Apollo rolled his eyes. “This is boring me.” He flung a hand at me. “Just remember already. I don't have time to explain it all.”
A dam broke in my mind. I floundered under the weight of centuries upon centuries of memories. I was born on Olympus. I grew up there with my brother. Loved him. He loved me. We were inseparable. Until the day that a mortal came between us.
Hyacinthus.
But his was not the name I murmured when I rose from that sea of memories in my mind. “Helios.”
“There you are, Selene.”
“Helios, how could you? All this time? For what? One mortal man? We are blood. Family. You fucking bastard!”
Bruno growled, but I stroked his head and he calmed.
“Hyacinthus was not just a man!” Apollo—AKA Helios—strode forward, his expression shifting into fury. “He wasmyman! I found him first!”
“Oh, for fuck's sake.” I rolled my eyes. “What are you—five? Hyacinthus made his own decision, and he chose me. Get over it!”
“I loved him!” Apollo pointed a finger at me. “I loved him more than any lover before him. And you were jealous of my love for him. You pursued him out of spite. You vicious, horrid thing.”
“I'm vicious?I'mhorrid? You killed him!”
“I was trying to kill you!”
“I'm a fucking goddess, you asshole! Even your stupid curse couldn't keep me dead.”
“Only because mortals cycle through their lives.” He sneered at me, looking me over. “You even look like your old self now. Not quite as beautiful, but close. Your skin used to be as pale as the moon. Aren't you annoyed that you took my complexion instead of your own?”
“What the fuck do I care about the color of my skin?” I huffed. “You cursed me over a stupid fling. You tried to kill me even though we can't be killed. Do you hear yourself? You've lost your damn mind, Helios. Over. A.Mortal.”
“He was my mortal!”
“If he was yours, I wouldn't have been able to take him!”
A crash came from our left.
My brother and I looked over to see Ace in the doorway. At his feet were bags of food, some of it seeping out of broken containers. Bruno leapt off the couch and ran over to feast. Meanwhile, his master gaped at us.
That's when I realized who Ace was to me.
“Oh, gross!” I made a vomiting sound. “Ugh! He's mynephew?”
“Yes, you disgusting slut! You fucked my son!”
“Ugh!” I shook my hands as if I could get the grossness off me. “You asshole!Ididn't know he was my nephew, butyoudid. You could have stopped us.”
“Why do you think I keep killing you? I was fine with you suffering through life as a mortal, but then my boy found you.” Apollo rolled his eyes. “He was so in love.” He waved at Ace. “He bonded with you. Every time you were reborn, he was there, hunting you down. I tried to send you away, but that never worked. He forced me to kill you.”
“I what?” Ace gaped at his father. “You? It was you who murdered Saliha?”
“It's Selene, but yeah.” I narrowed my eyes at my brother to add, “Your daddy got pissed off because I stole his boyfriend. So, he cursed me with humanity. But I'm not really human. My magic is just confined under the curse—a curse that also wiped out my memories of being Selene, the Goddess of the Moon. Your father's sister.” When I saw Ace's expression crumple, I added, “I'm so sorry, Ace. I didn't know. It explains our connection, though. Our souls are related.”
“Salina,” Ace whispered. Then he shook his head. “No. No, this can't be right. You're not a goddess. You're mortal. You were in the Underworld. Hades himself put you in that body.”
“Yeah, ain't that a thing?” I grimaced at Apollo. “You blamed Hades for my murder?Hades? Are you stupid? Didn'tyou think your son would want revenge? How could you pit him—a little baby demigod—against the fucking Lord of the Underworld? You're lucky Asclepius survived. Hades is strong enough to kill him ten times over. He could kill your son with his eyes closed and both hands tied behind his back. Shit, all he'd have to do is look at him, and the kid would be fucked.”
“It was a spur-of-the-moment thing,” Apollo muttered. “He came home and found me with your body. I had to blame someone.”
“But Hades?” I shook my head. “You couldn't have chosen one of the Gods of the Wind? All they do is blow. Or maybe one of the Directions? Those yahoos wouldn't stand a chance against Ace.”
