The man gritted his teeth. “What about me?” If possible, his grasp tightened even more. “Did you seemedie?”
Adam shook his head, eyes round. His hands came upon Draven’s wrists, but the look on his face—red with fury and pupils dilated in fright—was enough to convince the man not to try to escape him.
“No. No. I didn’t—I only saw mine. My death. Nothing else. I swear.”
“Let himgo,” Riley insisted, and with no further objection, Draven obeyed, snatching the staff and papyrus he had discarded on the ground.
Although I disliked Draven, mainly because he seemed to despise me for reasons I didn’t know, I could still understand hisfear of dying. That, however, made him a very,verydangerous opponent.
The contestants began reading their riddles, the rustling of paper filling the air, and soft cries mingled with the harpies’ raucous laughter. I took a deep, steadying breath, gripping the papyrus as my eyes drank in every detail.
God of Love—Eros. The answer came to me before the words I read even had a chance to fully register inside my mind. While I could fool myself into believing my goddess was Artemis, there was no reason to deny the truth.
I was the God of Love’s error.
It wasn’t a shock that he didn’t mention anything—I knew all too well it was merely a game to him, and in a game, there was always more than one player. I had my own agenda with Eros.
Two seconds later, the papyrus disappeared from my hands.
“You have something that belongs to me.”
His boots were the first thing I saw. Then the hands clasped over Dionysus’s thyrsus—a staff topped with a pinecone. And at last, Draven’s face. I almost stepped back at the sight of it—a vicious smile spread on his lips, his pupils darkening as if a shadow lived within him.
Of course he was Zeus’s error.
I sucked in a deep breath, and it almost came out as a whistle. “I’ll give it to you if you give me the bow.” Dionysus wasn’t my god, but I couldn’t walk into that maze without having a weapon to trade.
Draven laughed and then stepped aside to clear the path to the maze before leaning down and whispering in my ear. “And where would the fun be in that?” He chuckled. “I’ll give you ten seconds before I come after you.One.”
Chapter 20
Charisma
My heart pounded almost as fast as my feet ran. I didn’t stick around for that savage man to count further—my boots collided with the muddy ground in an unbroken rhythm, muck splashing on my pants with each step I took. It was futile to wonder why Draven would want to torment me when it was so blindingly obvious: for pleasure.
The harpies laughed and laughed as I raced between them, but I paid them no mind, doing my best to stay within the center of the paths and out of their reach. When I came to an intersection, I didn’t hesitate and went right. Even stopping to consider the probability of the next road being a dead end would cost me time. And perhaps more if he found me.
Sweat prickled on my forehead, and the beads swept off in the air as I flew through the maze, picking myself up off the ground when I slipped at a corner. The dirt splattered onto my face, and I wiped the mud, a thick, gritty paste, from my cheeks, feeling the persistent thump of the earth against the soles of my feet. My breath became ragged, but that didn’t worry me. It was as if I was doing my morning run, navigating the winding roads of the village, each one leading to a blind alley.
Except this wasn’t a morning run. This was a hunt. And I was the prey.
The hairs on my neck prickled, a chill snaking down my spine as I pictured Draven behind me. With gritted teeth, I pumped my legs, the ground blurring beneath my feet.
Where was he? It had been more than ten seconds since I had started the trial.
A curse burst past my lips, a lengthy and creative string of profanities aimed at every deity and individual I could bring to mind as I nearly dove into a wall of creatures. My boots screeched on the soil, pushing a pile of sludge in their trail.
Clack. Clack. Clack.
With a surge of adrenaline, I pressed into my heels, narrowly escaping the eager claws by a hair’s width. The beast screamed and snapped, its arm lunging to grab my face, but I dodged the hit, my head jerking back. A grunt escaped me as I landed with a thud from the movement.
Nasty, hideous, cruel creatures.
I pushed my hands into the ground and twisted my body upward, taking off to the other side. My teeth nibbled at my bottom lip.
Damn the trials. Damn the gods. Damn Draven. There was still no sign of him, but perhaps the gods had done me a favor, and he was being eaten alive at this very moment.
At the intersection where I took the wrong path, I paused. Was there a way to know the right direction? My brows furrowed in thought, and my eyes searched for a clue—a change in the wall’s placement, anything. For a moment, I was so engrossed inseeingsomething that I forgot how important my ears were. Then, a scarce difference in sound made a bell go off inside my mind. On the road that led to a dead end, the harpies were more vociferous, snarling and roaring with anticipation, while the other route was calmer, more expectant.
