by Lisa Kessler
Ted struggled to compose himself. “I wondered if you would come.”
Kevin stepped back to allow another man to enter the office. “This is my brother, Iapetus. We need your help.”
Iapetus was no longer hidden underneath a hooded robe. Kevin had fitted him with an expensive black suit with a light-blue button-down shirt that matched his cold blue eyes. The florescent lighting reflected off his bald head as his hands balled into fists.
But at least there was no spear.
Ted slid his hand into his pocket. He couldn’t trust it not to tremble. “What could two all-mighty Titans need from a useless mortal like me?”
Kevin chuckled. “I may have underestimated humanity last time. I won’t make the same mistake twice.” He sobered. “I need identification for Iapetus with an American-sounding name. Maybe Ian Elys.”
Ted crossed his arms, doing his best to remain calm and cool. “Before I help you, I want assurances that whatever you have planned for humanity, I’ll be spared.”
“You’re in no position to make deals, Ted.” Kevin’s eyes sparked with malice.
Ted swallowed to wet his suddenly dry throat. “Maybe not, but you need me…and those are my terms.”
Kevin glanced at Iapetus. “He understands human technology, Brother. I think we can allow this one to live.”
The future Ian Elys nodded, disdain smoldering in his gaze. Even without his spear, his presence oozed foreboding and dread. “Agreed.”
Relief flooded Ted’s tense muscles. “Good. I can have his identification ready by tomorrow night.” He moved behind his desk and sat down. “Is there anything else?”
The corner of Kevin’s mouth quirked up. “Yes.”
Ted lifted his eyes to the immortal’s very human-looking face. “What is it?”
“I want tickets to the theater.”
Ted picked up his phone. “That’s not a problem. What show do you want to see?”
“You misunderstand. I want tickets to Les Neuf Soeurs.”
Oh shit. Ted lowered his cell. “You can’t walk in there. They know your name and your face. You’ll never get through the door.”
Kevin dropped his head back, his laughter rattling the windows of Ted’s office.
Fuck. It was like an earthquake.
Ted covered his ears, his heart pounding like a jackhammer in his chest. The Titan came forward and slammed his hand down on Ted’s desk, demanding his full attention.
Ted slowly uncovered his ears. “I’ll do my best, but I don’t think it opens until the end of next week.”
“That gives us time to acclimate Iapetus—” Kevin cleared his throat “—Ian, to this world.”
Ted nodded as evenly as he could when his pulse was racing faster than ever before. “All right. I’ll work on the ID first, and then I can look into theater tickets.” He kept his focus on Kevin. “Where are you staying?”
“I’m still renting the mansion on the hill.” He turned for the door and gestured his brother to set out. But Kevin turned back. “Your business partner, Mikolas, is a Guardian. Distance yourself. I demand your full loyalty; without it, our agreement is terminated.”
Iapetus was suddenly at Ted’s side with a blade pressed to his neck. Fuck, the guy really was fast. Ted hadn’t even seen the Titan move.
He sniffed the side of Ted’s face. His voice was so deep it rumbled. “His fear is…intoxicating.”
Kevin raised his hand. “Come, Brother.” His gaze landed on Ted once more. “If you betray me, I won’t curb my brother’s appetite next time.”
The immortals were gone as suddenly as they’d arrived. Ted leaned back in his chair and looked up at the ceiling. He was so screwed.
Trinity strolled the cereal aisle of the grocery store, humming the old Cheerios jingle and pretending she didn’t notice all the women staring at the tall, dark, and handsome man trailing behind her. Since the meeting at Callie’s, Mikolas had been quiet and withdrawn, but Trinity wasn’t complaining. He was her Guardian, not her boyfriend, and last night it had been too easy to blur the lines. She grabbed a box of Honey Nut Cheerios and spun around, almost slamming right in his chest.
She looked up as she stepped back, out of his personal space. “Sorry.” She pointed to the shelves. “Did you want some cereal?”
He shook his head. “No.”
