But… What if she could be an ally?
That’s the question that drives me to walk slowly to the elevator and take it up to her floor. Or that’s what I tell myself. The truth is far more tangled.
Aphrodite meets me at the door. She looks similar to how she did the morning after her wedding, her hair hanging in careless waves, her face with only the barest hint of makeup, her long legs in fitted lounge pants. Her sweater looks comfortable, thin and soft; I have to clench my fists to keep from testing it for myself.
I don’t understand the hold this woman has on me.
“Well, don’t just stand there. You look like you could use a drink. Tea or tequila?” She steps back and holds the door open for me.
“Um. Tea would be great.” I step into the penthouse and follow her into her kitchen. I fully expect her to launch into an interrogation as to why I’m here, but she busies herself getting an electric kettle going and pulling out a tray with the most bougie tea setup I’ve ever seen. I eye it. “No store-bought brands for you, I see.”
“I’m a spoiled brat.” She shrugs. “I like my indulgences, and tea should always be an indulgence.”
I slide onto one of the barstools and watch her brew the tea. She doesn’t ask me what kind I want, which is just as well. I’m more of a coffee drinker normally, but I can’t deny how relaxing it is to watch the almost ritualistic way Aphrodite moves through the process. By the time she slides a cute little cup and saucer in front of me, along with a tiny tray with milk and sugar, most of the tension has melted out of my body.
“How do you do that?” After the slightest hesitation, I dose the tea liberally with both milk and sugar.
“I find it calming.” She doesn’t add anything to her tea. She just picks up the cup and leans against the counter across from me. “Now, tell me what’s wrong.”
“Why would anything be wrong?” The words are too sloppy, too quick. “Maybe I came here to seduce you.”
Her smile is knife-sharp. “I’d love to be seduced by you, Pandora, but the fact remains that you seemed almost afraid when you showed up on my doorstep unexpectedly, and as much as I want you in my bed, I don’t want fear driving you there. So why don’t we try this again? What’s wrong?”
It’s so tempting to spill everything. There’s something about this woman, about the connection strumming between us even now, that makes me want to trust her. I’m not so foolish as that, though. “I don’t want Theseus hurt.”
She makes a face. “Oh. Him.”
“Yes. Him. He’s my best friend, Aphrodite. I love him, and I hate seeing him dragged through all this.” I take a cautious sip of my tea and am surprised to find that I like it. It’s not as bitter as coffee, but it’s got a delightful layering of flavors. “This is good.”
“You don’t have to sound so shocked. I made it; of course it’s good.” She sips her tea for several long seconds and finally sighs. “Look, I like you.”
“Yes, you’ve said that.”
“But it changes nothing. The man you came all this way to defend is a violent murderer. You can’t spin some tale about him being a good person who’s in over his head. He would have killed my sister in the Ares tournament without hesitation, and he did kill Hephaestus at that cursed house party. He’s been an active participant in Minos’s plans every step of the way, and if he has his way, he’ll destroy the city I love.” She sighs again. “I feel for you. Truly, I do. I know it’s not easy to be subject to a family ruled by a man who puts ambition above all else. But the fact remains that my husband has made his choices. I have to make mine, too.”
She’s being remarkably frank in a way I find refreshing. But then, she’s always seemed to be frank and downright honest when we speak. Maybe that’s all a ploy to gain my trust, but my instincts don’t think so.
I sip my tea. “You’re talking about your father. The last Zeus.”
Aphrodite hesitates, almost as if she’s arguing with herself. Finally, she shrugs. “My father wasn’t much different from Minos, best I can tell. Ambition and power didn’t turn him into a monster, but they gave him the ability to be monstrous without worrying about consequences. He formed me and my siblings into tools the same as Minos has done with his children and foster children. So, as I said, I sympathize.”
I hadn’t given much thought to the last Zeus, seeing how he’s dead. But it’s impossible to escape his shadow in Olympus. People still talk about him in whispers, and when I got curious and looked him up in MuseWatch, I was a little shocked to find rumors that he killed three of his wives.