“Hecate.”It was Hades again.“I can feel your distress.”Hecate realized that she must still be sending wave after wave of panicked power into the earth below her. The pebbles trembled around her, but luckily, none of the mortals seemed to notice.
“I can handle it, Hades.”Her voice was as sharp as a blade. Her eyes flashed red for a split second, and a cool, indifferent mask slid over her face. If there was anything that Hecate knew without fail, it was that she wouldn’t cast a single evil eye at Faidra. She had nothing to do with this.
Hecate widened her smile, waved, and went to join the women.
28
The palace of Colchis was beautiful as the small parade approached. They were on a winding dirt road, flanked with lemon trees, the din of the harbor far below them. The structure sat on the highest hill in Colchis, with the bright, red banners of the royal family blowing in the wind. It was a sprawling structure on large grounds, and Hecate could see stables, a private temple, and servant’s quarters just from their limited vantage point. The main entrance to the palace was massive, with at least twelve stone columns spanning a wide porch and a series of mosaicked steps leading up to the door. There were great basins lit with fire that she assumed were stoked constantly, with wisps of incense smoke winding up to the roof. Hecate could only imagine that the inside was just as opulent.
The beauty of the home wasn’t a surprise, but something about it only managed to twist the knife further in Hecate’s stomach. She now existed in two places: her internal world and her external world. Her mind and heart were splintering, but she kept a diplomatic smile on her face.
Everything around her felt like an affront. The breeze, the sweet smell of incense in the air, the sun—thesun.She was still fighting the temptation to rip open the ground beneath her and fall into it. On some level, Hecate knew that she was nodding and smiling. She was listening to Aeëtes’s adoptive mother and Faidra tell stories and make small talk, inquiring after Hecate’s presence in Colchis. She politely waved them off, knowing that they would have to have a larger conversation about their plan once they were inside. The women were slightly skittish around a goddess. Her aloof answers appeased them, and they soon turned to their own conversation.
Hecate couldn’t help but notice that Faidra was beautiful. She looked nothing like Hecate. Faidra had long, brunette hair that fell around her face in ringlets. She had the face of aristocracy, with a gently sloping nose and elegant features. She was slim and delicate to Hecate’s curves and strong features. Hecate hadn’t been self-conscious in thousands of years, but everything about her suddenly felt like…too much.
How dare you let another man make you feel this way?Hecate’s inner critic roared back to life, raking her over the coals for her comparisons.She’s a lovely woman. You’re a lovely woman. He’s an asshole.
The litter came to a stop. Hecate felt it lowering to the ground, but she was in a fog. She accepted the hand of a servant, who helped her to her feet, and the touch made her feel sick.
She didn’t want to be touched.
She wanted everything around her to burn.
She was hardly paying attention. Hecate knew that she wasn’t going to be able to keep up her charade much longer, so she applied a glamour to her face and let her smile drop. Everyone around her would only see a polite, apolitical expression on her face, and her voice wouldn’t sound too loud or rude. Hecate could scream, rant, and rage, and the glamour would hide it from those standing right next to her. It was a useful spell, but she hated that she felt weak when she used it. She was hiding.
The procession walked inside the palace, and she blindly followed the queen and Faidra. They made their way to the center of a great hall with two huge thrones on one end. Part of the ceiling was open to the sky, and Hecate could smell the sea all the way up the hill. There were more basins full of fire with statues of the gods that lined the walls. Hecate couldn’t help a smirk at some of their exaggeratedly likenesses—the image of Zeus, in particular, seemed to take a lot of artistic license. Hecate straightened her shoulders and stood tall while a serving girl came up and offered her a glass of wine. Hecate accepted it and made herself at home on a small bench. There were some musicians playing a gentle tune in the corner, creating what would have normally been a lovely, regal reception.
She watched carefully and studied everyone in the room, turning herself over to her instincts. She wasn’t the Hecate from yesterday or even from that morning; she was the Goddess of witchcraft now. The vulnerable, aching pieces of her heart were being hardened again, slowly turning to stone in her chest.
When Aeëtes walked into the room, she felt it. Everything in her soul called out to turn her head, to make the slightest of movements, to seek out his warmth in the cold presence of her wounds.
He caused those wounds,Hecate hissed at herself.
A flicker of red magic danced over her skin, and one of her snakes appeared wrapped around her arm. The glamour wouldn’t hide it, but she didn’t care. She was a goddess, after all. That’s all she was to these people. For some reason, that wasn’t enough for her anymore.
Aeëtes was anxious as he felt Hecate’s magic spark. He had nearly brawled with his father on the way back to the palace. His eyes scanned the room, landing on her immediately, looking relaxed and sipping from a cup of wine. She appeared so casual that it startled him, making him break out in a sweat. His mother had seated herself in her throne, his father walking past to join her. The lead pit in his stomach grew as his eyes finally settled on Faidra, sitting on a bench opposite Hecate. Faidra gave him a soft smile and patted the seat next to her, and Aeëtes almost got sick again. He knew that Hecate was watching them. He turned to look at her, but she was as still as marble. The entire scene was so normal, so mind-blowingly casual, that Aeëtes thought he was going to drop to his knees and start screaming.
His parents on their thrones, chatting.Aren’t you concerned why I showed up here with a goddess?
Hecate sitting in the great hall, drinking.Don’t you understand I’m in love with you?
Faidra lounging opposite the goddess, beckoning.We’re not engaged!
Aeëtes was about to break when his father sat down with a massive sigh. The king held up his hands to get everyone’s attention, and the small conversations around the room stopped. Aeëtes was standing in the very center of the hall and felt like he was in trouble.
“Now, son,” his father held a hand out and pointed towards Aeëtes as if he was exalting him. “Please, tell us the good news. Tell this old man that you have come home to take over the throne.” Aeëtes had to fight to keep from groaning exasperatedly, shaking his head as he looked up at the ceiling.
“That’s not why I’m here—”
“Aeëtes.” The king cut him off, his voice angry. “You know, we have had enough of your gallivanting around Greece, without any concern for your mother and I…” Aeëtes grit his teeth and began to grind his jaw, fists forming at his sides. He started speaking, but his father cut him off, and pretty soon, both Aeëtes and the king were yelling at one another from across the hall.
“I know, we can discuss that later…”
“We will discuss thisnow…”
“That’s not why I’m here—”
“There are greater matters at hand.”
