The Atlantean goddess of sorrow. Simi remembered her well. She was one of the nicer Atlanteans. Mostly because she was always so sad that she left everyone else alone.
“Bethany is Bet’anya Agriosa?” Styxx asked.
Set nodded. “For an obvious reason, she was scared to tell you the truth. She was so afraid you couldn’t forgive her for what they did to you without her knowledge or approval, that she was planning to give up her godhood entirely, in both pantheons, to live a mortal life with you in Didymos. Her aunt had already mixed the serum that would have stripped her of everything so she could be with you and not hurt you.”
Simi gaped as she heard those words. Giving up a godhood was no small thing. Akra-Bet must have really loved Styxx to do such a thing.
“I wouldn’t have cared about that.” Styxx’s voice trembled. “I would never have held the actions of others against Bethany.”
“Good,” Seth said. “Because if you want her back, you’re going to have to bleed Apollo and battle the worst of the Atlantean gods for her.”
“And you’re not going to fight without us.” Maahes and Cam flashed into the room, next to Savitar who cursed at their appearance.
Stunned, Simi stepped back. The last goddess she expected to appear here was Cam. Although, she was Set’s sister and Bethany’s aunt. Still …
What have I done?
Cam had gone by many names over the centuries. The worst was Menyara where the goddess had set up Cherise Gautier to birth Nick. Cam had ruined the poor woman’s life and caused Cherise to die horribly at the hands of Daimons.
Poor Nick. He’d never get over the death of his mother. No more than Simi had ever gotten over hers.
Savitar growled. “Anyone else you want to bring to the party?”
Maahes grinned insolently. “Mother, may I?”
The look on Savitar’s face said that Maahes was barely a step away from becoming a lion throw rug on Savitar’s floor.
Cam stood up on her tiptoes to place a kiss to Savitar’s cheek. “Remember, you like me.”
“I don’t like anyone who barges into my home uninvited, Mennie.”
“You’ll get over it.” Tiny and thin, Cam had long black braids and beautiful dark skin. She turned her attention to the group. “All right, children. Catch us up?”
“From what I’m hearing … screwed.” Styxx crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m going to be dense for a moment because I’m having trouble wrapping my head around this…. Bethany can be brought back. Yes?”
Cam and Set nodded.
Simi winced at the agony that appeared in his blue eyes. It was obvious that akri-Styxx was angry over all the centuries he’d been forced to live without his Bethany.
He turned to glare at akri. “Why didn’t anyone tell me this before?”
Akri held his hands up in surrender. “I had no idea your Bethany was Bet’anya or that she was in my basement garden of statues. That’s the truth. I was a little distraught and disoriented eleven thousand years ago when my mother took me to Katateros the first time. After I teleported their statues to the basement and Simi told me who they were, I locked the door and never went near that area again.”
Styxx looked at Set and Cam. “Why didn’t one of you tell me?”
Cam tsked. “Sugar, every one of us thought she was dead. Believe me, had we known she was frozen in Katateros, we’d have freed her for all of our sakes.”
“Well, we would have tried.” Set sighed. “Probably would have failed. It was the alignment on the twenty-first that made this possible. That, and the demon.” He turned his gaze to Simi.
Hating to be put on the spot, Simi flashed a happy smile at akri-Styxx. “I told you wishes can come true, akri-Styxx, and not just at Disney World. The real world does a good job, too, sometimes.”
Akri frowned at Simi’s familiarity with his brother. “When did you two become friends?”
She wrinkled her nose at him. Little did akri know, she kept a lot of secrets. “On your birthdays, akri. Did you know akri-Styxx don’t gots no one to spend his special day with? He all alone on it, and so the Simi went to apologize and make him her friend, too, so he won’t be alone on his special days anymore. But he done broke the Simi’s heart so now he my other akri-baby like Baby Bas and akra-Kat. The Simi has officially adapted him … no … adopted him.” She grinned so wide, her fangs flashed.
Instead of being angry, akri laughed and kissed her cheek. Then, he turned back toward his brother. “All right, Styxx. Your show. How do we do this?”
Styxx glanced around the room at them. “Still the sole human here. I don’t know what we’re up against or who we’re fighting. I need more details.”
