Bonds of Hercules (Villains of Lore, #2)(129)

“Vengeance.”

“I knew I raised you right.”

There was no time to waste, so I pictured the symposium.

“Domus.”

The world shifted.

A frescoed ceiling stared down at me, music blaring loudly.

I was on my knees, behind a column, in a dark corner of the symposium.

There were bodies everywhere, crushed together jumping with their hands raised. They were barely able to move.

All of Sparta was in attendance.

Music wailed as the three members of a famous rock band danced on a small stage, the lead singer screaming as he jumped around.

It’s really happening.

I can do this.

I turned and gasped.

I was kneeling directly in front of two chairs: Augustus and Kharon sat before me, bound to the metal with ropes and gagged. Blood covered their knuckles, and fresh bruises covered their faces. Olympian guards stood behind them.

Their eyes widened.

“What the hell happened to you two?” I shouted over the thumping music.

They both stood up and pulled their arms apart violently, snapping the ropes that bound them, then they ripped their gags out.

“Hey!” a guard shouted as he swung his baton at them.

Kharon moved faster, snapping his head to the side, violently breaking his neck.

Four other guards lunged to intervene—Augustus’s eyes filled with blood—all of them dropped to the ground, unmoving.

I blinked, staring down at the carnage. That was quick.

Kharon stepped over the bodies, and tattooed fingers cupped my face. “My sweet carissima.”

“You can’t just do that …” I stared down at the fallen Olympians. “They’ll imprison you and charge you with—”

Kharon peppered soft kisses across my forehead. “Are you okay? Are these bruises new?” he asked into my curls.

“Angel,” Augustus said as he rubbed my back, scanning the room. “Did they hurt you? Patro was going to tell us where you were held … We were waiting for him to come back before we acted.” He waved dismissively at the prone guards. “I think I saw him over—”

“It’s fine,” I said quickly.

“Who left these marks on you?” Kharon asked. “Describe them all. Now.”

“I handled them,” I said with a wink.

Kharon studied me. “Wait … did you … kill them?”

I nodded.

His blinding smile transformed him from handsome to devastatingly attractive. “Oh, wife, do tell.”

Augustus pressed a kiss to my cheek. “I’m so proud of you.”

“I helped,” Nyx grumbled on my shoulder. “Where’s my thank-you?”

The screeching rock music brought me back to reality. I pulled away from them, taking a deep steadying breath.

“I need to do something right now,” I said. “But I need you both to promise to not interfere … no matter what happens.”

Augustus nodded curtly. “Whatever you need, my carus.”

“No.” Kharon raked his hand through his messy hair. “I’m tired of standing by while my fucking wife has to—”

Augustus yanked him back and nodded at me. “Do what you have to do … We’ll be waiting. I promise … we trust you.”

Kharon shook his head. “I don’t tr—”

Augustus put a hand over his mouth and restrained him. “We trust you,” he reiterated.

Love strummed through our marriage bond.

The urge to fall into their arms was overwhelming, but this was my plan—I’d done the calculations myself.

Before I lost my courage, I turned and disappeared into the crowd.

“Wow, that was sexy,” Nyx hissed as she slithered around my shoulders. “I need to find four or five good men like them—only a harem could handle all this woman … if you know what I mean.”

It was a testament to how stressed I was that I didn’t react to her perverted ramblings. Who would ever want that many husbands? I could barely handle two.

Hunching low, keeping my face concealed, I slunk along the edge of the room.

There.

I saw my target.

Falling to my hands and knees, I crept the remaining distance. Heart pounding erratically, I was so close.

The floor bounced as everyone jumped in unison, fists held high.

I stopped on the edge of the dance floor, behind a vibrating speaker. It was a mess of chords.

Panic filled me.

Unfamiliar with advanced technologies, I’d assumed there would be one plug for the speaker. This was a complicated system, and the music was hurting my head.

I didn’t have time to figure it out.

Sitting back on my heels, thoughts racing, I almost missed it.

A piece of tape had squiggly sea symbols written across it.

I’d heard about such a language—it was the writing of sirens. I focused on the letters, hoping it would work.

Slowly, they rearranged themselves.

Just like when I spoke siren, one second it was gibberish, and the next it made complete sense.

“Unplug this orange cord and plug into the USB port below. Love, Lena.”

Arrows pointed with the instructions.

Please work.

Holding my breath, I pulled my calculator from my pocket, ripped out the orange cable, shoved the end plug into the port on the side of my calculator, and … I nearly passed out with relief. It fit.