“Yes. And he took it from me without permission.” Her voice trembled. “And he didn’t stop there.”
My brow furrowed as an alarm bell blared in my skull. I pushed back on the panic, certain I was jumping to conclusions.
“If you repeat any of this, no one will believe you,” Larkin told me as she stared at the wall. “They’ll think you’re a troublemaker. A whore trying to climb the ranks by spreading malicious gossip.”
“I won’t repeat anything you tell me,” I said softly, ignoring the attack on my character.
“I will not give him children. I couldn't imagine a worse fate, but Hunter isn’t used to being told no.”
The insinuation was clear, and a tear rolled down her face. I felt sick at the revelation, frozen to the spot as Larkin continued.
“When it first happened, I didn’t know what to think. He is my husband. He is a protector. I didn’t believe that he would harm me. I thought maybe it was a power play. A kink?” There was a questioning tone in her voice. “It took me too long to admit to myself what was really happening. If I’m lucky, he cheats on me and I don’t complain. I know some of the Gods pity me because he isn’t discreet about it. He parades Mabel at the parties I refuse to attend, but it’s an easier life. When Hunter’s happy, carefree and his day is going well, he’ll leave me alone and find someone willing. And then sometimes he wants his wife because he’s had a bad day and he’s angry and because it’s behind closed doors where he can let the mask drop. There isn’t much I can do when he uses my gift against me. He uses my strength to make sure he can win.”
A sob ripped from her and I inched towards her, sitting up on my knees, but falling short of pulling her into a hug. I wasn’t sure it was what she wanted.
“Leave him,” I whispered. “Larkin, why are you still with him? Use his gift, protect yourself and leave.”
“Sometimes I can’t fight. And the times I do, it just ends up being worse.”
“There has to be something you can do. Someone you can tell.”
“Hunter is the head of the council. He is the only one who can grant marriage and divorce. Marriage is not taken lightly in Elysia, and I’m stuck.” Larkin took in a deep breath through her nose. “I am trapped, Quentin. I’m not the most liked Goddess. Who would believe me if I told them? My husband. The protector by gift. Who would believe he rapes me after being married to him for centuries?”
I never thought that issues that arose on Earth would affect the Gods. Women who feared speaking their truth because they would be called liars.
“I believe you,” I told her fiercely.
“You are a pariah,” Larkin said, wiping her face. “I didn’t tell you any of this for pity. I told you because I don’t want you to succumb to a similar fate.”
“You think Grayson could do something like that?”
Never once in our months together had Grayson forced me to have sex with him. Even with a collar wrapped around my neck and pressed against the wall, telling him I hated him, I was a willing participant. There was trust and respect between us in those moments.
She shrugged. “I never thought Hunter was capable of the things he’s done, but his darkness is hidden under depths. Grayson doesn’t even try to hide his. Think carefully. I couldn’t save myself, but that doesn’t mean I want anyone to suffer the same fate. Even if you are a traitorous demigoddess.” Her attempt at humour fell flat.
“Larkin.” I grabbed her hand that laid between us and she didn’t pull away. “Can I do anything to help you? Please, let me help you.”
“There isn’t anything. I am trying to find a way. I willfind a way.”
I might have imagined it, but I thought there was a ghost of a squeeze against my hand.
“What if you fall pregnant?” I asked quietly. “He’ll never let you leave then. Would he?”
“I won’t fall pregnant,” Larkin replied.
“How can you be so sure?”
Her blue eyes flicked down to our hands. “I used Sloan’s gift. She made me infertile.”
My heart shattered further in my chest until there was nothing left to beat in the cavity. There was a time in my life I imagined a home full of children, but had changed my mind since. Nothing stopped me from changing it back, but Larkin had taken the only route she could to protect herself.
“Why don’t you tell Hunter you can’t have children? He’d grant you a divorce if he’s just looking for an heir,” I suggested, trying to find a way for her to leave the nightmare she found herself in.
“It would put Sloan’s life on the line and I refuse to do that. She is the only person aside from my sister to offer me kindness.”
Elysian politics was a messy tangle of threads that connected everyone. There was no way to pull yourself out without cutting through someone else’s or further embedding yourself into it.
“You didn’t rely on us before,” Larkin said, looking up at me. “You were right not to. Don’t resort to becoming less than what you are for a shot at greatness, Quentin. It’s not worth it.”
