by Nicole Thorn
We all got one but Callie, who didn’t seem all that bothered with missing out. She sat with her chin on her hand, tapping her foot silently.
“I wanna do an interview next,” Jasmine said after a sip of her drink. “Am I the next person up? Do you know who it is?”
“I do what I’m told,” Callie said. “I’ll hear it in my head when the gods decide to let me know what’s coming next. I’m as in the dark as you all are.”
“I wanna go next,” Jasmine let us know again. “I think it would be good to start the show off with a real bang. I’m sure they’ll give me something harder than a demigod challenge.”
Kizzy lifted an eyebrow at her. “Because I can’t handle more?”
Jasmine opened her mouth, but words didn’t come out for a few seconds. “No, that wasn’t what I meant. But you have to admit they probably won’t challenge us the same.”
My sister let out a huff of air. “I’ve been a demigod a lot longer than you’ve been a god, Jasmine. I know what I’m doing. At least I have a handle on my power and I can control myself.”
Jasper squeezed her hand as I felt the tension rising in the room. That tension wouldn’t go away if Jasmine didn’t tone it the fuck down.
“Guys,” I said. “Let’s just calm down and enjoy our break. We don’t have to hope anyone is next or a trial is harder.”
Juniper downed the entirety of her drink, blinking once she finished it. Verin had only sipped his, looking mildly concerned with how fast she’d drank it. It tasted like heaven, so I would have gone for another glass if I could.
Jasmine held her head up high, taking a breath. “You have a point, I guess. We can—” She stopped, her eyelids closing halfway. “Oh…”
I opened my mouth to ask what was wrong, but sleepiness started coming at me like a tidal wave. It wasn’t even one in the afternoon yet, so I didn’t understand it. The glass fell from my hand at the same time Jasmine’s tray went crashing to the floor.
Jasper shot up to his feet to try and catch his falling sister, but he stumbled. Kizzy fell forward, slumping at his feet as her eyes rolled back in her head. Juniper went down next, collapsing onto Verin.
The last thing I heard before I hit the floor was a broken little, “Oh no,” from Callie.
I woke up under something heavy. Scratch that—several somethings. I wiggled, hearing groans all around me. I opened my eyes to darkness and an arm thrown over my face. I couldn’t quite move, my body feeling like it weighed a million pounds. It didn’t help that I had a ton of weight on me.
“What the hell?” Juniper groaned. She made a sound of surprise before I heard a thump on the floor and felt weight leaving me.
“Oh dear,” Verin said, and then more weight left me.
When I lifted the arm from my face, I saw him helping her off the floor. The arm on me had a few freckles, telling me it belonged to my lady. I kissed it, and then she rolled onto the empty spot beside me, freeing most of my back. With another wiggle, I had Kizzy making an oof sound as she hit the bed.
I sat up, seeing that I had been at the bottom of a pile. Most of them…
“Jasper?” Kizzy rasped as she looked around. Her eyes met with all of ours, not finding the returning set that she cared about. “Jasper!”
“Whoa, breathe,” I said, touching her arm. “Let’s just see what the hell’s up.”
She didn’t wait for me, shooting up from the bed and darting across the room. It appeared to be Juniper and Verin’s room, going by the bags in the corner. Kizzy went to the door, grabbing the knob and yanking. I heard a zap, right before her body flew backward. Juniper barely caught her before she could hit the wall.
“Jasper!” Kizzy screamed again.
The TV turned on without warning, and I heard Callie’s voice come over a logo of a sword and shield above the Colosseum. “Afternoon, everyone at home! And welcome back to your up close and personal viewing of the Trials of Olympus. Up next, we have Jasper Nelson.”
Kizzy whimpered, making her way to the giant TV. She watched with wide, glassy eyes as the image changed to Jasper sleeping alone in bed. I couldn’t think of anything to say, and the rest of us were all frozen as we waited for Callie to fill us in in real time.
“A little drama for you at home folks,” Callie said. “Let’s see how our first god deals with a little family tension.”
