the air around her until it literally hummed. The Delos family
jumped away from the intolerable light and heat, but more important,
they jumped away from Daphne as she ran into the darkness
with Hectors unconscious body slung over her shoulder.
The pain was unbearable. Helen couldnt hold the ball of electricity
for more than a few seconds. As soon as she heard Daphnes
footsteps move away, she switched off like a fried lightbulb and
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stumbled desperately out of the white-hot liquid asphalt that was
pooling below her, burning her and choking her with noxious
gases. She crawled on hands and knees toward Ariadne, Castor,
and Pallas, their faces matching masks of agony as they all suddenly
became aware of what they had nearly done. But Helen
couldnt let them fall apart just yet.
Lucas needs help! she rasped, gesturing back to the shattered
steps of the Atheneum.
Ariadne, Castor said in a brittle voice. Go get Lucas. Helen,
can you walk?
No, she admitted, shaking her head.
Mortals will be coming, Castor said as he picked Helen up and
started to carry her off, but he stopped when he noticed his brother
wasnt following. Pallas! We need to go!
My son, Pallas whispered, unable to move.
Dad, come on! You have to take Creons body! Ariadne hissed
from the stairs of the Atheneum. She had Lucas draped over her
shoulders and she was glancing around frantically to see if there
were any witnesses.
The sound of his daughters voice managed to distract Pallas
enough to get him to pick up Creon and follow Castor out of the
town center and out into the moors.
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UNCORRECTED E-PROOFNOT FOR SALE
HarperCollins Publishers
.....................................................................
Chapter Nineteen
Helen stared at the glass of water in front of her as it
sweated condensed moisture onto the kitchen table.
Shed already drunk what seemed like a bathtub full of
water and she wasnt thirsty anymore, but she held on
to this last glass to give herself something else to look
at besides the bereft faces around her.
His whole life is this family. This House, Ariadne said. Her eyes
were wide, red, and staring, like someone who had been stuck in
too many different airports in too many different time zones for
too long. They all looked like thatlike theyd woken up to find
themselves on the wrong side of the planet. How can Hector be
Outcast from the House of Thebes?
I could have stopped him, Jason said with grim certainty.
You can barely sit up straight in your chair right now, Jase, Ariadne
said, shaking her head. Jason had yet to recover from healing
Claire, and his twin wouldnt let him take responsibility for
something that he hadnt even seen. I was there. I should have
stopped it.
You werent on India Street when Hector killed Creon, Ari,
Helen said, still staring at her water glass. I was.
Stop it, Helen, Lucas said. You and your mother saved this
family, or at least, you saved whats left of it.
Lucass words brought fresh tears for Pandora. After several
minutes of quiet crying, the family lapsed back into silence.
Everyone was thinking the same thought, that if each of them had
done one thing differently that day they could h
ave staved off all
the pain that they were all suffering. Cassandra had told everyone
they couldnt have known what was going to happen, but in saying
that she seemed to take the burden of guilt onto herself. She
seemed locked in her own head, unable to let go of the fact that
she, of all people, should have been able to protect her family.
Call your mother, Noel said suddenly to Helen, breaking everyone
out of their tortured thoughts. Im the only one who can bear
to be near Hector now, and I want to see my nephew. Hell need
me.
Helen nodded and pulled out her cell phone. It was the same
phone Hector had given her with bloody knuckles and a toothless
grin after Lucas had beat the stuffing out of him, but she buried
that memory and dialed her mothers number. As her phone connected,
she stood up to leave the kitchen and wandered toward the
front of the house, which was usually quieter.
She heard two rings at the same time, one in her ear and one
somewhere inside the house. Helen looked around and found her
mothers bag hanging on a hook in the front entryway. She chided
herself for not being more aware. Daphne had been kidnapped; of
course she had left her things behind. Helen hit END and heard the
phone in the bag cease ringing. She stared at her mothers purse,
and was overcome with an irresistible urge. Just as Helen reached
for it, there was a knock at the front door a few feet away from her.
Helen hastily opened her mothers bag and took out the cell
phone. She quickly scrolled down the list of latest calls as footsteps
approached from the kitchen. Concentrating on the glowing
screen, Helen saw a few incoming unlisted numbers and a single
outgoing call to someone named Daedalus before she had to shove
the phone back in the bag.
Ariadne appeared in the entryway to answer the door, and a moment
later Castor and Pallas appeared behind her. They were tense
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and probably expecting either the police or a member of the Hundred
Cousins. After the briefest of pauses they nodded to Ariadne,
signaling that it was okay for her to open the door. When she did,
Daphne was standing on the doorstep.
I call for a meeting between the House of Atreus and the House
of Thebes, Daphne announced as she crossed her arms in an X
over her breast and tilted her upper body forward, giving the suggestion
of a bow.
Castor and Pallas looked at each other. Whatever hatred they carried
toward Daphne needed to be put down now, and they both
knew it. Pallas swallowed hard and finally nodded.
You are welcome in this House and you have our hospitality,
Castor offered formally as he bowed, stepped aside, and let Daphne
over the threshold as his sacred guest.
The official meeting between the Houses took place in the library,
with everyone arranged around Cassandras chair. Helen took her
place next to her mother on the couch, and tried not to look at Lucas
even though he was sitting directly opposite her.
