He frowned at her as she pulled out the bowl Zarek had been looking at. She handed it to Vane.
"Would you mind taking this to Zarek for me?
"
Talon was aghast. "What are you, insane?
"
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"No, Talon. That man is in a lot of pain. I think he could use an act of kindness from someone.
"
Vane scoffed. "What he could use is a good butt-kicking.
"
"Vane, please." Sunshine urged him to take it.
He did, grudgingly. "Okay, but if he throws it at me, I'm going to want some compensation.
"
She kissed him on the cheek.
"Lame compensation, but in the presence of Talon, I'll settle for it.
"
Vane took the bowl and headed off down the street.
She turned back to Talon who was still frowning. "Zarek will slam it against a wall and break it the first chance he gets.
"
"I don't think so. Even if he does, I can always make another one.
"
He helped her lock up her cart and then led her back out to the street. "You have such a generous heart.
"
"That's what they tell me. So, shall we go hunt for Styxx?
"
"Hell, no. I'm not going to chance you getting hurt.
"
She growled at him. "Listen, my grandmother said something to me this afternoon. She told me to follow my heart tonight. I don't know what she meant by that, but I trust her. She is an extraordinary psychic.
Everything she has told me has come true."
"Look, Sunshine, I can't help what she said. I just know that I'm not willing to let anything happen to you. When Nynia died, I was so lost and cold, and I haven't been warm since. Not until I felt your hands on me. The only way I've been able to cope without you is to bury what I feel, but I can't seem to do that anymore. When I'm with you all I can do is feel and need."
"That's how I am too.
"
"So where does that leave us?
"
"I don't know, Talon. I wish I did.
"
Talon put his arm over her shoulder as they walked back toward the square. He noticed other couples around them.
Create PDF files without this message by purchasing novaPDF printer (http://www.novapdf.com) How he wished they could be a normal, happy couple with no worries other than a mortgage payment.
But it wasn't meant to be.
Camulus was playing with both of them and Sunshine was going to get hurt.
Talon only knew one real way to protect both of them.
"So where are we going?" Sunshine asked.
"We're going to see a god about a miracle."
Chapter 15
Ash ground his teeth as Artemis ran her hands through his long, blond hair. He shuttered his eyes as he watched her draw a lock of it between her fingers and flick the curl back and forth with her fingertip.
"I have to go," he said.
She pouted seductively, running her graceful hand down his bare chest, her fingernails gently scraping his skin. "I don't want you to go."
"Release me, Artie. I have to find Styxx before he hurts anyone else. He almost killed Zarek last night."
"Who cares? Zarek is better off dead."
"That can be said for most of us."
She painfully raked her nails down his arms, which were secured to her bedposts by a pair of soft golden cords. "I hate when you talk like that. You're so ungrateful after all I have done for you."
Oh yeah, she had done so muchfor him. More liketo him and very little of it had been kind or enjoyable.
"Don't make me break your restraints, Artie." If he used his powers to untie her "special" cords, it would send a signal throughOlympus alerting the other gods of his presence in her temple. Anytime he "visited"
her, his powers were seriously restricted. He could do paltry parlor-type tricks such as open doors or dress and undress, but anything more than that would be picked up by the Olympian gods and would cause them to investigate the unknown source of power.
That was the only thing Artemis feared.
"You'd like that, wouldn't you? To have Zeus or one of the others find you in my bed?
"
"Then let me go.
"
The golden cords unwrapped themselves from his wrists. Ash sighed as he moved his arms for the first time since dawn and let the circulation travel back into his hands.
A wave of exhaustion hit him, but he shook it off.
As usual, Artemis hadn't let him sleep at all while he'd been with her, and he'd now been awake for two days straight.
He was so tired, he wanted nothing more than to sleep.
"Oh, guess what I found out for you," Artemis said. "My worthless brother, Dion, has hooked up with yours and with the Gaulic war god, Camulus, in a bid for power. Is that a goof or what?
"
Acheron froze. "What did you say?
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"
"Dion andCam think they can retake their godhoods and they're using your brother as their ringleader.