“Your loss.” She turned, heading for the checkout and fighting the urge to coax him to talk. What was the point? It wasn’t like they were even friends—just two people Zeus thought would work well together.
The song “That’s Amore” bursting from his cell phone broke the silence in a big way. She glanced over at him, trying not to laugh as he hustled to answer it. But Mikolas wasn’t smiling. Far from it. And he had answered the call in Greek.
She continued toward the registers, wishing she didn’t find his deep voice so sexy, even when she couldn’t understand a word he was saying. She peered over her shoulder and caught him looking right at her. Then she recognized her name on his lips, and her hackles rose. Why was he talking about her? She gripped the box tighter, a small dose of adrenaline lacing her bloodstream.
Shit. She’d done it again. She’d brought him into Callie’s house and had given him a seat at their table.
“Trin, wait.”
She spun around, her finger poking him in the middle of his chest. “You don’t get to call me that anymore.”
His brow shot up. “Are you mad that I don’t like cereal?”
“What? No.” How in the hell had he come to that conclusion? “Ever since we left the meeting at Callie’s, you’ve been quiet and moody, and then your cell rings and next thing I know you’re talking about me in Greek. I never should have trusted you. I’m an idiot.”
She marched over to the self-checkout and slammed her box of Cheerios on the self-checkout while she fished her wallet out of her purse and maintained the intensity in her drop-dead glare.
Mikolas bagged her cereal and carried it out of the store for her as if she hadn’t just foiled his plot. Once they were outside, she trailed behind him this time, wishing he was in one of his power suits. His Levi’s fit him too well. It was distracting.
When he got to his car, he turned around and leaned against the trunk. She snatched the bag from his hand. “Are you even going to deny it?”
He ran a hand down his face. “‘That’s Amore’ is my grandmother’s favorite song.”
She placed her hand on her hip. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“It was my grandmother on the phone. I told her I was with you, which was why you heard your name.”
“And I’m just supposed to believe you?”
He crossed his arms. “If I had bad intentions, would I really have that ring tone for my associates? Kind of draws attention, right?”
Okay, that made sense. Dammit. She sighed. “I’m not usually such a crazy person.”
He shrugged. “After your experience with Ted, I understand.” His gaze locked on hers. “I’d like to earn your trust one day.”
She walked past him to the passenger door. “What did your grandmother want?”
He popped the locks. “Apparently she’s coming to your theater opening.”
Trinity got in the car and looked over at him. “You told her we were opening soon?”
“No.” He glanced over at her as he opened iTunes on his phone. “But Trinity Porter has a new single called ‘Find Your Muse’ that’s shooting up on the charts, and my grandmother heard Trinity was performing at the grand opening of a theater in Crystal City, Les Neuf Soeurs. That’s when she bought her plane ticket.”
With all the danger swirling in the air after the gala at the Observatory, she’d forgotten all about the new song. “Callie and Erica thought I should perform ‘Find your Muse’ for the opening. I guess I didn’t realize the name of the theater might catch the eye of muses from other generations.”
“I wonder how many of them are out there.”
Trinity shr
ugged. “I don’t know.” She peered over at him. “Did you tell her not to come? We can’t be sure it’ll be safe for muses with Kronos on the loose again.”
“I tried, but my nona is a force of nature, and being a former Muse of Astronomy, she believes you will need her for the opening since Nia is gone. She says it will take all the daughters of Zeus to unleash the magic.” He stared out the windshield. “She’ll be here next week. My grandfather is coming with her. She acts like she’s bulletproof when he’s beside her.”
“He’s a Guardian, too?”
Mikolas nodded. “Yes. His gift is instant healing.”
“Like Cooper.”
He shook his head. “No. Cooper can heal others. My grandfather can’t be injured. He heals rapidly.”
“Like Wolverine?”
“Yes.” Mikolas chuckled. “My grandfather is a seventy-nine-year-old X-Man.”
She laughed, and it felt so damned good. “So you have X-Men in Greece?”
His smile made it tough to keep reminding herself that trusting another man would lead to another betrayal.
