And so no, I could not soften toward Ares, even if I would not wish the pain of loss on anyone.
We reached the base of the steps leading into the palace. Zeus stopped at the head of the party, waiting for me to catch up. My feet itched to slow, but I didn’t have much of a choice. I had to keep walking, or it would seem like I feared him.
My boot hit the ground as I took another step, rattling through me. I looked past Zeus, ignoring his intense gaze, making my way toward the first step. Another step, and then another, and then—he grabbed my arm and squeezed so tight that I felt the pressure of it in my bones.
He dragged me toward him and hissed into my ear, “You killed Hestia.”
My heartbeat thundered. “I didn’t. I swear to Erebus, I did not kill her.”
“No, don’t you dare swear to Erebus,” he said, sneering into my face, spit launching from his lips. “Swear it to Gaia.”
I blinked and reared back. “What? Absolutely not.”
He shook me hard, rattling my skull. “Don’t act so innocent. Your mother worshipped Gaia, wasdevotedto that creature. You pretend you want to be one of us, but you’re just like Theia. A traitor to the Thirteen Crowns.”
Gritting my teeth, I yanked out of his grip. To my surprise—and to his, judging by the widening of his eyes—I sprang free. I took several steps back to put distance between us, but the others crowded in close…some of them, anyway. Poseidon and Artemis were on one side and Hera and Aphrodite were on the other, both glaring and showing their fangs—and both for entirely different reasons.
Surprisingly, Ares stood near the back with his hands slung into his pockets, eyes rooted to the ground. If I didn’t know better, I’d think he didn’t want to get involved.
“Stop this, Zeus,” Aphrodite said, shifting her body in front of Hera, who was visibly seething. “She’s sworn she didn’t do it.”
“As if we can believe anything a Titan swears,” Poseidon countered.
“Well,someonekilled her,” Zeus said, pointing a finger at me. “And if it wasn’t her, then who the fuck was it?”
Silence descended. And by the uneasy expressions on each of their faces, it seemed clear they’d all finally realized the same thing I had. Someone amongst them—an Olympian vampire monarch—had murdered one of their own…or at leastmighthave. Poseidon was still glaring at me, so he clearly thought I was the one behind it, but the others…there was doubt there.
Even Zeus frowned, shifting on his feet. “No, don’t you all look at me like that. It’s impossible. We wouldn’t do that to Hestia.”
Artemis flicked her eyes from my face to Hera’s and then to Aphrodite’s. And then she took a big step back. “It could have been one of us. Killing Hestia makes a statement, but it doesn’t break the Hellas Agreement. She wasn’t a monarch.”
Zeus whirled toward Hera. Because of course, that was his first suspicion after me. Even though he wasn’t aware of her scheming, he obviously knew she hated him.
Hera held up her hands, shaking her head. “Don’t you dare look at me like that. I wouldn’t have touched a single hair on her pretty little head.”
“Me either,” Aphrodite said, placing a comforting hand on Hera’s arm, as much to comfort her as to hold her back, as far as I could tell.
Zeus narrowed his eyes. “I have no idea what’s going on here, but I know how to get to the bottom of it. At the end of Nekros, High Queen Selene will have a trial in the eyes of our god. If he decides she’s innocent, she can go free. Until then, lock her in her room, Achilles.”
The armor-clad vampire appeared from the shadows, clanking with every step. I darted back, shaking my head. “I need to speak with my advisor.”
“If you’re as innocent as you say you are, then you’ll do what I command and remain in your room,” Zeus said. “And you can speak to your advisor when I say you can. Achilles, take her now. If she puts up a fight, feel free to chain her wrists.”
“Chain my wrists?” I scoffed.
Achilles moved toward me. Hera made a step to block his way, but Aphrodite shushed her and dragged her back. I cast a wild glance around, as if one of the others might actually step in to help me. But of course they didn’t—theywouldn’t. I was the outsider here. The neophyte. The daughter of a traitorous Titan queen.
If I were them, I’d suspect me, too.
“You’re lucky Zeus is even giving you this chance,” Poseidon piped in. “If it were up to me, you’d be dust.”
I was really beginning to dislike that one.
Zeus met Poseidon’s steady gaze, and unspoken words passed between them. But I had a sneaking suspicion what they were—without the trial, they couldn’t kill me, not without risking Erebus’s wrath.
Achilles came up beside me and grabbed my arm. As he led me away, my eyes drifted toward Ares. He’d lifted his gaze from his feet and was staring at me now. Only he knew they could kill me once Nekros was over. The vein in my neck throbbed; every muscle in my body tensed. Now was the time—he would tell them what he knew. Zeus could kill me without risking the treaty.
But as Achilles led me up the steps, Ares’s mouth remained shut. Torches flared to life before us, and we passed beneath the archway into the palace. It wasn’t until Ares was out of sight that I allowed myself any measure of relief. Still, I couldn’t fully relax yet.
