Designed by Death

by Melody Rose

  Both dogs seemed to go even slower after I asked them forward. They knocked into each other like a pair of drunks, unable to step in a straight line.

  I let out an exasperated groan. “Seriously, you two,” I said. “We’ve been over this. You can’t come with me to Italy. The Cyclops wouldn’t allow it when they approved my application. So you are going to stay on campus, not teleport halfway around the world to me, and watch over my friends.”

  I bent down to look at Khryseos and Argyreos eye to eye. “You love Violet, Benji, and Darren, don’t you?”

  The two dogs moaned in response, almost as though they hated to admit they loved my friends as much as me.

  “I’m not going to be around to protect them this semester,” I said with a low voice even though the campus was deserted at this early hour. “That’s your job, you hear? And even though he won’t admit it, I think Ansel’s going to need the most help.”

  Khryseos and Argyreos broke into smiles, finally signaling their agreement.

  “Now both of you get over here and give me a hug,” I told them. The dogs gleefully complied, nearly tackling me into the grass. They each licked a side of my face and pressed their heavy bodies against mine in a comforting manner. After I recovered from my fit of giggles, I wrapped my arms around the pair of them and squeezed.

  When I had made the decision to go to Italy to study with the Cyclops, I only focused on the destination. I didn’t think it would mean leaving my dogs, my friends, and my boyfriend. I hadn’t even considered what my mother would say. Luckily, the Academy bent their “no contact with the mortal world” rule to let me send her a letter, telling her where I would be for the next several weeks. I made sure to reassure her that I would be back for Christmas, and I would tell her all about my Italian adventures abroad.

  With Khryseos and Argyreos significantly perked up, the three of us finished the journey up the hill towards the farmhouse where Mac was waiting. The farmer wore his iconic overalls and wide-brimmed hat. I found him leaning over the side of a wooden-railed fence to feed the pigs their morning slop.

  “Morning Mac,” I greeted with a wave.

  “Well, looky here!” Mac said, correcting himself so he could stand up straight. “Good morning to you, Cheyenne. You all packed up and ready to go?”

  “Yep, I am,” I assured him. “Hey, thanks so much for looking after Khryseos and Argyreos while I’m gone.”

  “Oh, it’s no problem,” Mac said as he waved me off. “It’ll be just like old times, right, boys?”

  Khryseos and Argyreos bounded over to their old friend and jumped around him in circles. Mac reached down and patted each on the head before pulling a treat out of his pocket, which both dogs greedily gobbled up.

  “Not too many of those now,” I warned. “I don’t want to come back to find my boys all plump and hefty.”

  “I promise they’re going to be fine,” Mac said kindly, speaking directly to my worries. “Just like you are going to be fine.”

  A lump caught in my throat at his words. Even though I was confident in my decision to study with the Cyclops, I was still ridiculously nervous. I frowned at Mac and tried to brush off my insecurities with some humor.

  “Oh gods, is it that obvious?” I said with a half-hearted chuckle.

  “No, girl, I just know you,” Mac said with a half-smile. “And it’s okay to be nervous. You’re about to go do something amazing but scary.”

  Something broke in my chest, a dam opening up and allowing my concerns to come flying forward. “It is scary!” I agreed. “I mean, I’ve never been out of the country. And the farthest I ever traveled was one trip to Disney World when I was a kid. It’s crazy, but I don’t really go and do things like this.”

  “But you don’t go fight chimeras and minotaurs and other demigods either, now do you?” Mac raised a knowing eyebrow, and I knew there wasn’t a real response to that.

  “You’re doing that thing where you tell me the other brave things that I’ve done to boost my confidence, aren’t you?” I said, calling him out.

  “All I’m doing is reminding you that you’re amazing because somewhere over the last week or so, you seem to have forgotten that,” Mac said pointedly.

