by Lisa Kessler
They hurried to get ready, but by the time she and Mason got to Callie and Hunter’s house, the rest of her muse sisters and their Guardians were already seated around Callie’s long dining room table. All eyes turned their way. Clio didn’t know who Callie had told and who she hadn’t, so she slipped her hand into Mason’s and cleared her throat.
“Mason is my Guardian,” she announced to the group. She looked up at him, the gleam in his eyes melting her heart. “And most of us are still here because he gets really strong when he needs to, even tearing down metal security doors with just a hammer.”
Nate got up from the table and clapped a hand on Mason’s shoulder. “I had my suspicions. Glad to have you at our table.”
Mason chuckled. “I had no idea my work crew was moonlighting as Guardians for the muses.”
Clio and Mason smiled at each other, then took the last two open chairs at the end of the table. When she looked up, Callie was watching her.
“Are you all right?” Callie asked. “Pamela did a number on you.”
Resting her hand on Mason’s thigh under the table, Clio nodded. “Thankfully, whatever power she has to induce paralysis does wear off eventually, and Mason found me before I drowned. So other than a couple bruises, I’m okay.”
Callie welcomed Mason to the family, and moved on to discuss plans for handling the Pamela threat. While the conversation went on around them, Tera slipped Clio a note.
Told you so.
She glanced at Tera, and the Muse of Dance gave her a little wink. Clio grinned, nudging her.
“Sorry to interrupt, but are we just going to keep ignoring the elephant in the room?” Trinity asked.
Everyone looked over at Clio’s new roommate. Trinity gestured to Mason. “Our contractor here told me and Erica that muses were real. I’d like to know how he knew that before any of us told him.”
Erica ran her fingers over her round belly. “He also knew Pamela was dangerous.”
Oh shit. Clio glanced over at Mason. They hadn’t talked about how much he was comfortable sharing.
He brought one hand down to cover hers. “I’ve known that the muses are reborn each generation since I was small. My older cousin was the Muse of Music…” His grip on Clio’s hand tightened, and his voice got gruff and aggressive. “Pamela drowned her in front of me. Paralyzed her with a wave of her hand, just like she did with Clio.” He shook his head. “As soon as I was old enough to leave home, I began tracking her.”
Clio noticed he didn’t mention his father or anything about being a Lycan, so she hoped to change the course of conversation a little. “He didn’t know about being a Guardian until I told him about the prophecy, but he had already figured out that his strength increased when I was around.”
Trinity bit back a smile. “How did he take the news?”
Clio narrowed her eyes at Trinity and Erica. “Well, someone threatened to kick his ass if he didn’t believe me.” Clio cracked a smile. “Mason took it pretty well.”
Cooper, Lia’s Guardian, smiled at Mason. “Sounds like you handled it well, man. Much better than I did. Did Clio tell you about our gifts?”
Mason glanced at Clio and then back to Cooper. “Not really.”
Cooper tapped his chest. “I can heal Lia, but I needed some help from Apollo when we almost lost Reed.”
“Seriously?” Mason’s eyes widened. “You work with Apollo himself?”
Reed, the firefighter and soon-to-be father of Erica’s baby, grinned, shaking his head. “Coop is also the modest one in the group. I was dead and gone, and Apollo shot into Cooper’s body and brought me back. It almost killed Coop in the process. He’s the hero at the table.”
“Bullshit.” Hunter, a retired Navy SEAL and Callie’s Guardian, punched Reed’s shoulder lightly. “Don’t go all humble on us. You ran into a burning building to pull my ass out. Cooper wouldn’t have had to save you if you’d left me to barbecue.”
Mason raised a brow. “So, Reed is fireproof?”
“I wish.” Reed chuckled. He shook his head, sobering. “Finding Erica made me able to move things with my mind.”
Mason grinned. “No shit.” He laid his cell phone on the table. “Take my phone.”
Clio rolled her eyes, pushing Mason’s phone back. “I forgot to tell you the gift from the gods only works to save a Guardian’s treasure—us.” She gestured to the others. “That’s why your birthmark only burns when I need you.”