“While my grandparents filled my head with Greek gods and goddesses, I secretly read every comic book I could get my hands on.” Mikolas turned her way. “What about you?”
“It was Disney for me. Before I realized I carried Euterpe in my soul, I wanted to grow up to be a voice for a Disney character. I made demos and attended auditions, but I never got a callback.” Erica was the only other person who knew about Trinity’s unfulfilled childhood dream, but it fell out so easily with him.
He patted her knee. “I think the universe had another plan for you.”
“Maybe so.” She’d never considered that angle before. Maybe her stars had always been leading her toward this moment in time. She swallowed the lump in her throat. “My car is back at my place. I rode to Callie’s with Clio and Mason.”
He reached for the ignition, but he didn’t turn the key. “Do you agree with Callie about staying away from the Titans?”
Trinity shrugged. “What’s not to agree with? We’re mortals. We’re not equipped to fight two Titans who can’t die.”
“I think we only need to face one.” He glanced into the rearview mirror. “Zeus told me he’d handle his father.”
Her eyes widened. “That leaves you seriously considering duking it out with the Titan who bears the catchy nickname the Piercer?” She shook her head. “We don’t even know how your demigod status works. You’ll get yourself killed.”
“I don’t think so. They wouldn’t be expecting us to come for them.”
“You’re serious about this.” Trinity frowned. “It’s noble, but you can’t win. This isn’t our fight.”
Our. Where had that come from?
She relaxed back against the headrest. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure.” He turned on the engine.
“Why are you so determined to face them?”
He pulled out of the parking space while he answered. “Because it’s my destiny. Zeus tied our souls together for a reason. I’m not going to fail.”
He’d called his grandmother a force of nature, but the apple didn’t fall far from the tree. His stubborn devotion to his fate was going to lead him down a dark road. And somewhere deep in her stupid heart, a pang of regret blossomed. For once, she wished she could just be a girl with a boy. Being a muse had caused Ted to betray her, and now it would cost Mikolas his life.
This wasn’t the kind of future she had hoped to inspire.
By the time she dug her way out of her mental funk, Mikolas was parking across the street from her house. She unbuckled her seat belt. “Thanks for the ride.”
He caught her hand, and awareness crept up her arm as she met his eyes. “Do you have plans tonight?”
Trinity glanced at her condo and back to his face. She should lie and say yes. She should definitely not spend more time with him. But instead of lying, she shook her head. “Not really.”
“Can I buy you dinner?”
“I’m not very hungry.” She held up her box of Cheerios. “Plus, I have cereal.”
He chuckled, shaking his head. “You can’t seriously still believe I had anything to do with the attacks on your friends. I’m on Team Muse. I always have been.”
“I don’t know what to think, but you sound pretty obsessed with fighting with Titans, so…” She bit back a smile. “No sense getting attached to a guy with a death wish.”
He raised a brow. “Does that mean I’m off the ‘Loath Entirely’ list?”
She laughed. Again. “How did you find out about my list?”
“Just a lucky guess.” He looked across the street, then back to her face. “How about if I confess that, secretly, I have every intention of living through this.”
“I do have a concert coming up for a theater grand opening.”
He nodded slowly. The intensity in his gaze was like a caress. “Nothing’s going to keep me from being there to cheer you on.”
Emotion choked her throat. “I believe you.” And somehow she meant it.
He brought his hand up to cup her cheek. “Good.”
He searched her eyes as he leaned in closer. Gods, he smelled like ocean waves and the forest all at once. His breath warmed her skin as her lips parted, her pulse racing with anticipation. What was she doing?
Wake up. You’re falling for pretty words.
She moved back, away from the comfort of his touch. “I can’t…do this.”
“Yeah. Sorry.” He straightened, but instead of anger, or even a little passive aggressive moping, he glanced her way with a hint of a smile. “Any chance you changed your mind about dinner?”
Clearly, he wasn’t bent out of shape and butt-hurt by her rejection. It made her wish she’d kissed him after all. Gods, she was losing her mind!
