“I know exactly what he is,” Isadora answered. “And though you may see that as a negative, I see it as the opposite. I’m not about to let anyone—especially you—ruin him.”
The queen’s last words hung in the silence between them, a ridiculous warning from a petite creature any Siren would ignore. But Skyla wasn’t ignoring it. Because only one thought revolved in her mind as she stared at the queen. “You care for him.”
“I do. While he’s not the easiest person to get along with—”
“You can say that again,” Casey mumbled.
“—he is not defined by that part of himself he keeps carefully locked down.”
His daemon side. The queen was talking about his daemon, which meant she did know what he was.
“It makes him unpredictable,” Skyla managed.
“Unpredictability is often an asset, especially in a war the likes of which we are embroiled in. Regardless of that unpredictability, Orpheus has shown his link to the ancient heroes more times than I can count. If he was only what you or Zeus say he is, he wouldn’t give a damn about me or my sisters or our world. And the truth is—whether he will admit it or not—he does.”
Tingles spread through Skyla’s chest. And that word, hero, the one growing louder and louder in her head whenever she thought of Orpheus, increased to the sound of a blaring trumpet. “How?”
“Excuse me?”
“How does he give a damn?” Her neck grew hot and sweaty. “Give me an example.”
Isadora looked at her sister again, and when Casey nodded, she said, “I can give you several. He saved my life. He saved my husband’s life. He saved our other sister’s son Max’s life. Together with my mate’s help he was able to send Atalanta to the Fields of Asphodel, thereby giving us the chance to hunt her daemons and get a leg up on this war. But none of those are as important as the reason I’m about to give you.”
Skyla’s chest tightened. And in the queen’s words, every suspicion she’d had about Orpheus was confirmed.
Hero.
She moved toward the bed, sat down on the edge before her legs gave out.
“Three months ago,” the queen went on, “an Argonaut was injured in our realm by a powerful warlock who’d banded forces with Atalanta. Gryphon, Orpheus’s brother, suffered a tremendous blast of energy during that fight that left him weak and nearly dead. Our healers did all they could for him, but it wasn’t enough. When it became clear that Gryphon’s body had regained its strength, but that his soul was slowly dying, Orpheus gave up whatever personal plans he had for the Orb of Krónos and brought it to Gryphon. Even without the four elements, the Orb has powers beyond explanation. But the warlock’s energy had destroyed enough of Gryphon’s soul that he was able to take possession of Gryphon’s body, thereby sending Gryphon’s soul to the Underworld.”
The Underworld. Oh gods.
Skyla’s breaths grew quick as Orpheus’s intentions—why he was seeking the Orb of Krónos—suddenly became clear. She reached out and gripped the post at the corner of the bed, knowing what was coming even before the queen said it.
“I’m sure Zeus told you Orpheus is after the Orb for power and glory.” Isadora’s eyes grew hard. “But he’s not. He’s after the Orb so he can harness its powers and travel into the Underworld to save his brother’s life. A life he feels responsible for losing. He won’t admit that to you if you ask. He won’t even admit it to me. And sometimes I’m not even sure he can admit it to himself, but that doesn’t change the truth. The ándres who has been there every time we’ve needed him for whatever reason is more a hero than most in our realm. And he’s more a hero than you or I could ever hope to be.”
Hero. The word was there again, roaring through her mind like a freight train.
“And when you say he is an Argonaut,” Isadora continued, “you may be right—now—but he was not one by birth. He was passed over by the gods to serve. Those marks on his arms? They only appeared after his younger brother’s soul was sent to the Underworld.”
“Siren?” Casey asked. “Are you okay?”
Skyla swallowed hard. Tried to nod. Wasn’t sure she succeeded.
Dear gods, she’d been right. Zeus and Athena were lying to her. Lying because they wanted the Orb for themselves. Not to rescue a soul, like Orpheus, but to ensure no one became more powerful than them.
Hero. The word sucked up all the empty space in her head, shoving aside every last doubt she’d had about Orpheus because of his daemon. Whether he purposely hadn’t shifted or couldn’t anymore didn’t matter. He was still heroic, even with the daemon.
“You said he was with the Argonauts.” Skyla’s mind was a thick hazy soup of lies long told and so easily believed. “Why? Where?”
“They went to deal with your tail,” Isadora answered.
“My what?
“You’ve had two Sirens following you for quite some time.” Casey brushed her hair over her shoulder. “And they weren’t the same two that came to Argolea to request the Argonaut’s help locating the warlock who has the Orb.”