揘o,?Dre said flatly.
Viv suddenly clutched at her throat, then fell forward onto her hands and knees. The cry she let out was the sound of a woman in pain but it sounded like music to me. Served her right.
揥hat抯 happening to her??Dre asked.
He tried to comfort her but she knocked him back as her chest and head took on a hazy quality. She lifted up her shirt and screamed at the sight of her nearly transparent torso.
揥hat is it??Viv screamed. 揥hat did you do to me??
揑t抯 an invisibility elixir, and I don抰 think you抮e supposed to drink it,?I said.
She gripped her belly, which flickered in and out of view as Dre looked on in horror. Viv stumbled to her feet and lunged toward me, but Dre caught her and pushed her back.
揇on抰，？he said. 揘ot now.?
揟he other vial has to be the Living Elixir,?she said. Her teeth were showing through her half-transparent cheek. She slid the second vial into her pocket and turned to Dre. 揥hen we get to the last piece, we can make her transfigure it and we can both take it. I won抰 have to be the only one who gets to live forever.?
She doubled over again and lowered herself onto the floor. The invisibility serum pushed its way through her, rendering different parts of her body invisible every few seconds. She groaned into the rotted leaves littering the floor.
揔eep that vial safe,?Dre said to her.
I shifted around on the floor. Every joint in my body ached. I brushed the dead leaves from my shirt and they turned from brown to yellow and then green.
揟ry anything and I抣l have you asleep for a week,?Viv snapped. Despite her precarious state of existence she hadn抰 given up on being an asshole. 揑抣l put you in a sleep that makes you forget to eat, to piss. You抣l die before you ever get a chance to wake up. Keep it cute and we won抰 have a problem.?
My head swam and a wave of dizziness washed over me. My arms and legs were stiff. 揥hat did you do to me anyway? You can just make people pass out??
揤iv has the blood of Hermes in her veins,?Dre said. 揌e was known to put people in a trancelike state so that he could pass messages to them and make them think it was a dream.?
They knew their own histories the way Circe and Persephone knew ours. I抎 seen Hermes put Marie into a state of unconsciousness with barely any effort. Apparently they, or at least Viv, could do the same thing even though it took much more of an effort.
揥e are favored,?Viv said.
I glanced up at her. I wondered if she could see the shock on my face as I registered that her arms were completely invisible.
揥e抮e special,?she said through gritted teeth. 揟he old gods are dead. Katrina wanted to believe they weren抰 but that was just wishful thinking. It抯 better for us if they抮e gone. We will be the new gods and we will take back everything that was stolen from us.?
揧ou sound just like her,?I said angrily. 揝he wanted to take her place among the gods, too.?I almost laughed. 揟hat woman couldn抰 even take care of her own kid. She couldn抰 get into a locked garden. Who lied to her and told her she was anything more than a bad mother, a thief, and a murderer??
Dre抯 eyes widened in shock. 揥atch your mouth. You might piss off Viv here, and maybe I won抰 stop her from getting to you this time.?
Viv looked like she was ready to bum-rush me at any moment.
揝he抯 probably going to die,?I snapped. 揧ou know what the main ingredient in that invisibility mixture is? Wolfsbane. It抯 deadly. And you just downed enough to kill a bunch of people. How did it taste??
Viv tried to get to her feet but was stopped by another surge of pain.
揧ou抮e angry,?said Dre, speaking to me like I was a little kid. 揃ut it抯 only because you don抰 understand the bigger picture. Katrina was driven. She knew we deserved more, that we could be more. Maybe if your family hadn抰 been so selfish, you抎 get it. Your line has been hoarding the Heart. If you had just done what she wanted we wouldn抰 even be here like this.?
I rolled my eyes and turned away from him. 揝he wanted to be immortal and she didn抰 care how many people she had to hurt or kill in the process.?
Dre shook his head. 揥e will do things differently.?He narrowed his eyes at me. 揌elp us get to the last piece. I know you can. Karter told us everything. Your abilities are remarkable. You can help us and nobody else has to get hurt.?
揑 would rather die,?I said.
Viv huffed. 揟hat can be arranged.?
Dre kept his hand firmly on her knee even as it disappeared. 揘o. You抣l come with us and help us get inside. Just like you did for Katrina in your garden. Get us in and out safely and we抣l let you go. We won抰 need to worry about you once we抳e taken our rightful place. You抣l be nothing to us and you can live your life梚nconsequential as it is梚n peace.?He said it so casually, like he hadn抰 just insulted and threatened me at the same time. This dude and his family were the most selfish, self-obsessed people I抎 ever met in my life.