But when the king gripped Sol’s hand, nothing happened. They shook hands and exchanged smiles. Midas clapped Sol’s shoulder, then patted his cheek.
Gaia only glanced at Midas, her expression unreadable. She inclined her head but said nothing before turning away. Trivia could tell the earth goddess was not too fond of Midas,and she couldn’t blame her. Midas had betrayed everyone. In fact, Trivia had every right to hate him, too.
But she couldn’t. Were it not for him, she never would have accessed her true powers and defeated Pandora. In her eyes, Midas was forgiven.
They were even.
With one last smile at Midas, Trivia followed after Gaia and made her way toward the portal with Sol at her side.
Her story was not over yet. She had a battle to face.
And she was not afraid.
ATTACK
MONA
Her heart was breaking,but Mona continued to work. Ignoring the shattered remains of her soul, she busied herself by making preparations with the fire witches. They had hoped to wait for the Gorgon sisters to return before tracking down the Titans, but there had been no word from them. Farah hadn’t admitted her concerns, but it was clear in the tight draw of her eyebrows and the dip of her frown as she worked.
She was worried.
Mona didn’t know the Gorgon sisters as well as Farah did, but she was worried, too. Together, their powers were supposed to be unparalleled. Unmatched. Unrivaled. Mona had heard the tale of how the Gorgons had defeated Neptune, one of the strongest deities of all.
If something had happened to the Gorgons, then Mona feared the realm had no chance at all.
Her fingers trembled as she tied off poultices andprepared vials of elixir. She filled canteens and wrapped bedrolls for the journey.
But in her mind, all she saw was Evander’s broken expression when she told him she would not be coming with him.
Mona paused before corking another vial, her fingers shaking so violently that she couldn’t continue. Her chest shuddered with a rattling breath, and her eyes burned hot.
What if I’ve made a terrible mistake?she wondered.
What if Evander died… because she hadn’t been there to help him?
She shook her head roughly and took a slow, steadying breath. She had made the right decision. If she had gone with him, she would have been fretting over Prue and Cyrus and the battle with the Titans. She would have worried over the fate of the fire witches.
If she had returned to the Underworld, she would have been abandoning her fellow witches. And she never would have been able to live with herself.
“Where do you suppose they are?” a voice asked.
Mona looked up to find Wren sitting a few paces away, grinding willow leaves for a healing elixir.
“Who?” Mona asked, distracted. She had to set the cork down to wipe the sweat from her palms before trying again.
“The Titans. Where do you think they are hiding?”
Mona considered this. When she wasn’t thinking of Evander, her mind was whirring with possibilities. Wherewouldthe remaining Titans go? From what she had read, they were exceptionally powerful—even more powerful than Apollo and the kings who had come before him.
Hiding didn’t seem like something they would do.
“I think they are planning something,” Mona said softly. “Something big. And if we don’t find them soon, they will strike us with a blow powerful enough to destroy everything we’ve ever known.”
Wren was silent for a moment. Then, she chuckled. “Wow. You’re so good at keeping my spirits up, Mona.”
Mona sighed. “I’m sorry. My mind is scrambled right now.”
Wren nodded sympathetically. “Evander will be all right. He’s endured far worse.”