First of all, I would like to make amends for the violation of your
safety while you were a guest in my House, Castor began humbly,
but Daphne cut him off before he finished his thought.
Pandora was distraught. She and Ajax had a special bond, and
because of that I could never hold a grudge against her for trying to
avenge him, especially not now that shes lost to us, she said, waving
a hand through air as if to banish the thought. As far as Im
concerned the laws of hospitality were not violated.
As she said those last words, Helen noticed Lucass eyes snap
over to Daphne, and she knew that he had sensed a lie, but decided
to overlook it for the greater good.
I called this meeting to address two very important matters that
concern both our Houses, Daphne continued in a smooth voice.
The first is Hector and his future, and the second is my daughter
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and her part in the prophecy. Helens head spun around to face
her mother.
My what? she asked, completely at a loss.
Helen wasnt the only one in the room who didnt understand.
Castor and Pallas looked around, confused, and even Cassandra
shrugged as if to admit she had no idea what Daphne meant.
Jason stood up and took a stiff step forward.
Helen is the Descender that the Oracle mentioned in their
prophecythe prophecy that says that the Descender will free the
Houses from the cycle of revenge, he said from his place behind
his fathers seat. I only realized it this afternoon, when Helen described
the dry lands so perfectly that I knew shed seen them. That
puzzled me at first because I know she isnt a Healer. Then she told
me that she would come down and drag both Claire and me out if I
wasnt strong enough to make the journey on my own. From her
confidence, I knew she meant what she said, and I also suspected
that she had physically been there more than once.
The dust on your feet! Ariadne exclaimed as she recalled
Helens dirty feet and the mystery of the un-rung jingle bells.
What about it? Helen asked, looking around at everyones immobile
faces.
The Descender doesnt just dream about the Underworld, the
Descender literally goes down into it in his or her body, Ariadne
answered with a shocked face. You physically went into hell every
night?
Your nightmares, Lucas said, looking at Helen as he began to
understand.
You were with me in one of them, Helen said back to him in a
confused voice. The night we fell, before we woke up on the beach,
I went down to get you, remember? You were lost and blind and I
made you to stand up and walk. I made you follow me out. . . .
Here, Helen had to stop. Forcing Lucas to walk through the
Underworld had been like doing surgery on an animal without
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painkillers. He didnt understand that what she was doing was for
his own good, he only knew that she was hurting him.
That was real? Lucas whispered.
Helen nodded and reached out to take his hand, needing to touch
him to reassure herself that he wasnt afraid of her now, but
Daphne stopped her hand in midair and pulled it back, shaking her
head in disapproval.
You knew, Lucas said, turning to Daphne.
Like Jason, I discovered Helens talent this afternoon, Daphne
replied. Thats one of the reasons I asked for this meeting.
And what are the rest of your reasons? Cassandra asked coldly
as flashes of the Oracle aura began to brighten the outline of her
face. Daphne bowed her head reverently to the multiple presences
that had begun to grace Cassandra.
Like Aeneas, my daughter will need Sibyls help in the Underworld,
Daphne said in a formal tone. I ask that the House of
Thebes care for their cousin, Helen, Heir to the House of Atreus,
while she fulfills her destiny in the Underworld. In exchange, I,
/> Daphne, Head of the House of Atreus, will grant refuge and protection
to Hector Delos, Outcast of the House of Thebes.
Everyone shot each other looks, stunned by both the request and
the offer that Daphne had made. The room hung in silence as expectations
recalibrated.
Why would you do this for my son? Pallas asked as he partially
rose from his seat, torn between thanks and indignation.
Because he is one of the strongest Scions Ive ever seen, but hes
also one of the proudest. The loss of his place in this House is going
to change him, and without guidance he could become a danger to
us all. Ive seen it before, Daphne said evenly. Then she turned to
Lucas and looked him in the eye to ensure that what she said was
proved true by him. We are all family, and its time we started acting
like it.
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There are no falsehoods in anything she says, Lucas said, looking
over at Pallas who nodded with relief. Lucas, however, looked
devastated. He had heard the truth from Daphne herselfHelen
was a member of his family.
Castor and Pallas looked at each other, already in agreement,
then glanced over at Cassandra for final approval. She nodded her
head once, and then stood up and left the room without another
word.
One last thing, Daphne continued, tactfully ignoring Cassandras
rude exit. Hector wants to know whats to happen to
Creons body.
Well be contacting Mildred to come and retrieve her son,
Castor said, looking down at his hands. Shell want to bring him
back to his father for the funeral.
Of course, Daphne said sadly. Will you let me know when
shell be here? Hector mentioned something about facing her to
ask for forgiveness . . . she trailed off uncertainly, as if she wasnt
sure Hector should do that.
Ill call you, Pallas promised stiffly, and then hurried out of the
room.
Daphne stayed for a bit longer and reassured the rest of the family
that physically Hector was going to be fine; but she was blunt
about the fact that he wasnt doing well emotionally. After letting
them all know that she would convey their love to him, she departed
hastily, saying that she had left Hector alone for as long as she
dared. Helen walked her to the door.
Did Hector see you in Pandoras shape on the beach tonight?
she asked her mother quietly when they got to the front door.
