Page 25 of The Cursed Chalice

“Maybe Artemis can take her,” I add.

“What is that?” Hecate asks.

I don’t have to look behind me to know she is talking about the chalice on the floor.

“Are you okay?” she asks. I can hear the concern in her voice.

“I don’t know.” That’s the truth. My emotions are scattered. I am confused, sad, and angry. I want to rip my hair out and scream.

Hecate walks beside me, cradling the chalice in her hands.

“Who is she?”

I shake my head. “I don’t know.”

Hecate examines the chalice, raising it to the sunlight. “Where is she?”

“I don’t know.” I can feel my frustration creeping up my neck.

“How the fuck do you not know, Ares? This is your fucking salvation!” Hecate shouts.

“I don’t fucking know!”

“Exchange. Let me explain it to her, Ares.”

Normally, I would fuss over my retreat and having Aric take over. But I feel mentally drained.

I close my eyes, my shoulders relax, and my fists unclench. The air around me snaps and then goes still. I open my eyes and stretch my neck, moving side to side.

“Good morning, Hecate.”

“Aric. Tell me what happened. How did you get this chalice back?” Hecate holds the chalice out to me.

I look at my shadow pacing.

“Please, sit, Hecate. Let me explain.” I walk to the chair in front of my desk, pulling it away and allowing Hecate to sit.

I can feel the residue of Ares’s pain in my stomach. “Let me tell you what occurred.”

Pulling another chair to the side, I sit and retell the events that happened. Hecate shakes her head in disbelief, shifting in her seat with every new part of the story.

“Aric, this is your ticket to get back into Olympus. Your chance to reclaim your godhood…your sanity.”

I feel the weight of the chalice in my hands, placing it firmly on the marble table in front of me.

“At what cost, Hecate? Someone’s life?”

Hecate’s lips tighten. “There has to be another way, but until then we have to find this girl.”

“I don’t want to kill her.”

“What about Talia, Aric?” Hecate asks.

I bend my head, and for the first time in a long while, Ares is quiet.

“I am still trying to figure it all out.” My gaze is fixed on the chalice.

“That’s all we can do. Magic leaves a trace. I can find her.” Hecate reaches across and taps my shoulder.