Chapter 19
“And what about my parents? Are they safe? And how am I supposed to explain to them that I’m moving to an island?” Ree shook her head in annoyance. “There’s no way I can do that. I can’t just leave them and hope they’ll be okay.”
“Look, I know this isn’t easy.” Sophie sighed and steepled her fingers in front of her face.
“You know what? I’m getting tired of everyone telling me that. It isn’t easy, and you telling me you understand doesn’t help, so stop. What I want is an answer to make it easier. I’m not leaving my parents; I’m not leaving them without protection.” Ree felt her eyes grow hard and her jaw clench.
“Ree, there is more at stake than just you and your parents.”
“Trust me, I’m well aware of that, but it doesn’t change the fact that I owe my parents more than running away and letting them be Tristan’s next dinner. As long as they’re in danger, I’m staying with them.” Ree leaned forward and rested her elbows on her knees. “Now, tell me why you want me to hide on the island and just what Ares is doing as a speaker at that convention.”
“I’ve called in more reinforcements to help. I was going to ask for the gods to send some, but now I feel that might be a mistake. Something is happening, and I have no clear idea as to what is going on. I can tell you that Ares is not the only god in the pictures on that website. Loki is also listed as a speaker. This cannot be a coincidence. If those two are working together, it spells nothing but trouble.”
“Like we need any more of that.” Leaning back in her chair, Ree crossed her arms over her chest. “Who did you call to come help us?”
“There are several Guardians I know personally that have agreed to come help patrol the city so I can spend more time with you and the others. I think you will be safer on the island, where some of the other gods can keep a better eye on you.”
“You think these gods might hurt me? Why?” Ree raised her eyebrows in confusion.
“Yeah, you would think that would be counterproductive.” Grimacing, Melanie looked from Ree to Sophie.
“I have no explanation.” Shrugging, Sophie straightened some of the papers on her desk. “Ares is bad enough, but even more troubling is Loki’s involvement. All bets are off when he shows up.”
“What do you mean?” Melanie asked.
“He is contrary for no reason other than to be so. It is worrying that he has shown up in the middle of the last battle. I can’t understand why a god would not want us to win. However, it could be completely possible he is here to cause trouble.”
“Why? Why would he want to make it more difficult? That’s crazy.” Shaking her head, Ree tightened her arms around her chest.
“That’s because you are thinking like a human and not like a god. They don’t value good or bad, right or wrong, the same way humans do.”
“Roland said the same thing last night.”
“He would know. Ares took a personal interest in him when he decided to join our fight.”
“What do you mean?” A chill ran through Ree as she recalled the fire in the god’s eyes.
“The god of war thought Roland would make the perfect warrior. In a lot of ways, he was right. Roland is dangerous, deadly, and he can be ruthless. However, Tria returned his humanity. She couldn’t return his soul, because that was destroyed. I also think that’s why—” Sophie stopped and looked at the girls, her eyes wide as if she had said something she hadn’t meant to. “In the end, Roland wasn’t quite what Ares wanted in a warrior. He refused to do things the god demanded, and Roland was sent to work with me instead.”
“That’s terrible.” Ree’s anger spiked and she didn’t care that the others could tell. “I can’t imagine Ares being nice about that.”
“No. It’s safe to say that Roland is a strong man to have not caved to Ares’s demands.” Sophie spoke quietly, and Ree could feel the older woman’s affection for Roland. Ree knew that feeling; it was the same way she had felt about Tristan when he was alive. They were family, but that didn’t mean she hadn’t wanted to strangle him over the years.
“Back to the gods. Why would being on the island help protect Ree from Ares and Loki?” Melanie looked uncomfortable, as if she needed to change the subject.
“There are gods that would protect Ree from the others. They can do so better on the island, where the other gods would be aware of what was going on. Out here, where things are not monitored in the same way, they could run the risk of starting an internal battle. The gods of this planet are not known for their cooperation. The last thing we need is for them to start fighting.”
Understanding how important it was for the gods to work together did nothing to change how she felt about staying with her parents. They needed her, and she wasn’t going to abandon them.
“I get it, Sophie, but I’m not leaving yet. I can’t do that to my mom and dad.”
Sophie looked at her for a minute and jerked her head in understanding. Ree knew she wasn’t happy about it, but didn’t really care. She stood up and started straightening clutter on the desk. Not wanting to continue arguing, Ree went to the front of the shop and straightened the sales desk out there, as well. Once that was finished, she went back to where her friends were still sitting and busied herself with a reading assignment. Eventually, a yawn pulled her mouth open and she looked at the others in embarrassment. “Sorry, I didn’t get much sleep last night.”
“Why don’t you go grab a nap for a little while? I have a few leads to check into tonight.” Sophie nodded toward the stairs.
“I think that might be a good idea. My sleep schedule hasn’t been normal since Christmas.” Ree stood up and stretched. “Wake me up if anything happens.” She looked at Melanie and raised a brow.
“Sure. I think I might try to get some homework done while you’re taking a nap.”
Ree groaned and looked at her backpack. She really should try to stay caught up with schoolwork, but at the mention of a nap, her eyes had begun to burn. “Ugh. It’ll be there when I get up, and I really do need some sleep. The whole ‘being mortal during an immortal battle’ thing pretty much sucks.”
“Yep. Being immortal does have its advantages. Not needing much sleep is one of them.” Melanie opened her calculus book and grimaced. “Of course, super brainpower would be handy. I really hate math.”
Laughing as she went up the stairs, Ree threw open the door to what she considered her room and flopped onto the bed. She stared at the old ceiling for a while, tracing the cracks with her eyes. I wonder if Sophie is going to refurbish this old building or if she’ll just move on after everything is finished, Ree thought. Then the reality of everything slammed into her, and she realized it was very likely that none of them would live through the battle. Closing her eyes, she counted to ten slowly and concentrated on slowing her heart rate. At some point during the process, her tired body took over and she fell asleep.