She shook her head. "When was the last time you ate?"
"I don't know." He scratched at the beard on his cheeks. "What difference does it make? It's not like Father's going to let me starve to death. I'll eat when I have to. When they make me."
The next thing he knew, Ryssa reached up and grabbed his ear in a tight pinch. "You're going to eat right now."
"Hey!" Acheron snapped, but she refused to let go. With a determined grip, she pulled him from the railing and forced him to follow her to her room. She was so much smaller than him that he was bent almost double and had to struggle to keep up with her frenetic steps. "You do know that I'm bigger than you," he reminded her.
"Yes, but I'm meaner and madder." She snatched her hand away, making a lasting sting on his lobe.
Frowning, he rubbed his ear.
She pointed at her dressing table where a plate of fruit, bread and cheese rested. "Sit down and eat. Now!"
"Yes, Your Majesty." As Acheron reached for a bit of cheese, he caught his reflection. Sunken eyes, tinged by red stared out from an unkempt man. His beard was ragged, his cropped hair shaggy. He looked like an old man instead of a youth.
That was okay, he felt even older than he looked. Averting his gaze, he placed the cheese in his mouth while Ryssa poured him a goblet of wine.
She left him to walk over to the door that led to her maid's quarters. "Nera? Would you have them draw me a bath in my room? And find me a razor."
Acheron didn't speak as he ate. Honestly, he was starving. The maids hadn't been bringing food for him and he didn't dare go in search of it on his own given the way his father had reacted the last time he found him near the kitchen and dining room.
When Ryssa returned, she was holding Apollodorus. The baby smiled the moment he saw Acheron and reached for him.
Unable to deny him, Acheron took him into his arms. "Greetings, bit. How have you been?"
He squealed in response.
Acheron look up at Ryssa as she folded cloth for a diaper. "He's grown since I last saw him."
"Yes, he has."
Acheron glanced at the baby's thinning hair. "You're getting bald too."
Ryssa laughed suddenly. "You did the same thing. All of your black hair fell out and then it came back in blond."
Apollodorus reached out and tugged at his beard.
Acheron held the baby out to Ryssa. "I'm too dirty to hold him."
"He doesn't mind. He's just glad to see his uncle again. He's missed you."
He'd missed him too.
Acheron hugged the baby close even as he glared at his sister. "That's unfair, Ryssa. You know what would befall me if Father ever found me here. And if he ever saw me near Apollodorus . . ."
She placed her hand on his shoulder. "I know, Acheron."
The door opened to admit servants who brought in a large tub and hot water. Ryssa took the baby while Acheron ate more.
Once the bath was ready, she left him alone.
With more enthusiasm than he wanted, Acheron sank into the steaming hot water and sighed. It'd been so long since he last had a bath that he'd almost forgotten how good it felt. Even so, it wasn't worth the risk to him.
"I love you, Ryssa," he whispered. She was the only one who really cared about him. Artemis wanted to love him, but she was a goddess and hers was a selfish love—very much like Estes's. So long as he pleased her, she was kind. Granted she was more giving than Estes had ever been, but there were still limits on what she'd do.
What hurt most with Artemis was the memory of how they'd been in the beginning. He craved that innocence on his part. That feeling that he'd meant something to her . . .
Trying not to think about it, he reached for the razor to finally scrape his cheeks smooth. Once he was finished, he dragged himself out of the tub and reached for his clean clothes.
After he was dressed, he knocked on the door to the maid's room. "I'm finished. Thank you."
Ryssa joined him before she closed the door so the maid couldn't hear them. "Please don't take any more of your drugs, Acheron. I don't like what they do to you." The concern in her pale blue eyes scalded him.
"I'll wean myself."
"Promise?"
He nodded. "But only for you."
She smiled at him. "You look so much better. Anytime you want a bath, come here and I'll have one drawn for you." She lifted herself up on her tiptoes to hug him.
Acheron gave her a squeeze, then withdrew. He'd stayed here too long already. They both knew the risk was too great for him to be in her chambers while the rest of the household was awake.
Entering his room again, he stared at the arc of Morpheus Root on his table.
Throw it out.
No, he couldn't. He'd be sick again if he stopped cold. His existence was miserable enough without that. He'd do what he promised Ryssa. He'd wean himself back off it.
"Acheron?"
He tensed at Artemis's voice. How did she know the precise moment to come see him?
Then again, she was a goddess.
"Greetings, Artie."
She flashed in behind him and wrapped her arm around his waist. "Mmm, you smell good."