“Nothing.”
“He won’t find out if we’re careful,” Artemis assured me.
“Humor me. Whatifhe does?”
“There is a measure we could take to ensure your safety,” Eros added, and Artemis immediately shook her head, dismissing the idea that passed between them.
“No,” she replied, but when Eros continued to stare at her, her eyes widened. “Are you out of your mind? No. No and no. Is that clear enough?”
The God of Love ignored his friend and turned his attention to me. “We could bond.”
“Eros!”
“If Zeus observes the bonding mark, he will not harm you.”
“That is true, but she’ll never be able to leave this place.” Artemis walked over to me, taking my palms in her hands. “If you bond with him, your soul will be linked to his. Great distances like the one between Earth and Elythra would kill you both.” She then glared at Eros. “You cannot do it.”
His jaw locked. “We will perform a reversal of the bonding at an appropriate time.”
Artemis seemed to gather all the patience in the world as she let go of me, taking a deep breath. “No. I don’t think you should do it.”
“Why?”
“You know very well why! For the same reason Zeus wouldn’t kill her if he sees the mark. This is a terrible idea, and you know it too.”
My brows furrowed. What was she talking about? Before I could stop myself, the question slipped past my tongue. “What reason?”
“None,” Artemis said at the same time Eros uttered, “Not of importance.”
“I trust you’re aware of the repercussions of the reversal,” Hades finally said.
Eros nodded. “Yes.”
My eyes darted between the three of them. “What repercussions?”
Artemis sighed, closing her eyes for a moment. “If he reverses it, he won’t be able to bond with anyone else, and the agony when you split exceeds all other pain. When you are bonded with someone, it makes you feel whole, refreshed. The absence of it, after you have experienced it, is brutal. It’s like yanking your soul out and returning only a small piece of it.”
“It is not in my interest to bond with any other individual. That consequence does not concern me, and I have endured more significant suffering than that.” Eros’s eyes softened as they landed on me. “The decision is yours.”
The only thing going through my head was one person. My mother. And it was enough to convince me of the right choice.
“If you’re certain there’s no other option and that this bond will guarantee he won’t kill me, then you have your answer.”
Artemis shook her head once again. “Look, the next trial is mine and Hades’. We’ll be there; we can keep you safe if he figures it out.”
“No,” Hades’ voice thundered. “Under no circumstances should he discover that we orchestrated this.”
I took a deep breath, biting the inside of my cheek. “How do we bond?”
Chapter 24
Charisma
Artemis attempted to persuade Eros to alter his decision dozens of times, and it lasted longer than her repeated efforts to accept that neither of us would reconsider. Hades watched the entire exchange unfazed, probably bored out of his mind, and I didn’t doubt it was a relief for him when Eros eventually veyrithed the both of us to his house.
I played with the hem of my shirt as Eros opened the door to the library, extending a hand and motioning for me to enter first. His pursed lips twitched, eyes fixed ahead as he waited for me to walk past him.
Was he thinking about Psyche? Feeling as if he might betray her? My chest stung at the thought. The bond . . . was surely not a comfortable thing for him to do. Not after all he went through. And yet, he was doing it all for me. To keep me safe.