“I thought I was going nuts when mine kicked in,” Hunter added. “I can hear the thoughts of anyone who is thinking about Callie. Pretty distracting sometimes, and I’m often tempted to kick many asses.”
Mason smiled at Clio. “I’ve only had eyes for one girl at this table.”
Nate chuckled. “And everyone here knew it.”
“Except the one I had my eye on.” Mason rested his hand at the small of her back, sending a ripple of awareness through her entire body.
Clio’s face flushed with heat. “He was too much of a Southern gentleman for me to notice.”
Erica shook her head, laughing. “Oh, honey, there was nothing subtle about the looks Mason’s been giving you. You just weren’t paying attention.”
Callie cleared her throat. Clio didn’t envy her. Trying to lead a bunch of muses was like herding cats.
“We have to assume Pamela knows Mason is a Guardian now.” Callie tapped her pen on her tablet. “And since Tera and Trinity haven’t found theirs yet, they’re the most vulnerable.”
Clio sighed. “That paralysis thing she’s got going on makes all of us vulnerable.”
“True,” Callie said, “but if you’re right and she just wants to hurt Zeus, then she’d go for the path of least resistance. She probably didn’t know about Mason before and that’s why she went after you.” Callie sighed. “And let’s not forget the warning Apollo gave us when Cooper was under hypnosis. When Belkin’s off-shore oil rig exploded, Kronos broke free from Tartarus. We need to be alert at all times.”
While they all made plans to keep Trinity and Tera from being alone, Clio studied Mason’s profile. His jaw was set, determined, but he hadn’t mentioned anything about his intent to end Pamela on his own. She’d been hoping that bringing him to the table would somehow make him see that he could have some backup. Or maybe Callie could convince him his plan would be his undoing…
But Mason didn’t say a word, and Clio wasn’t sure she could do so without spilling the one thing he asked her to keep between them. He’d already admitted to the group that Pamela had murdered his cousin in front of him, but he didn’t offer up anything more.
She’d never been in a real relationship before so she didn’t know how this worked. Her friends with benefits in college were more about experimentation than mutual trust. There had to be a way to save Mason without betraying him. She just needed to find it.
Mason half expected Clio to blurt out his relation to King Lycaon, but she kept his confidence. They left Callie’s house after Trinity and Tera had finally agreed to travel in groups and to try to have a Guardian with them whenever possible. Although their gifts might not activate since Trinity and Tera weren’t technically their muses, it couldn’t hurt to have a cop, a firefighter, or a Navy SEAL hanging around.
After a pit stop for fast food, Mason took Clio to her new place and walked her inside. Trinity was already at the kitchen table. “Hey, you two.” She had a glass of red wine in front of her, and it was almost empty. “No sense unpacking your boxes, right? You’ll be moving in with Mason soon.”
His gut twisted. His evening with Clio naked in his arms had been better than he could have imagined. Sharing a home and life with someone had never been on his radar.
Until now.
It made knowing what he needed to do that much harder. For so long, his quest to stop Pamela had been his reason for living. He watched Clio sit beside her friend and console her, and for the first time, he realized that his life could be so much more. But Clio would never be safe with Pamel
a around. He had to see this through.
She’d get her happily-ever-after someday with a guy who didn’t have a curse weighing him down. His hand curled into a fist without his permission.
Okay, so the thought of her with another man wasn’t helping.
“Wait. You did what?” Clio looked up at Mason, and then back at Trinity. “He’s coming here?”
Mason blinked. He’d missed the first part of their conversation. “Who’s coming over?”
Trinity swirled the remaining wine in her glass. “Ted. My first love.” Her gaze met his. “He’s also the son of the previous leader of the Order of the Titans.”
“The group trying to free Kronos?” Mason asked.
Trinity raised her glass. “That’s the one.”
Mason frowned, glancing around the kitchen for something he could use as a weapon. “But he could be the one who wants you dead.”