Kizzy made another awful sound as Jasper sat up, squinting eyes looking around. “Kezia?” He felt around the empty side of the bed, not seeing her.
Then the bathroom door opened, and Kizzy walked through. Though it wasn’t Kizzy. It was someone who looked just like her, wearing a massive sweater, baggy jeans, and her hair tied up.
“Just showering,” the liar said. She bent down to kiss Jasper on the cheek.
“And in the role of Kezia Dovetree-Nelson,” Callie started, flat and with bite, “is none other than Demeter. Let’s see if she can emulate the daughter she barely knows.”
Oh, that was a turn I didn’t expect. Anger soon took over my surprise. I went to stand beside Kizzy, taking the hand Jasmine didn’t already have.
Someone knocked on Jasper’s door before they walked in. I saw myself holding a tray of coffee, rage building in my chest as Callie said, “And in the roles of Zander Dovetree and Jasmine Nelson, Aphrodite and Ares.”
“I’m going to fucking kill her,” I said. “Kill her dead. I don’t care if she’s a god.”
“What the hell is this?” Juniper snapped. “What are they about to do to my brother?”
Verin took her hand, saying nothing as he gently rubbed it with his own.
“Brought you something to drink,” fake-me said, holding coffee out to Jasper. He didn’t even drink coffee. Jasper and Kizzy always had their breakfast way before the rest of us, because they worked in the studio. Anyone that paid even a little attention would know that it was rare they ate with us in the morning anymore.
“No thanks,” Jasper said, getting out of bed. He looked at what he thought was his wife. “What happened? I feel like I was knocked in the head.”
Fake Kizzy shrugged. “No idea, sweetie. Maybe just take it easy.”
Kizzy seethed, closing her eyes. “This needs to end.”
But there we couldn’t do anything about it. So, did we get no warnings then? At least with Kizzy, they told us what would be happening? Did they really have to drug us for this?
“Not good enough for you then?” fake-me asked Jasper, taking a seat with Fake Jasmine. She ran her fingers through his hair, saying nothing.
“Huh?” Jasper asked.
“The coffee. I went to get coffee and you didn’t want any.”
“Sorry?” Jasper responded, making it sound like a question.
Fake-me waved a hand. “Don’t worry about it. I get it. You only care about you and Kizzy. Yeah, I’ve noticed.”
“Excuse me?”
Fake-me shrugged. “Well, it makes sense. You got your girl, so you slack on other things. Common courtesy, decency, taking care of your sisters. The list goes on.”
“I’m going to burn this fucking place down,” I growled. “What is she doing?”
“I’d like to know that too,” Kizzy said, her growl matching mine. “How is this a trial? Are they just trying to torture my husband?”
Jasper held his hands up. “I don’t know what’s going on with you, but I think we’re all a little tense. Maybe we should go get something to eat.”
“I’m not hungry,” fake-me said. “I kind of lose my appetite when I have to deal with you.”
“Zander,” Fake-Kizzy said, holding her hand out. “You need to knock it the hell off right now. I don’t know what’s gotten into you, but I’m not afraid to choke you out with a vine.”
“Might as well,” Fake-Zander said. “It’s not like Jasper would do anything about it.”
“What are you getting at?” Fake-Jasmine asked. “Why have you been in a mood all morning?”
Fake-me stood up, beginning to pace. “I�
��m just getting really sick of being the only person in this family with a backbone. We’re in the middle of trials now. Trials that could mean our own deaths. We could literally die here, or in the middle of a war if we lose these and don’t get our help. Maybe I need a hand from Mr. Sits in His Studio All Day.”
Jasper’s arms crossed as he studied my mother. “Did I do something you want to talk out? There’s not really a problem with how I go about my days.”
“No? All you do is screw my sister and paint while I’m out there trying to hold together your sister, deal with a mass murderer, and his girl that doesn’t seem to give a shit.”
“Uncalled for,” Verin said shortly.
Juniper glowered at the TV. “I know we can’t kill gods, but I would be more than confident in your efforts to do so, Verin.”
“Thank you. I would get it done.”
