I don’t mean to go to Aphrodite.
After that disastrous conversation with Theseus, I actually follow him down the hall to apologize…which is when I overhear Minos’s not-subtle threat. Theseus doesn’t challenge him, doesn’t tell him to fuck off with that nonsense. He rolls over and shows his stomach. I hate that. Minos doesn’t deserve his loyalty.
But telling Theseus that will just result in a continuation of our fight.
He thinks I don’t understand why he follows Minos around like a whipped dog. I do. I was in that same orphanage he was. I suffered the same punishments, ranging from skipped meals to forced isolation to beatings. I am the reason Theseus committed the act of violence that brought us to Minos’s attention.
I never faulted Theseus for taking Minos’s deal, but we aren’t fifteen anymore. We don’t have to stay with him. That’s what Theseus doesn’t seem to understand.
I flee before they finish their little meeting. I just need some air. That’s all. Maybe that will help me find a way out of this impossible situation. Minos sees Theseus as a pawn; he always has. And what’s a pawn good for but sacrifice? Being Hephaestus won’t save Theseus if Minos decides he’s outlived his usefulness.
The worst part is that I’m not sure Theseus would fight. He might just kneel, bow his head, and accept his punishment as if that’s something he deserves.
I’ve known the man my entire life. I should be able to come up with the right sequence of words to get him to listen to me. Except every time I try, we end up in the same damn fight. I don’t know what to do. I’ve never felt so fucking helpless in my life.
I leave Minos’s penthouse and walk the streets. I’ll never get used to this place—or at least the city center where the rich and powerful make their homes. It’s all metal and concrete and glass. Soulless. Back on Aeaea, the rich don’t congregate in one place. It’s a point of prestige to have a massive house with even more massive grounds, all hidden away behind stone walls.
Gods forbid one of the rabble should dirty up the space with their presence.
It was one of those homes that Minos brought us to after slipping enough money to the right people to ensure he got exactly what he was looking for—two teenaged boys, their strength only matched by their rage. It’s just his bad luck that one of them came with me attached, but he wanted Theseus too badly to balk at my presence.
And now look at us.
We’re the bad guys. I might not have committed any violence with my own hands, but I stood by and let it happen. How could I do anything else? If the Olympians knew Minos’s plan to insert Aeaeans into the Thirteen through the assassination clause, they would have killed Theseus outright, and that I won’t be party to.
I slow and stop in front of familiar glass doors. Walking through them is in direct conflict with what Theseus wants, but at this point, I don’t know that he’s thinking clearly. I don’t know if any of us are. Things have changed too quickly, and despite all the preparation, it’s clear Minos didn’t actually know the full extent of what becoming one of the Thirteen means. He has his end goal, whatever it is, but he’s not offering Theseus any support in the meantime.
If I could get Theseus out from under his thumb…
I’m moving before I can think of how flimsy that excuse is. The lobby is exactly how I remember it from the other day—just as soulless as the rest of downtown. I smooth down my shirt and walk to the desk with the snooty-looking white woman behind it. She eyes me as if I’m a piece of trash that blew in off the street, but her expression changes as recognition rolls over her pretty features. “You’re Pandora.”
This is something I’ll never get used to. I might not be in the spotlight as much as the rest of Minos’s household, but strangers are still starting to recognize me. I don’t like it, but I manage a smile all the same. “Is Aphrodite in?” It’s on the tip of my tongue to spin some lie about why I’m here to see her, but overexplaining won’t do me any favors. This woman isn’t the one I need to convince to help me.
“I can check. Just a moment.” She’s perfectly polite now, though I catch her watching me beneath her fringe of blond bangs. A few seconds of murmured conversation later, she carefully hangs up. “You can go on up. I’m assuming you know the floor number?”
“I do. Thanks.” Now’s the time to turn back, to put a stop to this impulsive urge to see her. Aphrodite is not my ally, and she’s all but admitted that she’s using me to hurt Theseus.
But… What if she could be an ally?
That’s the question that drives me to walk slowly to the elevator and take it up to her floor. Or that’s what I tell myself. The truth is far more tangled.
Aphrodite meets me at the door. She looks similar to how she did the morning after her wedding, her hair hanging in careless waves, her face with only the barest hint of makeup, her long legs in fitted lounge pants. Her sweater looks comfortable, thin and soft; I have to clench my fists to keep from testing it for myself.
I don’t understand the hold this woman has on me.
“Well, don’t just stand there. You look like you could use a drink. Tea or tequila?” She steps back and holds the door open for me.
“Um. Tea would be great.” I step into the penthouse and follow her into her kitchen. I fully expect her to launch into an interrogation as to why I’m here, but she busies herself getting an electric kettle going and pulling out a tray with the most bougie tea setup I’ve ever seen. I eye it. “No store-bought brands for you, I see.”
“I’m a spoiled brat.” She shrugs. “I like my indulgences, and tea should always be an indulgence.”
I slide onto one of the barstools and watch her brew the tea. She doesn’t ask me what kind I want, which is just as well. I’m more of a coffee drinker normally, but I can’t deny how relaxing it is to watch the almost ritualistic way Aphrodite moves through the process. By the time she slides a cute little cup and saucer in front of me, along with a tiny tray with milk and sugar, most of the tension has melted out of my body.
“How do you do that?” After the slightest hesitation, I dose the tea liberally with both milk and sugar.
“I find it calming.” She doesn’t add anything to her tea. She just picks up the cup and leans against the counter across from me. “Now, tell me what’s wrong.”
“Why would anything be wrong?” The words are too sloppy, too quick. “Maybe I came here to seduce you.”
Her smile is knife-sharp. “I’d love to be seduced by you, Pandora, but the fact remains that you seemed almost afraid when you showed up on my doorstep unexpectedly, and as much as I want you in my bed, I don’t want fear driving you there. So why don’t we try this again? What’s wrong?”
It’s so tempting to spill everything. There’s something about this woman, about the connection strumming between us even now, that makes me want to trust her. I’m not so foolish as that, though. “I don’t want Theseus hurt.”
She makes a face. “Oh. Him.”
“Yes. Him. He’s my best friend, Aphrodite. I love him, and I hate seeing him dragged through all this.” I take a cautious sip of my tea and am surprised to find that I like it. It’s not as bitter as coffee, but it’s got a delightful layering of flavors. “This is good.”
“You don’t have to sound so shocked. I made it; of course it’s good.” She sips her tea for several long seconds and finally sighs. “Look, I like you.”