She grinned a toothless grin at me and I shuddered.
"Sister," Clothos cautioned, and Atropos sat back in her seat. She looked disappointed that her fun had been thwarted.
"You are a thorn in my side," Clothos reprimanded me. "You have one duty and one duty only now. To protect your Daedal. Yet she’s been threatened on your watch. Your Aegis has been punished in your stead. And you have been granted a new one. Don’t abuse it this time."
Her faded blue eyes appraised me and I squirmed, then summoned my inner feistiness.
"Clothos, please explain what is going on. Where is Zeus? Where are my parents? You have much to explain."
She laughed, condescending and amused at once.
"As if you can demand that, Keeper. You can no longer command as a goddess, have you not noticed? Look around you. Olympus belongs to us. Which means you do, as well. Behave and we will spare Cadmus."
Cadmus. Gavin. My heart lurched in my chest and I tried to show no outward signs of alarm, but they could read me like a book. They had access to my thoughts and Clothos could taste my emotions, yet another gift. She licked her lips and swallowed.
"Terror is so delicious," she remarked. "You’re disappointingly predictable, Harmonia.
All these years and you would still risk everything for him. Tsk,tsk. Your father would be ashamed."
"Where is my father?" I inquired politely, trying to keep my voice steady.
"Not here," she replied mysteriously. "Ares can’t help you."
"What is your obsession with my Daedal? Why is she so important?" I asked. "Surely, if I am to protect her, you should tell me why she is important. It would help."
They seemed to consider it for a moment before Lachesis replied.
"She possesses a gift. It is in the best interest of mortals to discover this gift."
"Is it the Keres who want to stop that?" I asked.
"Yes. It is the Keres. You love your precious humans so much that you should want to help them, no?" Atropos asked. "The Keres want to kill your Daedal. You must prevent that."
"What is her gift?"
"That will be revealed in due time, Keeper," Lachesis said. "It is not of your concern at the moment."
"She can heal very quickly. Is that her gift? Why would the Keres want to kill her for that reason? It doesn’t make sense."
"Surely you are not questioning us," Clothos inquired steadily.
"No. I am just trying to figure it out."
Clothos laughed, a chilling sound.
"Harmonia, you’ve never changed. You see the very best in people, not what they are actually capable of."
Her mention of my name reminded me of a more important issue to press.
"Clothos, why have I been rendered mortal? Where is everyone else? How have you managed to do this?"
All three sisters cackled at that, their ancient faces twisted and ugly. I flinched.
"Do we repulse you?" Atropos asked, sitting forward in her chair. She seemed eager and I instantly shook my head.
"No, of course not. I’m just confused. That is all. Why have you done this?"
Clothos sobered and stared at me. "You’ve never known what it is like to have a father who doesn’t claim you. You were a bastard daughter yet Ares proudly claimed you as his. Our own father never publicly announced us, even though we were so valuable to him. He only loved us for our gifts."
"I’m sure that Zeus meant no harm" I began, but she interrupted sharply.
"He meant exactly what he did, to shun us for centuries. He has gotten his just desserts."
I swallowed, stared at the bitter women and then swallowed again. How did one go about arguing with insanity?
"But what about everyone else?" I asked. "What did they do to deserve this?"
"Mainly nothing," Lachesis shrugged. "But no one ever stepped in. For instance, Hera could have easily insisted to her husband that he do the right thing, but she did not."
"But it is no one else’s fault," I protested. "I’m sure they meant no harm."
"As do we. We mean no harm. They’re all being taught a valuable lesson. Humility. They need to realize that they are not as important as they think."
"Where are they?" I asked again, hoping that they might change their minds and tell me.
But no such luck. Atropos was already shaking her ancient head.
"No, dear Keeper. That shall remain our secret for now."
Clothos turned back to me, her faded eyes becoming fierce. My stomach tightened.
"You need to concern yourself with guarding your Daedal. Make sure that the Keres do not get close to her. If they do" she stopped speaking as Atropos leaned forward, inhaling ever so gently against my life force. It pulled toward her slightly and I took a step back. She laughed, a malevolent, eerie sound.
"If they do, I’ll let Atropos finish," Clothos confirmed.
I nodded.
"I’ve come to love my Daedal," I replied. "Of course I wish no harm to come to her, so I will do my best to guard her. Can you tell me. When will you allow the other gods to return home?" My gaze swept below the palace toward the ravaged streets of Olympus before I returned my attention to the Fates.
"They deserve to come home, sisters."
Lachesis cocked her head, her white hair curled around her thin shoulders.
"That will probably never happen, but I should probably never say never," she replied cryptically. She smiled, amused at her own vagueness.
