Page 43

Twenty minutes later, I heard Ace return. Bruno lifted his head and stared at the doorway. My heart lurched.

As soon as Ace left, I had explored his home.

There was a lot to see. Airy rooms with vaulted ceilings, balconies with ocean views, and a collection of art that made me drool.

But no way out. I mean, I could leave the house, but only to enter the gardens.

Once outside, I could see Ace's territory.

More importantly, the borders of it which ended in thick mist. Something told me not to venture into that mist.

Not that I was trying to escape. I wasn't a prisoner. Ace had taken me there to protect me. And he was right—this was the best place for me. Secure. No one could get to me there. Including my hounds.

They weren't my hounds. Ugh!

Anyway, after I did a quick walk-through of the house—palace, really—I went back to the bedroom and reclaimed my seat. Bruno, who had accompanied me, sat beside me in his original spot and went to sleep. It was as if we hadn't moved. I thought that would be for the best. I didn't want to upset Ace.

Except it wasn't Ace.

The man who walked into the bedroom looked a lot like Ace, but he was more. More handsome, more muscular, and more magical. I could feel power radiating from him in waves. Heatwaves.

Power and hatred.

I jumped to my feet, my eyes going wide, and faced the man with the chaise between us. “Who are you?” Then I answered my own question, “You're Apollo, aren't you?”

His stare narrowed. “I'm hurt, Selene. You still don't remember me? And after all this time.”

My whole body shuddered as if a great beast was inside me, trying to get free.

Apollo chuckled and stepped closer. He neared the back of the chaise.

Bruno stood up on the cushion and started growling.

Apollo's golden gaze—the one that had haunted me through centuries of incarnations—slid toward the dog.

“Bruno,” I said.

The dog went quiet but moved to stand beside me on the couch and press his side against my leg. I laid a hand on his back.

“Why have you persecuted me?” I demanded. “What did I do to you?”

Apollo chuckled. “Yes, I think it's about time for a recap, Sister .”

“Sister?” I gaped at him.

“Oh, yes. You're no more human than I am, Selene.” He chuckled again. “So many times you've come close to the truth, your names have even echoed your origin. But my curse has held you down. A brother's curse can do that. We share blood, after all.”

“Hold on.” I made a choking sound, then recovered. “I'm a fucking goddess?!”

Apollo rolled his eyes. “This is boring me.” He flung a hand at me. “Just remember already. I don't have time to explain it all.”

A dam broke in my mind. I floundered under the weight of centuries upon centuries of memories. I was born on Olympus. I grew up there with my brother. Loved him. He loved me. We were inseparable. Until the day that a mortal came between us.

Hyacinthus.

But his was not the name I murmured when I rose from that sea of memories in my mind. “Helios.”

“There you are, Selene.”

“Helios, how could you? All this time? For what? One mortal man? We are blood. Family. You fucking bastard!”

Bruno growled, but I stroked his head and he calmed.

“Hyacinthus was not just a man!” Apollo—AKA Helios—strode forward, his expression shifting into fury. “He was my man! I found him first!”

“Oh, for fuck's sake.” I rolled my eyes. “What are you—five? Hyacinthus made his own decision, and he chose me. Get over it!”

“I loved him!” Apollo pointed a finger at me. “I loved him more than any lover before him. And you were jealous of my love for him. You pursued him out of spite. You vicious, horrid thing.”

“I'm vicious? I'm horrid? You killed him!”

“I was trying to kill you!”

“I'm a fucking goddess, you asshole! Even your stupid curse couldn't keep me dead.”

“Only because mortals cycle through their lives.” He sneered at me, looking me over. “You even look like your old self now. Not quite as beautiful, but close. Your skin used to be as pale as the moon. Aren't you annoyed that you took my complexion instead of your own?”

“What the fuck do I care about the color of my skin?” I huffed. “You cursed me over a stupid fling. You tried to kill me even though we can't be killed. Do you hear yourself? You've lost your damn mind, Helios. Over. A. Mortal .”

“He was my mortal!”

“If he was yours, I wouldn't have been able to take him!”

A crash came from our left.

My brother and I looked over to see Ace in the doorway. At his feet were bags of food, some of it seeping out of broken containers. Bruno leapt off the couch and ran over to feast. Meanwhile, his master gaped at us.