Not before I did. What the hell did the gods think they were doing, using me against someone in my family like this?
“I really think we need to head out,” Jasper said. “We can cool down and relax for a bit.”
“I don’t want to relax,” fake-me said. “You know what happens when you relax? You should know. You were relaxing when you let your sisters get killed?”
I stopped breathing, doubling over with my hand on my chest. Kizzy started to cry almost silently, her hands on her face as she tried to muffle it. I could barely look at her as the scene played out.
“I wouldn’t say that,” I breathed. “I didn’t… I don’t blame him. I don’t…”
Jasmine moved around Kizzy, putting her hands on me. “Of course, you don’t. He doesn’t believe you did. He can’t believe that.”
“I don’t blame him,” I repeated, feeling weaker. “I swear.”
“I know,” Jasmine said as Jasper started talking.
I saw his eyes flash with anger, heat in his voice for the first time since this started. “Let my sisters get killed?” he said through his teeth. “I let them get killed?”
“Yeah,” my asshole of a mother said. “I walked away for an hour and came back to you all dead. See what happens when I leave? I can’t trust you to even keep them safe. You’re useless. You aren’t capable of more than hiding in the garage while everyone else does the saving.”
“Really?” Jasper said. “So, it’s my fault for being human and not saving us against a giant? Because you’re a demigod, and you let them die too. You walked away, and we all got killed.”
I ended up on the floor, feeling like something had reached into my chest and clawed my heart out. I barely heard Jasmine say, “That’s not true. He doesn’t mean it.”
Didn’t matter if he meant it or not, because it was true. Of course, it was true. I left for an hour, and it got half of my family killed. I knew that from the moment it happened. The blame had never been on anyone but me, and I wouldn’t have dreamed of putting it on a human. Not Jasper.
Though I was curled up on the floor, the other me almost screamed. “You think you can blame me? What the hell do you do to keep them safe? It’s all on me all the damn time. You get to be safe and hide while I put my ass on the line to keep you all alive. Kizzy too. I can’t believe she could have married someone so worthless.”
The Fake-Kizzy said nothing, standing there with mock surprise on her face. Jasper didn’t even turn to her, or the falsely petrified Jasmine in the room. “You knew there was someone after us and you still left. You walked away, knowing we couldn’t defend ourselves, and you’re blaming me?”
I didn’t realize I’d started shaking until I felt arms around me. Jasmine’s, as she told me to stop listening. Juniper had Kizzy, sitting her on the bed as her hands knotted in her hair. I should have… I should have been able to pull myself together to go comfort her. I couldn’t even do that. Couldn’t keep my family alive. Couldn’t comfort my sister. It wasn’t the first time I’d let her down deeply. I was worthless. Never Jasper.
Jasper went on with the assault. “You make everyone in this house feel completely worthless. You walk around like you’re the only thing that stands between us and death, and you’re not. You didn’t save us, and if you were our only hope, then it would be a dark day for us all. You keep us locked up like you know better, and it does nothing to prepare us for what’s coming. You’re making things worse, putting us in more danger. Next time you tell yourself that you’re some savior, I want you to remember what it looked like when you walked in on the bleeding proof that you can’t do the one thing you force on yourself.”
My chest hollowed out and I still couldn’t breathe. Jasmine kept telling me not to listen, that it didn’t mean anything. But he’d said it. Even if Jasper didn’t mean it, it had been in his head enough that he came up with it all on the spot. And he was right. I knew he was right.
Lights flashed in Jasper’s room, making him look up and around as Callie’s voice came through. She sniffled, and her voice shook as she tried to speak. “And that brings an, an end to the second trial. Our victor, Jasper Nelson.”
Our hotel room popped open, slowly creaking as it widened. Kizzy jumped off the bed and ran out before I’d even started breathing again.
Jasmine
I took Zander’s face in my hands, forcing him to look at me. “He didn’t mean any of that.”
I didn’t think the words reached him. Zander stared at me without seeing me. I shook his head, forcing him to focus on me. “Jasper didn’t mean that,” I said. “You know that he would never say something like that to you.”