  I paused and looked over the older demigod. He’d been a good friend to me during the past two years. One memorable moment was when he helped Darren and I sneak off campus with a couple of pegasi in order to save Ansel and his troupe, who walked into a trap. He was one of the few people who believed me when none of the Olympic Officials had. While Mac didn’t have that kind of authority, I still respected him and his opinions of me. Basically, in my mind, he should have that kind of authority.

  “Hey, where are those fancy collars that you made them?” Mac said with a point to the dog’s empty necks.

  “Uh,” I stalled, unable to think of an answer right away. My hand flew up to the locket made from their dog tags beneath my shirt. “I thought they would enjoy some time without them, you know, because they never had any before I showed it.”

  Luckily, Mac shrugged it off. “If you say so, but I don’t think they mind it one bit, do you, boys?”

  Khryseos and Argyreos smiled up at the farmer, and the sight gave me the reassurance I needed. They would be loved and well cared for. And it would only be a couple of weeks, and then I could have my protectors back.

  “How are you doing, kiddo?” Mac asked frankly, his voice dropping into something low and full of concern. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that he was talking about Ruby.

  “It’s hard,” I confessed.

  “Yeah. It is.” Mac removed his hat off his head and held it to his heart. “I just have to believe that she’s in a better place now. Sometimes that thought is the only one that gets me through the day when the grief is too heavy.”

  I opened my mouth to correct Mac. If he really believed that Ruby killed herself like everyone claimed, then she couldn’t be in a better place like the Elysian Fields. She had to be in Tartarus. But then I closed my mouth when I saw the look of serenity on Mac’s face when he closed his eyes, as though he was stepping out into the sunlight for the first time in years. Who was I to rob that joy and peace from him?

  Then the farmer opened up his eyes and put a hand on my shoulder. “Do you want to see something before you go?”

  “If you make it quick, then sure,” I said with a forced smile.

  Mac waved his hand for me to follow him. We walked into the barn where the various horse-like animals lived. Unicorns, pegasi, and regular horses resided all together here. Mac brought me to a corner of the barn where he kept his riding equipment and weapons. I was rather familiar with that section since Darren and I had borrowed from it two years ago.

  On the wall hung four rows of new and shiny horseshoes. I cocked my head at them and wondered for a second why Mac was showing this to me. Then I realized that these were made by Ruby. And they were made recently.

  “These were the last things she made,” Mac announced proudly. He took one off the rack to show me. “I found them in the forge after… after they took her away. They’re some of her best work if you ask me.”

  I turned the u-shaped metal in my hands. “She must have been inspired because it’s a little different from when she typically makes them.”

  “I noticed the same thing,” Mac commented as he pulled a second one down to show me. He pointed with his pinky finger around the rim of the shoe. “See this indent here? That’s a new feature.”

  “Oh yeah,” I admired. “That’s called a hamon. You use clay to put a cool indent like that in the metal.” A soft but sad smile spread across my lips. “I taught her how to do that. Make a hamon.”

  My voice hitched unwillingly, and I cleared my throat to try to get rid of it. Mac quickly caught on and took the horseshoe from me and put them both back on the rack.

  “She’d be so proud of you, you know,” Mac said unexpectedly. “Of what you’re off to do.”

  For the first time in days,
I felt tears prick at the corners of my eyes. I quickly swallowed and pushed them back. I had a job to do. I didn’t have time to get misty and sappy.

  “Thanks for that, Mac,” I said as I patted the top of his hand so he would know I was good.

  The farmer and I walked back out to the pasture so I could get one more look at my dogs.

  “Well, you better get going. I know you didn’t drop these fellows off so early by choice. You must be leaving soon,” Mac said as he stuffed his hands in the front flap of his overalls.

  “Real soon,” I confirmed. “Thanks again, Mac!” I raised my hand and walked down the hill without looking back because I was worried that the tears would threaten to come again if I did.

  Instead, I kept my head turned firmly forward as I made my way to the lake. I had been surprised when Jarred came by my door about a day ago to give me the paperwork for my departure.

  “You will leave at six in the morning on the Argo,” he informed me as he handed me an itinerary.

  “The Argo? Really?” I replied, surprise apparent.