She put her glass down and poured more wine. “Well, he claims he’s going to stop Pamela now, too. Or at least try.” She took two big swallows from her glass. “It makes me sick to look at him. He chained those doors on the theater.” She shook her head slowly. “I’m the reason he knows our names.” She took another sip. “He followed me to Crystal City, and because of me, Nia and Polly are dead, and you were almost number three. I can’t handle the guilt.”
Mason pulled out a chair, spun it around, and straddled the seat. “Hope you don’t mind me buttin’ in, but I spent the better part of my life blaming myself for my cousin’s death. If I had been a stronger swimmer, maybe I could have saved her, but the truth is, her death is on Pamela’s hands. And this snake, Ted, is responsible for your friends’ deaths. Not you.”
A knock came at the door. Mason tensed. “I’ll get it,” he said, his tone brooking no argument. He got up and went to answer it.
He opened the door to find a tall man with short brown hair in a business suit standing on the doorstep. This had to be the guy—Ted from Belkin Oil.
The man on the porch frowned. “Is Trinity here?”
Mason’s voice was tight, no trace of his usual easygoing drawl. “Are you Ted?”
“Yeah…”
“Just wanted to be sure.” Mason buried a punch in the man’s gut, knocking the wind out of him. Ted crumpled to his knees, and Mason hauled him up, walking him inside to a chair at the kitchen table. He set him down, hard. “That was for the fire, you asshole. If you ever try to hurt these women again, I’ll knock you to tomorrow.”
“I’m not here to hurt them.” Ted looked across the table at Trinity. “I’m trying to save them.”
CHAPTER 11
Clio tried not to smile as Ted struggled to catch his breath. Mason took his seat again, and Trinity lowered her glass to the table. “Wish I could say it’s nice to see you, Ted,” Trin said.
He defensively covered his abdomen with his arm. Clio worried her lower lip. Ted had no idea how lucky he was that he hadn’t threatened her. If Mason had punched him with the strength of a Guardian, Ted might not have survived.
Ted focused on Trinity as he spoke. “I have it on good authority that the only way to stop Pamela is to find Rhea. That’s why I’m here.” He turned to Clio. “I was hoping you might be able to help me find a likely place to start looking.”
Clio blinked. “Rhea, as in the Mother of the Gods? Zeus’s mother? That Rhea?”
He nodded.
Clio’s head spun. Part of her wanted to laugh and tell him that it was impossible, but the part of her soul that belonged to her namesake didn’t find the idea so preposterous. If the muses and Philyra were still in the world, why not Rhea? According to the myths, she hadn’t perished, nor had she been locked in Tartarus with Kronos.
“Wow. Let me think.” Clio went to the counter and brought back a pad and pen. Putting the tip to the paper, she jotted some notes. “Rhea was called the Mother of the Gods and the Mistress of All.”
Ted leaned in to see her notes. “Not sure how that helps.”
Clio lifted her head, narrowing her eyes. “I’m thinking aloud. Just listen and see if there’s a thread I’m missing.”
“Oh.” He nodded sitting back in his chair. “Sorry. We don’t have much time.”
Trinity swirled her wine in her glass. “What is it you’re not telling us?”
He sighed, tentatively meeting her eyes. “You and Tera… She’s the Muse of Dance, right? Anyway, you two are her next targets.”
“Because we haven’t found our Guardians yet.” Trinity’s voice was flat, resigned. It was just as Callie had suspected.
“He’s out there.” Clio took Trinity’s hand. “We’ll find him.”
Ted glanced at Clio. “We don’t have time to wait for her Guardian. We need Rhea. She’s the only one who can stop Pamela.”
And if Rhea could stop Pamela, Mason would be able to abandon his deadly quest to face her—more incentive to find Zeus’s mother. Clio pulled her hair back from her forehead, begging her brain to come up with something helpful.
“In the Greek myths and art, Rhea is often with the guiders of destiny, Titias and Kyllenos.” This wasn’t helping. She pushed for more. “Rhea was worshipped with tambourines and drums.” Still nothing. “And she was often depicted with lions.” She peered up from her notes. “Anything helpful yet?”