“But he did,” Zander said. “He did say it to me. He thought that I would say something so terrible to him and so, he retaliated by saying it back to me. He thinks I’m a monster.”
“He does not,” I said, leaning against my fella. I wrapped my arms around his body, forcing him toward me. Zander moved without much fight, tucking his face against my shoulder. I’d have held him forever, but I knew we didn’t have that kind of time. We had trials that we had to get through and a show that we had to make entertaining for the gods. But they could all wait.
“You know that,” I whispered against Zander’s hair. With his face tucked into my shoulder, his blond hair had stuck up into my nose. I didn’t care, though. It smelled like him, and despite all my misgivings, all the things I didn’t want to tell him, I still found comfort in his scent. In his touch. And I knew that he felt the same comfort from me. I would just hold on until he told me to let go.
His hands finally touched my hips, squeezing them tightly once before pushing me away. I stepped back, brushing my hands against his face. “You okay now? You know that Jasper didn’t mean it?”
Zander didn’t even answer that. “I think I’ve had enough excitement for one day.”
“I definitely have,” Verin said from behind us, reminding me that my sister and her boyfriend hadn’t left the room yet. I looked over my shoulder just in time to see Juniper elbow him in the side with a glare. She grabbed his arm and started pulling him from the room. “If you’ll excuse us,” she said. “I’m going to explain timing to Verin.”
“I’ve got great timing,” Verin said, looking hurt. “I’ve never once finished before you have.”
“Ah!” I said, waving my hands. “No. Out the door with you!”
Juniper’s red face disappeared, and Verin followed her a moment later, still telling her about his awesome timing. At least Jasper didn’t have to be in there for that part. It probably would have given him a heart attack. One that he deserved right then, for upsetting Zander so much.
I turned back to him. “Are you all right?”
“I’m just going to… shower, I think,” Zander said, getting up. He looked almost lost, and I wished that I could make that feeling go away. In all my power, I still couldn’t fix Zander’s head. Exhausting, really. I pushed him toward the bathroom, encouraging him to take his time, and relax.
Zander paused in the doorway; his shoulders slumped. He turned back to me, his eyes wary and worried. “You don’t… you don
’t think that, do you?”
He didn’t have to clarify. Did I think that he let me die?
I stood on tiptoe, grabbing the sides of his face again so that we would be forced to stare at each other eye to eye. “Not once in the time since I’ve gotten back, have I thought that you let me down. You couldn’t have known. None of us could have known, and it’s not your fault that we weren’t a match for a giant. Even the gods aren’t always a match for a giant. There was a whole war over it, ya know?”
I thought he would laugh or smile or do something. Instead, Zander nodded once, then turned back toward the bathroom. “Thanks, Jazzy.”
I didn’t know if he believed me. I’d have to make sure later.
I closed the bathroom door after he stepped inside and lost the smile on my face. With my hands balled up tight, I turned around and marched right out of the room. My teeth ground together as I shoved the door out of my way and turned toward Jasper’s room.
Too furious to think, I didn’t bother knocking. I slammed my hand against the door and it flew open hard enough that the doorknob actually went through the plaster and got stuck. Jasper, who had been sitting on his bed with Kizzy next to him, turned to look at me. He had a dull expression on his face as if he had just figured out what he had done.
Kizzy had been whispering some stupid platitude to him, one that he didn’t deserve. Zander was hurt, and no one seemed to care about him but me. Yet, Kizzy had rushed off to comfort Jasper, who had done the hurting. It seemed so unfair that he got comfort when he wasn’t the wounded party.
He blinked and started to get up. “Jazz—”
“Don’t even,” I said, holding up my hand. “I’m not in here for you to give me some lame excuse for what you said!”
Kizzy’s eyes widened. “Jasmine—”
“Don’t you start either,” I said, glaring at her. “I don’t want to hear anything that you have to say, understand? You’re just going to defend him when he doesn’t deserve it.” I gestured at Jasper, who hadn’t moved from where he stood. He watched me with hurt eyes that just pissed me off even more.