  “It’s the only way we can transport you off the continent,” Jarred said simply. “Kiley from the Nero branch will navigate you there, and she will be the one to pick you up for Christmas break.”

  “Got it,” I said. “Thank you, Jarred, I appreciate the information.”

  Suddenly, the son of Poseidon grew quiet and solemn. “This choice of yours, to study abroad with the Cyclops. It has something to do with my sister, doesn’t it?”

  His words caught me completely off guard, so much so that I didn’t have any sort of lie prepared. My mind went blank, and all I could do was stare at the Olympic Official with wide, worried eyes.

  “I… I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I croaked out finally.

  “Uh-huh,” Jarred said as he raised one doubtful eyebrow. “You’ve got something planned. You cared too much about her to let her death go so easily.”

  I cocked my head at the Olympic Official and chanced a question that I hadn’t considered before. “You… you and I have the same opinion on her death, don’t we?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Jarred said, using my same words from a moment ago, though he pulled them off better than I had. Much more convincing. The son of Poseidon straightened his shirt and his back. “Good luck, Cheyenne. I hope you find what you’re looking for over there.”

  It had been such a strange but reassuring conversation that I continuously played it over and over in my head. There was no doubt in my mind that Jarred didn’t believe that Ruby killed herself either, but because of the position he was in, he couldn’t say anything to contradict the General, or at least not in such a blatant way.

  With a renewed sense of purpose, I knew I had to pull this off. It might take a while to learn the techniques to make the armor Hades wanted, but I was putting myself in the best position possible in order to achieve that. Then, I could get Ruby back and get to the bottom of her death.

  I approached the lake and had to stop in my track as I witnessed the magnificence of the Argo for the first time in person.

  It was the subject of a lot of Grecian myths. The ship was originally built by Argus and consequently named after him. The crew that navigated the ship was protected by Hera herself. It is most well known for being the first ship to ever sail all of Poseidon’s waters. Jason sailed as the captain when he went in search of the Golden Fleece. But the ship ended up killing him when one of the masts broke and fell atop him.

  That mast was in perfect condition now. There were three of them in total, with the center mast being the largest of them all. It was a golden color that shimmered in the rising sunlight. The sails were a pearly white, which I could see from here even though they were lowered due to the lack of wind. It was pulled close to the shoreline, with a plank lowered down to the ground so people could board.

  This was going to be my ride to Italy. I was going to get to sail on the converted and infamous Argo. My inner geek screamed gleefully, and I had to keep myself from running straight up the plank to get on the deck.

  My stuff had already been picked up and stored on the ship the night before, so all I had to do was worry about myself and Erich, who still hung out in my locket. My ghostly half-brother insisted on coming, and there was no arguing him out of it.

  “Hey, you’re the only reason I’m back in the first place,” Erich mused, “so it figures that I should stay with you for as long as possible.”

  I couldn’t argue with his logic, and part of me liked the idea of not going into this completely alone. Even though I hadn’t known Erich for very long, I knew my father had sent him to me to have my back and protect me, just like he’d sent Khryseos and Argyreos. I had to have faith that he would honor our father’s wishes and do just that.

  “Cheyenne!” Kiley called out from the deck. The Nero branch leader held up her arms and gestured out to the ship. “Welcome to the Argo!”

  “She’s magnificent,” I complimented. “Permission to come aboard captain?”

  “Of course,” Kiley said as she gestured at me with her arm. “But I think you might want to turn around first.”

  Even though I was confused, I did as I was told. I spun on my heel and nearly fell over as someone collided into me for a hug. I felt the familiar arms and chest of Ansel, and I nearly collapsed right there.

  After the Olympic Officials had issued their decision, Ansel stormed out of the building without another word. I tried to say goodbye to him the night before like I had with my three friends.

  “I love you but not enough to get up that early,” Benji jokingly complained as we all hung out in the kitchens while Violet made us a cake to celebrate my departure.