She chuckled and put her seat belt back on. “Dinner sounds great.”
CHAPTER 6
Mikolas marveled at the woman seated across the table from him. Yes, she was beautiful. Her dark hair and deep brown eyes coupled with her full lips made him ache to claim that unfulfilled kiss, but it was her cynical humor and the melody that flowed through her like a song that had him enraptured. He’d never met anyone like her.
When she walked, her steps were a dance to a symphony no one else could hear, and while she pondered something, she hummed secret tunes under her breath. Trinity was a symphony of layers that he longed to explore. But her pain, the wounds from entrusting her heart to an unworthy man, shadowed her eyes. He yearned to hold her, to heal her.
As they left the restaurant, his cell phone rang. And it wasn’t “That’s Amore” this time.
“Hey, Ted,” he answered, not wanting to hide anything from Trinity.
“I’m back in with Kronos.” Ted’s voice was hushed and breathless, and then a car door slammed. “I have until tomorrow night to get identification made for Iapetus. He’ll be under the alias Ian Elys.”
Mikolas stopped. “Did you find out what they’re planning?”
“Kevin wants me to get them into the theater opening.” Ted sighed. “Without Zeus busting out of his disguise and saving the day, I don’t see a way for us to win this.”
Mikolas shook his head slowly. “Not on our own.” He glanced over at Trinity. “I’m going to visit Rhea. If Kronos settles his score with Zeus, his wife will be the next name on his retribution list. She has a vested interest in helping us.”
“Okay.” Ted cleared his throat. “How’s Trinity?”
Mikolas ground his teeth, unwilling to go down this path with him while Trinity stood a few feet away. “She’s safe. I’m going to keep it that way. Let me know if they move up the timetable.”
Mikolas slid his phone back into his pocket and caught up with Trinity. “It was Ted.”
She nodded. “I guessed as much.”
“You might want to let Nate know Ted’s back on the inside with the Titans. He also said they want him to get them into the Les Neuf Soeurs openi
ng.”
“Shit.” She frowned. “Zeus needs to clean up this mess. We can’t let them wander into the opening. You saw what his brother did at the Observatory. The theater will be packed, and if Kronos slows time, everyone will be sitting ducks for that spear-wielding psycho.”
Mikolas nodded. “That’s why I think we’re going to have to face them before the theater opens.” Before she could remind him that it was a fight they couldn’t win, he added, “Want to come with me to talk to Mrs. Zervos?”
She stopped at the car. “Do you think she’ll help us?”
“I think if we lose, the Titans will be coming for her next, so there’s a good chance she’ll get involved.” He opened the passenger door. “I also think it’s no coincidence that she chose to live in Crystal City, just like her son.”
Trinity got into the car and looked up at him. “You think they’ve been planning for this. My generation of muses got the dreams about the theater in Crystal City to lure us here to reopen Les Neuf Soeurs because the timing was right?”
He leaned on the door. “The Guiders of Destiny play a long game. I think they saw the Order would eventually crack into Tartarus. This is the intersection of time they thought would give humanity the best chance of defeating them. We’re all here to take part in it.”
She nodded. “The question is, whose story is ending?”
Trinity wrung her hands, wondering for the millionth time why she agreed to go with Mikolas to meet with Mrs. Zervos. A few months ago, Mikolas and Ted had been the ones to discover the elderly woman’s true identity was Rhea, the Mother of the Gods. Until he had put the pieces together, none of the muses had realized she was more than just one of the retired women in Lia’s, the Muse of Comedy, geriatric poker group. Along the way, they had also discovered that Cooper’s grandmother, Agnes, was the Muse of Hymns for her generation.
The fog in Trinity’s mind was beginning to clear. What if Mikolas was right about everything? It couldn’t be a coincidence that Rhea and her two best friends, the Guiders of Destiny, ended up living on the same floor in Blessed Mary’s Village as Cooper’s grandmother. What if everything happening in Crystal City right now really was part of a bigger divine plan?
