How?
Theo couldn’t be dead. Not like this.
Nay … He looked up to meet his father’s equally shocked gaze. Fury descended over his features as he summoned his armor.
“Trates!” he roared. “Give me six men. Now!”
Urian stood up.
His father blasted him with a god-bolt that sent him reeling and crashing into the far wall. “I will not lose another son tonight! Damn it to the farthest pit, boy, you will stay here if I have to feed you to the Charonte!”
And with that, his father and Trates, along with their team, were gone.
Embarrassed and in pain, Urian pushed himself to his feet. Apollymi came over to him with a sympathetic smile. “I’m so sorry, Urian.”
“For which part?”
“All of it, but mostly for your brother.”
He felt the tears stinging his eyes. “We were blindsided. The Dark-Hunter stabbed Manades in his mark and he burst apart. Did you know that about us?”
She shook her head.
“Then Theo bit him and he told us that their blood was poison to us.”
She cupped his cheek in her hand. “Artemis has always been a treacherous whore. If she’s created an army, you know it was for selfish reasons.”
That didn’t change the fact that he now had to go to Praxia and tell her that her husband wasn’t coming home. That he’d have to tell his other brothers about this. His stomach tightened so much that for a moment, he thought he might be sick.
A sob broke, but Urian caught it with a ragged breath.
Unexpectedly, Apollymi pulled him against her and held him in her arms. “Just breathe, child. Life is loss. It’s harsh and it’s pain. There are days when it seeks to drive us to our knees. When we’re left asking ourselves why we shouldn’t just slit the wrist and be done with it all.”
“I’ve been feeling a lot of that lately.”
“I know.” She kissed his brow. “But it also surprises us. Fills us with warmth and happiness, and those moments when we know there’s something more. Something wonderful.”
He scoffed at her words. “I haven’t felt that in a long, long time, akra. All I have inside me is an aching hollowness that wakes every night, seeking some reason as to why I should bother finding another soul to elongate my useless life.”
“I’ll tell you why, Urian. Don’t let the bastards win.”
“Pardon?”
“You want a reason to live? That’s one good reason, there. It pisses off your enemies. If you can’t live for those who love you, then live to spite those who hate your guts. Every breath you take is a spit in their eye. Savor it as such, knowing they begrudge you every intake that feeds your starving lungs.”
He actually gave a bitter laugh at that. “Spoken like a true goddess of destruction.”
“Absolutely. Sometimes it’s not a matter of being the best. You just have to be the last man standing.”
“Is that what you are?”
“Nay, good Urian. I’m the most dangerous enemy of all. I’m the patient one. I lie in wait, letting them think that they have me quelled when the truth is far different. I’m watching and learning. After all, the tiger lies low not from fear, but for aim.”
“It doesn’t matter if you strike the first blow, but you better make sure you strike the last one.” That was what his father had always said.
Apollymi nodded. “Exactly.”
Sighing, he wiped at his eyes. “Thank you, akra.”
