Page 33 of Crown of Serpents (Curse of Olympus #1)
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Andromeda instantly recognised the heavy footsteps on the wooden ladder behind her. She paid him no heed as she scrubbed the floor on her knees, the rhythmic motion a balm for her restless mind. Ever since they'd left Joppa, she'd kept herself busy, tending to the wounded and maintaining some semblance of order on the ship. It was an illusion of belonging, a way to distract herself from the gnawing worry about her kingdom's fate.
Kleos interrupted her moment of blissful quiet, “I’ve been looking for you.”
Andromeda sighed, resisting the urge to roll her eyes. The warrior seemed determined to take her under his wing.
“What can I help you with, Kleos?”
Why couldn’t he leave her be? Something about this man stirred a simmering anger within her. If only he would leave her alone.
“I … nothing,” he stammered, “just wa nted to check on you … see how you’re settling in.”
He probably meant well, but Andromeda didn’t care. Not while her kingdom’s fate hung in the balance because this crew of self-proclaimed ?heroes” had decided to interfere with the sacrifice. Ever since they had left to sail back to Seriphos, Andromeda had agonised over what had happened in her kingdom after her departure. The serpent was slain, so had that stopped the attacks on merchant and fishing boats? Or had Cetus’s death merely stoked Poseidon’s fury?
“I’m fine,” she snapped, clenching the rag in aggravation.
“Good.”, Kleos replied awkwardly. After a few moments of painful silence, he added, “You know, you don’t need to do that.”
“I don’t mind. The floor was dirty, and I like to be useful.”
“Well, if the princess of Joppa is scrubbing the deck, I might as well join her. Let me get another bucket.”
He crouched beside her, armed with a second bucket, and took the rough brush she had discarded next to her.
“There’s really no need,” Andromeda protested, trying to reclaim her brush from his rough hands. But as her arm brushed against him, his eyes fell upon the claw marks left by Medusa. His demeanour shifted, the playful facade replaced by a deep frown full of concern. “What happened to your arm?”
“It’s nothing.” She pulled away, but it was too late.
Murder danced in Kleos’s eyes. “It’s not nothing, and I know for a fact that you didn’t have those marks when you boarded this ship. So, I ask again: What happened to your arm? Who did that to you? Has one of the men —”
“Why do you care anyway?” she had had enough of him doting on her.
“Why do I care?” Kleos echoed, incredulous.
“Yes. What’s it to you?” Andromeda barked, glaring at him. Something about this man ignited a fury within her she'd never known before. She had never raised her voice like that at anyone back in Joppa.
Yet, the stubborn idiot did not back down. “Well, I didn’t go through all this trouble to save you just for one of the bastards on this ship to lay a hand on you. Tell me who did this, and I'll make sure he never touches anyone again.”
“No.”
“No?” Kleos blinked, perplexed by her refusal.
Andromeda met his gaze with steely determination and spelt it out for him as simply as she could, “I don't want your help, Kleos. Not your protection, not your violence. I never asked for any of it.”
“But if he –”
“No.”
His shoulders slumped, and hurt flashed across his face. “I honestly don’t understand what your problem is — I’m only trying to help.”
Andromeda shrugged. “I don’t need your help. Now, if you don’t mind, I’ve got a floor to scrub … alone.”
Finally, Kleos rose to his feet. With an ironic bow and a wink, he said, “Of course, Your Majesty. I shall take my leave.”
Andromeda waited until he'd disappeared up the ladder before a wry chuckle escaped her lips. She muttered a curse, her words unfit for a princess, at Kleos's persistent need to rescue her. But then again, she wasn't a princess anymore, was she? That girl had died on the shores of Joppa days ago. Now, she was just a stowaway, adrift on a ship bound for foreign waters.