That's when I realized who Ace was to me.

“Oh, gross!” I made a vomiting sound. “Ugh! He's my nephew ?”

“Yes, you disgusting slut! You fucked my son!”

“Ugh!” I shook my hands as if I could get the grossness off me. “You asshole! I didn't know he was my nephew, but you did. You could have stopped us.”

“Why do you think I keep killing you? I was fine with you suffering through life as a mortal, but then my boy found you.” Apollo rolled his eyes.

“He was so in love.” He waved at Ace. “He bonded with you. Every time you were reborn, he was there, hunting you down. I tried to send you away, but that never worked. He forced me to kill you.”

“I what?” Ace gaped at his father. “You? It was you who murdered Saliha?”

“It's Selene, but yeah.” I narrowed my eyes at my brother to add, “Your daddy got pissed off because I stole his boyfriend.

So, he cursed me with humanity. But I'm not really human.

My magic is just confined under the curse—a curse that also wiped out my memories of being Selene, the Goddess of the Moon.

Your father's sister.” When I saw Ace's expression crumple, I added, “I'm so sorry, Ace.

I didn't know. It explains our connection, though. Our souls are related.”

“Salina,” Ace whispered. Then he shook his head. “No. No, this can't be right. You're not a goddess. You're mortal. You were in the Underworld. Hades himself put you in that body.”

“Yeah, ain't that a thing?” I grimaced at Apollo.

“You blamed Hades for my murder? Hades ?

Are you stupid? Didn't you think your son would want revenge?

How could you pit him—a little baby demigod—against the fucking Lord of the Underworld?

You're lucky Asclepius survived. Hades is strong enough to kill him ten times over.

He could kill your son with his eyes closed and both hands tied behind his back.

Shit, all he'd have to do is look at him, and the kid would be fucked.”

“It was a spur-of-the-moment thing,” Apollo muttered. “He came home and found me with your body. I had to blame someone.”

“But Hades?” I shook my head. “You couldn't have chosen one of the Gods of the Wind? All they do is blow. Or maybe one of the Directions? Those yahoos wouldn't stand a chance against Ace.”

“Yes, well, I didn't think he would go after Hades. That was rather the point.” Apollo slid a grimace at his son.

“Seriously, Dad?!” Ace roared. “You're blaming this on me? I've hunted the Hounds over her! I've gone against Lord Hades and interfered with work that's for the good of the world. I've lived in torment, chasing after . . .” He looked at me. “Oh, great fuck. My own blood.”

“Well, I don't think we were technically blood relations at the time. Just soul relatives. But look at it this way, kid—it's kind of common for Greek Gods.”

“Could you please stop calling me kid?”

“Sorry.” I shook my head again. “I thought I had it all figured out. I thought Hades was setting you up. But no. It was the other way around and Hades had it right. What did you tell him when he confronted you?”

“I've been avoiding him.”

I snorted a laugh. “Hold on. You sent the flowers. Hyacinths. Of course.” I shook my head.

“Yes, yes.” Apollo rolled his eyes. “It's been me. We've established that.”

“I'm now establishing just how much of a dick you've been. So, you taunted me with flowers before torturing me to death. Were you also the one who put me on that ship?”

“What ship?”

“In France, you asshole! When I was dating the King! The ship to America!”

“Oh.” Helios made a face like he used to when we were kids and I had beaten him at some stupid game. “Yes. That was me. Asclepius was getting too close. I had to send you away. It had nothing to do with that boy-king.”

“Unbelievable,” I muttered. “Do you know what hell I went through on that ship?”

Apollo—sorry for the back and forth with the names, but that's how it went in my head—suddenly narrowed his stare at me.

“Whatever you went through, Selene, it was not nearly enough! Not even close to what I suffered because of you. My heart was broken, and then I accidentally killed Hyacinthus! Do you know what hell I went through?” His hands started to glow.

He lifted them. “This time, you'll die knowing who you are and what you've done.

But don't worry, Sister, it will all be erased in the next life.

You'll forget about me, and I can torture you all over again.”

The power of the Sun came streaming toward me, and I knew Apollo was right. My body might be immortal, but that only gave me incredible healing and longevity. Not invulnerability. Just like the Hounds of Hades, I could be killed and my immortality taken.