Crossing her arms over her chest, she glared at him, no longer caring how this impacted Silas’s silly plan or what Zeus wanted. “Silas is gone. He left to get supplies. Why are you tracking Sirens?”
“Stupid half breed,” Ari muttered. He glanced toward the map. Still didn’t seem to want to answer, but after several long seconds said, “Not that it’s any of your business, but this is for avoidance, not tracking.”
“Avoidance of what?” she asked skeptically.
“Sirens. I have a personal distaste for their Order. I started mapping their movements years ago so I could stay well out of their way. That’s why I picked the Snoqualmie National Forest as my home base.” He pinned her with an annoyed look. “Happy now?”
No, Daphne wasn’t happy. She glanced back at the map. There was only one Siren flag in the Pacific Northwest, south of their location, but still close enough to Stonehill Hold where he could get to the location quickly if he wanted. “What happened to those Sirens?” She looked back at him and pointed toward the map. “The ones marked there in Washington?”
He scrubbed a hand over his forehead. “I’m not going to get rid of you, am I?”
“Not until you answer my questions.”
He dropped his hand to his side. “I’m going to fucking kill Silas.”
When she only continued to glare at him, he scowled. “I don’t know why you care but there was only one Siren in that location, and I never personally ran into her. She, luckily, was too interested in a different Argonaut to taunt me.”
Sirens didn’t taunt. They lured. But Daphne didn’t bother to explain the difference because she knew it would be lost on him.
She looked back at the map, taking in the flags all over Europe, following the intricate lines he’d created of the Sirens’ movements, thinking of the hours and months and years it must have taken to compile this information. But her awe drew to a shuttering stop when her gaze landed on a collection of flags marking a location in Northern Greece.
“What is this?” She stepped toward the map, her eyes growing wide. “Why are all these flags grouped together in the Pindus Mountains?”
“What are you looking at now?” he muttered.
Fabric rustled, indicating he’d moved further in the room, but she didn’t care how close he was. The pressure pushing on her chest was all she could focus on. “Here.” She pointed. “Marking this tiny village.”
“Because Sirens were there. Just like every other mark.”
“I get that,” she said calmly when all she really wanted to do was scream. “But why so many? And what does the black flag in the middle mean?” Her gaze skipped over the rest of the map. There were only a few other black flags on the map, randomly scattered over the continents, but if there was a pattern to their marks, she couldn’t see it.
“Black means they wiped it out.”
Everything inside Daphne went cold. “Wiped what out?”
“The entire village.”
Daphne’s heart felt as if it skipped a beat, then picked up speed until it was a whir in her ears. Her hands grew sweaty. Her legs swayed. He couldn’t be right. The map blurred in front of her eyes, but somehow, she found her voice and asked, “H-how?”
“Gods, you’re curious.” His feet shuffled. “If I tell you, will you go?”
“Yes! What happened?”
Panic was rising in her voice. She could hear it herself. Several minutes of silence ticked by, but she didn’t turn to look at Ari. Couldn’t because she was too afraid of what she’d see. Truth? Lies? She wasn’t sure which she wanted at the moment.
“It was like twenty years ago,” he said at her back. “Zeus has always had a thing for nymphs, and this village was made up of nothing but nymphs. There was a female there he wanted. Simple thing. Wasn’t interested in Olympus or the gods. But you know Zeus. He always gets what he wants. He pursued her, but she repeatedly turned down his advances. When he grew aggressive, she threatened to call the Argonauts in to protect her.”
“Argonauts aren’t sworn to protect nymphs.”
“They’re sworn to protect the human realm from otherworldy threats. Zeus can be a definite threat. Anyway, Zeus didn’t like the ultimatum. He backed off, let her think she’d won. When enough time had passed and she’d let down her guard, he sent his Sirens to teach her a lesson.”
No. No, no, no, no, no. It couldn’t be true.
“I heard they burned the village, top to bottom,” Ari said. “When they were done, there was nothing—and no one—left. Nice girls those Sirens, huh? Now you know why I avoid them.”
The room spun around Daphne. It couldn’t be true. It couldn’t be.
“You seem shocked by this,” Ari said. “Sirens have killed hundreds of thousands over the years. Anyone Zeus wants gone. What does one little village in the middle of nowhere matter to you?”