  While Violet swore that she had invited Ansel to the shindig, he was nowhere to be found. While I was mightily disappointed, my heart aching as it cracked in my chest, I tried to reconcile with the fact that Ansel had every right to be angry with me. I had lied to him and changed everything about our plans without even thinking about him. What kind of girlfriend did that?

  So it was a complete shock and relief when he held onto me so tight in front of the Argo, just as I was about to board the boat.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked into his ear as he held me close.

  Ansel pulled away so he could look me in the eye. “I couldn’t let you leave without saying goodbye.”

  “But I thought…” I couldn’t finish the words. The tears that threatened to explode before crawled back to the corners of my eyes at the sight of his calm face and kind green eyes. “I thought you were too mad at me after I didn’t…”

  “Oh, Cheyenne,” Ansel cooed as he took my face in his hands. His thumbs swiped under my eyes. “I was mad, I mean, I am mad but not mad enough to let you go like that. Not without telling you that I love you.”

  “Ansel,” I said as I buried my head into his chest. He wrapped his large arms around me, and I felt safe enough to let the tears fall finally.

  “I love you,” the son of Apollo repeated softly so only I could hear. “And I want to support you in whatever you do. You don’t need my permission or my blessing to go and do whatever you want. That’s not how I want this relationship to be.”

  “Me neither,” I choked out the words. “But I’m so sorry for not telling you.”

  “I appreciate that,” he replied. He tilted my head back and kissed each of my cheeks, my salty tears coming away on his lips. “And I’m sorry for making you think that I didn’t support you.”

  As wonderful as this moment was, there was a rock in my gut that wouldn’t go away. Here was this amazing man, forgiving me and showing me that he loved me, but I was still lying to him. I looked up into his eyes, examining every angle of his sharp and beautiful face.

  Ansel caught on quickly, immediately recognizing the worry in my eyes. “Shy, what is it?”

  “I have to tell you something,” I said as I pulled away so I could look at the ground. I took his
hands in mine and steeled myself with a large inhale.

  “Cheyenne!” Kiley called out from the ship. “We’ve got to get going.”

  “Just a minute!” I called back, knowing that there was no way I could leave without telling Ansel the truth.

  “Whatever it is, it can wait,” Ansel said, trying to assure me.

  “No, it really can’t,” I said, my words falling out of my mouth with the urgency. “I did something that you’re not going to like.”

  “Cheyenne,” Ansel said, his voice dropping into something that hardened the rock in my gut.

  “I went to the Underworld to find Ruby and ended up promising Hades I would make him the Helm of Invisibility, which is really why I’m going to Italy to study with the Cyclops so they can teach me how to make armor.”

  My face contorted and twisted so tight as though I were preparing for a physical blow. I squinted through my narrow eyelids to gage Ansel’s reaction. He froze as if I’d just turned him to stone.

  “I…” Ansel croaked, unable to form a full sentence.

  “Cheyenne!” Kiley pointed to the rising sun. “We have to go. Now!”

  I reached up on my tiptoes and kissed Ansel. I grabbed hold of his collar to steady myself as I mashed my lips onto his. It took a couple of seconds, but Ansel succumbed to my advances. We pressed into one another, finding the familiar grooves and soft spots on one another’s skin. There wasn’t enough time for any sort of tricks, but I hoped he got the message after I pulled away.

  “I love you, and I’ll see you soon,” I said. I put my hand to my heart and turned back to the Argo and ran up the plank so fast that I looked like I was doing lunges.

  Kiley looked at me with raised eyebrows. “Good gods girl, I thought I would have to tie a rope around you and yank you up here myself.”

  “No, I’m good, sorry for the delay,” I said sheepishly as I looked at the floor.

  “Well, are you ready?” Kiley asked.

  As much as I didn’t want to, I ventured a glance over the side of the boat to see if Ansel was still there. I knew I had just dropped an even larger bomb on him than before, especially after he’d forgiven me the first time around. I didn’t know how many more chances he would give me. But all I could hope for was that he appreciated my honesty and knew that there was nothing else I was keeping from him.