He doesn’t respond but the amused smile on his lips says I’ve nailed it. I move to Triton next. “You’re closed-minded.”
“What? I’ll have you know I have the highest IQ at this school!”
“I didn’t say dumb, I said closed-minded. You have no life experience beyond what you’ve read in a book. You’re sheltered and afraid of what you don’t have firsthand experience with.”
“Burn,” Dion says under his breath. It only draws my attention to him.
“And you?”
“Yes,” he says with a flirtatious smile. He plays it cool but I feel the panic under his skin.
“You’re afraid.”
“Of what?”
“Everything. Growing up. Your friends. Your family. These Trials, what happened to my brother because of his part in the rebellion. You’ve been shaken, Dion, and you think you can hide behind a smile and a wink and make the demons go away.”
“Ouch.” He looks at his hands, not denying it. I appreciate that.
Inhaling, I look my alliance in the eyes. “When we know our weaknesses, it makes us stronger. We can help one another better. I truly believe that.”
Thor eyes me and the annoyance from before is gone. I spot something else; respect?
An unexpected emotion comes over me and I feel the need to share, to strengthen our bond further. “During my admission test, I think I was reliving Apollo’s first trial, apart from you were there too, Loki. When I encountered each of you, you reacted to me as though I was Apollo. I must have looked like him, sounded like him. I fought the kraken just like he did. I ran and challenged the wolf the same way.”
“Did you die?” Thor asks.
“No.” I pause. “Well, yes. When I found the body hanging, choked by the snake, it wasn’t Apollo. It was me.”
The room drops into a thick silence before Loki speaks. “Damn. They really did try to fuck with your head.”
“You cut my body down,” I tell Thor. “And when we’d fought both the snake and the wolf, you helped me escape, but by then the body was no longer mine, it was Apollo’s.”
“Fucked. Up.” Dion agrees.
“Is this how the trial will be? Make believe and confusion?” I need to be prepared.
“It sounds like you were in a manipulated version of reality,” Triton says. “Those things did happen to us in the trial. The kraken and the snake.”
Thor adds, “I cut Apollo down and returned his body to the judges. I forced them to give him the points.”
That is something I didn’t know, and my respect for the arrogant god grows.
“The actual challenge is very real. It will be a battle; one between warriors,” Thor says. “As far as manipulation? The judges have made it clear they don’t like the hints of rebellion. They’ll use what they can—politics, family history, enemies, and grudges. There’ll be blood and we won't all cross the finish line. We work as a team. Help one another. No question.”
I don’t believe this god would hand over a win under any circumstances, but I hear what he’s saying and take it into consideration.
Draining the last of my wine, I stand and stretch. “I think I need some fresh air.”
“Do you want someone to go with you? Gods know what sort of creatures are in this forest at night.”
I pick up my bow and hold it up. “I’ll be okay, but thank you.”
The porch is small, but if I lean over the railing, there’s a view of the night sky. I can see a million stars here and it reminds me of home. From inside I hear the end of the game; Loki won, making Thor bitter and shouting for a rematch. The others all beg off and head to bed. The night is quiet and I can sense the bugs and night creatures in the dark. It may be the warm buzz from the wine or the comfort of the allies I’m with, but for the first time in weeks I feel a sense of contentment.
DION
Thor and Loki help Triton upstairs and into a bed. I offered to stay by the fire and sleep on the couch—giving Artemis the other bed. I realize once they’re gone that the goddess is still outside. After stoking the fire once more, I head to the porch to check on her.
She looks at ease leaning over the railing. Being out here brought a color to her cheeks and a light to her eyes that I hadn’t noticed at the Academy. Her shoulders tense when she hears me come out, her foot moves close to the bow propped against the wooden post.
“Don’t shoot,” I say, offering my hands in surrender. She glances back and gives me a quick smile. “The others went to bed.”
“I noticed the quiet.” She stares up at the sky. The rain has passed, and there are a million stars and the sliver of the moon winks above. I consider the charm around her neck. “Your brother had the other half of that, didn’t he?”
Her fingers move to her throat, touching the half sun. “I don’t know—I mean, I always figured there was another side.”
“Where did you get it?”
“It was a gift delivered to my encampment. I assumed it was from my mother or maybe father.”
“Apollo wore it around his wrist, tied with leather in a cuff. I never realized it had something to do with you.” Saying it now makes me contemplate how little I knew of my friend and how very much I miss him. The glint of tears in the corner of Artemis’s eyes says she feels the same. “He would be proud of you.”
She wipes her eyes. “You’re just saying that to make me feel better.”
I laugh. “I have so many ways to make a goddess feel better, but talking about her brother isn’t one of them.”
Artemis looks me up and down, the hint of a smile on her mouth. I like that she gets my jokes and isn’t offended by my bawdy talk. So many others are, but I love a good laugh and I definitely appreciate a beautiful woman. Finding one that understands these two sides of me seems like fate.
“You’re a strange man, Dion. Not what I expected at all.”
“What did you expect?”
“I spent my life surrounded by women. We did everything together. Ate, slept, hunted, and foraged. Each one was like a sister. I knew their hearts, their strengths and weaknesses. We trusted one another. We had to.”
“A village of women. Sounds like heaven.”
She laughs. “Not always. There were arguments and jealousies. Like anywhere else.”
“So you really never met a man before?”
“Not before Hati came to get me.” She studies me a little. “Then we travelled through the villages to get to the river. It was eye-opening, to say the least.”
“Let’s get back to me.” I tease, taking a small step closer. “Why am I unexpected?”
“I thought you’d be like the books my father sent me. Stuffy and boring. I didn’t know you’d carry a fire I’d want to get a taste of.”
Her shoulder bumps into mine. It’s not an accident. I take a chance and slip my hand around her waist. “If it makes you feel any better, I didn’t know how much I’d want you, either.”
The kiss comes as a surprise—not because I didn’t want it, I just figured I’d have to make the first move—but Artemis has done nothing but surprise me since entering my life. Her lips are chilled by the cool night air but her mouth is warm, still sweet from the wine. I push my fingers into her hair, catching a hint of lavender soap, and tugging her to me. She falls into my chest, breathless.
“That was…” she says, searching for words. I have no idea what she’ll say but she licks her lip and kisses me again. This time I’m prepared and I wrap my arms around her, pushing her back into the railing. As with everything else, Artemis is curious, exploring my mouth, the taste of my tongue, and nibbling on my lips. I trail kisses from her neck to her collarbone and she shivers against me. I can’t help but smile, pleased at such a turn of events.
“What’s that for?” she asks about my grin.
“You never fail to surprise me.”
“And that’s a good thing?”
I nod, pulling her close once again. “Oh yes, a very, very good thing.”
24
ARTEMIS