Bonds of Hercules (Villains of Lore, #2)(29)

“How do you feel about a suicide pact?” I asked casually. “Also, on a completely unrelated note, do you want a gun? I have extra.”

Kharon said something muffled behind me (most likely derogatory), and Nyx hissed something in response (most likely sexual).

I fantasized about throwing her at him.

Drex chuckled, then his expression became deadly serious. “I’m in.”

“Thank God.”

Drex shuddered. “I am not feeling good about today. It’s very—”

Crack.

A woman leapt into the atrium and Drex stopped talking as glittering red mist spread out and filled the room. It felt like a blanket of terror.

Arthritis (Artemis) was back.

“I’m here because Hades is indisposed,” Artemis said coldly. “He and Ares are still tracking an abnormal Titan sighting in Australia.”

“Agatha and Drex—there’s been a sighting in the mountains of Canada.” Artemis pulled a small piece of paper from her toga pocket and handed it to Agatha. “Here are your coordinates.”

Artemis turned to face the rest of us.

Fear was sour on my tongue.

“Augustus, you and your partner are going to South America—we’ve tracked one into the Amazon.” She handed another set of coordinates to Augustus.

Kharon’s face went blank as she approached.

Artemis didn’t glance at him, but her mist thickened and surrounded him, pulsing, like it was attacking. The scarlet avoided Augustus completely.

Kharon’s expression was blank as he was engulfed.

She’s tormenting him.

Artemis clapped her hands.

“Patro, Achilles, and … Hercules, I mean—Alexis.” She looked at me suspiciously, like it was my fault that she wasn’t sure what to call me.

“We changed your initial location. You three lucked out—you’re now staying close,” Artemis said flatly. “A Titan was just spotted in Rome.”

She handed the coordinates to Achilles, who took them with a nod, but like Augustus, the mist didn’t surround him. He was untouched by her power.

Is Artemis afraid of the children of the House of Ares?

Why?

Patro furrowed his brow. “Are you sure it was within the city—inside the protected zone?” He scoffed with disbelief.

Artemis’s face twisted with malice. “Yes.” Her brown hair stood on end with power. “As you’ve been told, there’s been a change in their behavior. That’s what Hades and Ares are investigating. You will handle this.”

Patro bowed low. “Of course.”

Artemis ignored him. She reached into her pocket and pulled out what looked like multicolored tags. “One more thing.” She walked around the atrium handing them out. “The federation has passed a new decree for us to follow—going forward, whenever you capture a Titan, you have to tag it.”

The gold tags were cool and heavy between my prickling fingers.

I looked at one. “Hercules, House of Hades” was engraved in black on one side, and on the back, there was a thick pin.

“Once you have your Titan cuffed, put this tag through their lower lip. That way it’s easily identifiable who captured them.”

I put the tags in one of my cargo pockets. No way am I doing that.

“Good luck, soldiers,” Artemis said, her voice emotionless. “Because of Medusa, the federation is watching all of us closely. Don’t return until you’ve captured your Titan.”

Everyone nodded.

“Medusa has ruined our plans to surprise the Olympians. War is already escalating. These are dark times for Chthonics … Beware.”

I struggled to inhale.

Artemis bared her teeth. “May Kronos bless your hunt. Crush your enemies … or you better die trying.”

Crack.

Artemis leapt away.

Smoke swirled around the atrium as the glittering scarlet disappeared, but this time the terror remained.





9


POISONED TONGUES




ALEXIS

“Don’t worry, just stay behind us. We’ll take the lead and handle this because it’s your first mission.” Patro winked. “Just observe and learn.”

Oh great, men making all the important decisions.

I was worried.

Steeling my nerves, I focused on staying calm as we crept down the street.

The late May morning air was crisp.

Achilles led the three of us through a narrow alley on the outskirts of Rome, eyes narrowed with concentration as he stalked silently, checking around corners before waving us forward.

Nero walked at his heels, Fluffy Jr. whined beside me, and Poppae slunk after the three of us quietly, ears back, long tail low. Nyx was quiet on my shoulders.

Dawn was slowly creeping over the horizon—the sky was streaked with orange rays and bricks glistened with morning dew—but the city was deathly quiet.

It wasn’t sleeping.

Rome’s population had been decimated by Titan attacks decades earlier, and like the rest of the world, it had never recovered.

Ancient architecture crumbled next to the ruins of modern buildings.

Past and present were both dilapidated.

Something feels sinister.

There was an energy in Rome that I’d never felt in an empty Montana field.