No one took care of her. Not since her parents had died. She’d been on her own so long, she’d forgotten what it was like. And she both loved and hated it now, because she found herself wanting to lean on him. Wanting to let someone else carry the load for a while. Even if it was the one person who should hate her more than any other.
When she’d drunk her fill, she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. He capped the water bottle and set it on the ground at his side, then ran one big hand over her scalp, drawing her damp hair back from her face.
Holy gods, this was…so wrong, his being nice to her in any way. But it felt so incredibly right, she didn’t have the strength to fight it any longer.
They sat in silence for several long minutes. Then quietly, he said, “You’re Argolean.”
Surprise rippled through her. She’d never told him her heritage. Then she realized he must have seen the Alpha birthmark on her hip. The marking all Argoleans were born with, signaling their race.
There was no reason to lie. Not now. “Yes.”
He was silent for several seconds, then said, “Your Council prohibits Argoleans from crossing into the human realm. How the hell did you wind up with Zagreus?”
A burst of anger whipped through her at the mention of the Council of Elders, the governing body that advised the monarchy of Argolea, but tonight it melded with the hatred and stupidity swirling inside her at the sound of Zagreus’s name.
Memories bombarded her. Ones she didn’t want to see tonight. She forced them back and told herself the specifics weren’t important. But she knew she couldn’t tell him everything. Even though Nick wasn’t technically an Argonaut, he had the markings on his forearms, and she knew from Zagreus that he’d aligned himself with the Eternal Guardians.
Her first instinct was to lie, but he was being nice to her. And with his increased strengths of late, she didn’t know if he could tell when she was lying. She figured a partial truth was her best bet. “My family was murdered. When I was old enough, I crossed into the human realm via the witch’s portals. And I went looking for Zagreus.”
“Why?”
Why? Because it had seemed like a good idea at the time. Because she’d heard stories of the Prince of Darkness’s ruthlessness. Because she knew Zagreus was the only person who could train her to fight and set her plan for revenge in motion.
But she couldn’t tell Nick any of that, so she simply said, “Because I knew he was a god who was always looking for a deal. And because he promised to help me find the person who killed my family and make them pay.”
Nick’s hand went back to stroking her hair, and gods, that felt good. Too good. Her eyes drifted closed once more.
“Revenge always comes with a price.”
His voice was low, just above a whisper, but it made her lashes flutter and her eyelids open once more. She stared out into the darkness, seeing nothing but shadows and mist as she thought about that price.
Not just her freedom. But the very heart of who she was. Or who she’d once been.
She hadn’t known when she’d made that deal with Zagreus that it would bring her to this moment. To questioning everything she’d done and believed in. But now…now she wondered if revenge was really the solution. She still wanted retribution against the one who’d destroyed her family, but she didn’t want to lose her soul in the process. And she wasn’t willing to go through with her plan if it meant taking someone else’s soul with her.
“So what changed your mind?” he asked in that same deep, sexy voice, the one that made her think about everything but revenge. “What made you finally decide to walk away from something you so desperately wanted?”
You did.
The words hovered on her lips but she couldn’t bring herself to say them.
“Did you find a phone?” she asked, changing the subject.
“Yeah.” His chest vibrated with his words, the sensation passing from him into her, warming her insides. “I also found us a car. In a few minutes, we’ll head that direction and rendezvous with someone who can help us get the hell out of this damn jungle.”
Us. We. He still intended to keep her with him. Warmth bloomed in her belly all over again, followed by a tiny burst of panic. “You…you called the Argonauts?”
“Hell, no.”
Relief and confusion clouded her thoughts. “But you’re one of them. Why wouldn’t you call them?”
“I’ve never been one of them. And they’re the last people I’d call in a pinch, trust me.”
Curiosity got the best of her. The Argonauts weren’t on her top-ten friend list by any means, but the animosity she heard in Nick’s voice was strong, and it made her wonder what they’d done to cause such a vehement reaction.
“You were gifted with the markings.”
“Cursed is more like it. Don’t get any ideas, female. I’m no hero.”
But…he was. The fact he’d insisted on freeing those prisoners and tended her wounds and was comforting her now when he should want her dead only confirmed that fact.