"Harmonia, this situation is unlike anything you’ve seen before. You will need to take on the role of protector, which will require you to use your gifts. Harmonia’s gifts. That is the reason you were called here today. You have drunk from the cup, which has returned your gifts to you. For now. Over the coming days, you’ll feel more yourself. Use caution," she instructed.
I nodded. It was true. I already felt different than before. I felt awake. That was the best way to put it. I felt as though I had been asleep before and now I had been awakened.
Something that I couldn’t explain pulsed through my veins and it both alarmed me and excited me. It felt as though I was home. Because I was.
"Yes," I agreed. "I will use caution."
"Do your job well, and we will consider allowing your parents to return," Clothos mentioned casually and I startled. I knew she was lying, but the knowledge that whatever Jade was was so important that she would bother to lie was alarming. What in the hell was she?
"That will be all," Clothos dismissed me and they all promptly turned their backs on me again. I stood uncertainly until Alexi grasped my elbow once more and led me back out through the palace.
As we passed Hephaestus, I glanced over my shoulder to find him staring at me. His eyes were pensive and soulful and I wondered what he was thinking. Did he think I could help?
And why would I want to help him anyway, after he had tried to curse me for all of eternity?
Yet, I couldn’t help but admit that I felt sorry for him. His great shoulders slumped and he sat once more next to the post he was chained to.
We stopped directly before the massive gates at the small golden table. Alexi motioned toward the basket of blue blossoms.
"You must eat one," he instructed.
I stared at him suspiciously. "Why? What are they? The bones of the unforgiven?"
"Don’t be silly," he replied. "They are simply Lotus Blossoms one of the many forms of ambrosia. You must eat one to return to the mortal world."
I stared at him once more before approaching the basket hesitantly. As I drew nearer, just as the nectar had lured me in with its delicious smell, so too did the blossoms. Their sweet smell drifted to me on the breeze and it was almost hypnotic. I knelt by the basket and pulled one out with trembling fingers, raising the fragrant flower to my lips. I ate it quickly, savoring the rich flavor. It was the most delicious thing I had ever eaten.
I felt slightly woozy as I stood and faced Alexi.
"Now what?"
He took my arm and we strolled out, the falcons above us strangely quiet as they observed us. As soon as we stepped from the gates, they swung closed with a metallic clang. We were once again surrounded by clouds, but through them, I saw that we were standing on a steep precipice. I could see the ground hundreds of miles below us. I inhaled sharply as I turned to Alexi.
"How do we get back?"
"Like this," he replied. He grasped my arm yet again and we stepped from the edge.
And I was in my bed. I had no recollection of falling from the edge of Mount Olympus at all. I simply stepped from the edge and then suddenly, I was here in the dark safety of my room. Alexi was gone.
I glanced at my clock. 3:00 a.m. My breaths were shaky and nervous and I consciously tried to still them. Reaching for my bed stand, I grabbed my phone.
Gavin would be asleep, but I needed to tell him that I loved him. More than ever, I realized that it had always been him. He had always been the most important thing. My fingers flew as I typed the text.
I love you more than life.
When he woke up in the morning, he would wonder why I had sent him such a sentimental text at 3:00 in the morning. Honestly, I just needed to be close to him. This all seemed like a horrible dream. I clasped my phone to my chest and closed my eyes, willing myself to sleep.
Chapter Eight
I woke to persistent whining and opened my eyes. Early morning light streamed through my bedroom windows and I blinked, trying to place the noise that had woken me. It whined again.
I glanced down and found Hamlet cowering next to me, trying to crawl under my bed. He was too large, so only his head was buried beneath my bed frame. His entire body was shaking as he whimpered. I reached down and patted him.
"What’s the trouble, Hammie?" I murmured, trying to soothe him as I forced myself to wake up.
He whimpered again.
And the house started to shake. Right in front of my eyes, my bedroom walls seemed to flex, then tremble as my bed lurched. I could hear glass breaking somewhere else in the house and Hamlet gave up trying to get under my bed and instead lunged into bed with me. My bedside table vibrated away from the bed, the lamp crashing to the floor.
The drawers on my tall dresser slid out, the weight causing the entire dresser to tumble over. Every one of the glass globes that my dad had been giving me for years flew off. I watched one shatter against the wall, the glittery liquid inside running down in streaks.
After a moment, the heavy rumbling stopped, leaving behind only sporadic quivers.
Aftershocks. I took a deep breath, rubbing Hammie’s soft ears.
"It’s okay, boy," I consoled him. "It’s over now. We should be used to this." But we weren’t. It was always startling.
My mom barged into my room, stepping around my fallen dresser and eyeing the damage.
"Are you okay?" she asked nervously. "God, I hate those things."
"Me too," I agreed. "But I’m fine. My snowglobes are all broken though."
She knelt down and surveyed the mess as I untwisted myself from my blankets and the dog.
"Not this one!"