Mason rubbed the back of his neck. “There’s a big office building downtown with a lion logo on the top. I pass it on my way to the lumberyard from the theater. I don’t know what they do there, and it’s probably nothing, but you never know.”
Trinity got up and left the room. She returned with her laptop. “Okay, I think I found the building. Ida Industries. They’re professional fundraisers for…”
Clio tuned her out, jotting a flurry of notes. She underlined one sentence and blurted out, “Mount Ida. It can’t be a coincidence.” Everyone stared at her like she’d lost it. Clio pointed to her paper. “Rhea hid from Kronos on Mount Ida. It’s also where she took Zeus as an infant. Kronos was eating their children in order to stop the prophecy that one of his children would led to his defeat. Rhea saved Zeus by hiding him on Mount Ida while she presented her husband with a stone wrapped in cloth. The myths called Rhea the Idaean Mother.”
Trinity raised a brow. “It’s worth checking.”
Ted was already on his phone. “According to Google, their biggest clients are activists to save the national parks and the oceans. There could be more if we do some digging. And I might be in a business association with them.”
Trinity looked up from her laptop. “Looks like there were three guys who founded Ida Industries—Zervos, Spanos, and Mardas.”
“Greek last names… But I doubt Rhea would take on a male form.” Clio rested her pen. “Not after being married to Kronos. When your husband eats all your babies to keep a prophecy from happening, I’m pretty sure you’d never lower yourself to become a man.”
Mason shrugged. “Maybe the men were a front. If Rhea is still here, she might not have a business degree. If she married a mortal guy who was a whiz at professional fundraising…”
Clio started to smile. “No one would ever suspect. It would be the perfect way for her to continue to ‘mother’ the Earth without seeming like anything other than a rich man’s wife.”
Ted finished typing on his phone and pointed at Clio. “You’re a genius. Or at least I have a place to start.” He got up, his gaze landing on Mason. “I can’t say it’s been a pleasure.” His attention shifted to Trinity, and his tone softened. “I’m going to find her. I know I can’t ever make things right, but I still don’t want anything to happen to you.”
Trinity slowly lifted her gaze. “I appreciate your change of heart, but you’ll understand when I say, I’ll believe it when I see it.”
He nodded slowly. “I don’t blame you.” He went to the door. “I’ll send Trinity an e-mail when I find anything. Thanks for your help.”
Once the door closed behind Ted, Trinity closed her laptop and got up. “I definitely need
a shower now.” She looked at Clio with an exhausted smile. “He was right, you know. You are a genius.”
“Not sure about that, but I do love history, and it’s not every day that it comes in handy to save lives.” Clio chuckled.
Trin smirked at Mason with a spark in her eyes. “Apparently, I won’t be needing to kick your ass. After seeing you handle Ted, I’m no longer sure I would win.” She tipped her head toward Clio. “Take good care of our girl.”
“Yes, ma’am. I intend to.”
She grinned. “I like this guy.”
Clio had to agree. She liked him more each minute.
Ted got back to his place and opened several tabs on his laptop, loading up different association directories and searching for anyone from Ida Industries. It didn’t take long to get a hit, then one more. He was in two different groups with them.
He cross-referenced the names in the association directories with the names on the website, then ran a search for their names on google.
“Fuck. You’re kidding me.” He scanned the obituary for Mr. Chuck Zervos. “He died five years ago.”
He sighed and wrote down the name of his widow. Maybe he could track her down somehow. Hell, for all he knew, she could be Rhea.
Next up he found John Mardas on a membership roster. He tried cross-referencing him on google only to find a news story about a large gift to the cardiac ward of the Crystal City General Hospital in memoriam for him. Apparently, he died last year.
Ted groaned and started on the final name. He let out a humorless laugh. “Dead. Of course, you are. Dammit.”
But Mr. Don Spanos’s obit had an address to send cards and flowers—the Blessed Mary Village, a retirement community run by the Greek Orthodox Church ran that. Interesting.
He glanced at the clock. It was pretty late to drop in tonight, but he’d give her a call in the morning. At least he’d found something. He grabbed his phone and sent a text about the widows to Mikolas.
