Enslaved (9 page)

Surgery. Shit. It really had been bad. No wonder his ribs hurt like hell. “What did you have to do?”

She sat on the side of his bed. He shifted his legs out of the way so she wouldn’t accidentally touch him. “You had a punctured lung, couple of broken ribs, and I had to stitch you up from the inside out. It wasn’t pretty, but the last time I checked, the wounds were healing well. Your superhero Argonaut genes come in handy in a crisis.”

Yeah, no shit.
“What about my head?”

“There was some pressure on the left side of your brain. I didn’t want to drain it if I didn’t have to. Now that you’re awake, I think it’s going to be okay.”

Titus nodded and rubbed his fingers through the long hair over the back of his scalp, cringing when he felt the tender bump.

One corner of Callia’s mouth turned up at the edge. “Zander said you’d be pissed if I had to shave your head. You have him to thank that I didn’t.”

Titus lowered his hand. “How’d you get Zander to agree to bring Max to the Misos colony? That’s where we are, right?”

Callia sighed, but this time was careful to guard her thoughts. “He’s not happy with me about that, actually. We argued about it as I was rushing to get here to help you.”

Because Callia was a descendent of the ancient Horae, the goddesses of balance and justice, her son, Max, was a valuable asset in the war between good and evil. While it was a risk for even Callia to be in the human realm, it was an even bigger risk for Max. He’d been taken from Callia and Zander as a baby and raised by Atalanta, the vengeful goddess who had only one goal: to see Argolea and the Argonauts destroyed. The Argonauts had successfully rescued Max from Atalanta’s clutches months ago, and since then he’d been kept safe in Argolea, which was the one realm Atalanta couldn’t access. But Titus knew from being around Zander that things weren’t all rosy at home these days. Max was struggling with the adjustment. And the strain was evident on Callia’s face.

“Zander’s just worried,” Titus said, hoping to ease a little of her anxiety.

“Zander’s right to be worried,” she said. “Every day that goes by, Max is slipping farther and farther away from us. I hoped coming to the colony, where we can keep him safe and he could feel like he was a part of things, would help.” She looked toward the door with longing. “But I guess that was a pipe dream, huh?”

“Callia, I—”

“Don’t worry about it,” she said, pushing to her feet and reaching out to squeeze his bare arm. “We’ll all survive.”

A jolt of emotions rippled through Titus, drew him forward on the bed with a gasp, and hurled him back against the mattress with a crack. The cup flew from his hand. Air whooshed out of his lungs as pain encircled his chest and tightened with the force of a boa constrictor.

“Oh my gods, Titus.” Callia immediately let go, stepped back.

The pain dissipated as soon as she released him, and he breathed through clenched teeth as the emotions followed suit.

“You feel, don’t you?” Callia asked in small voice. “I suspected, but I wasn’t sure. That’s why you wear gloves all the time. I am so sorry. I didn’t…”

“It’s okay,” he managed to say, even as the residual effects of the transfer left him feeling like a limp noodle. “I’m used to it.”

“All the time?” she asked. “Has there ever been a time when you’ve touched someone and not felt what they feel?”

There had been. Feeling others’ emotions wasn’t part of his gift. It was a curse. A hundred-year-old curse he’d been damned with because of what he’d done.

“Not that I can remember,” he lied, not wanting to talk about it, let alone remember. “Lucky me, huh?”

“Oh, Titus.”

He could handle just about anything except pity. He pushed himself up in the bed. “It’s okay, really. Just”—he managed a weak smile—“don’t do that again.”

“I won’t. I’ll put a sign on the door that anyone who comes in has to wear gloves. Will that do the trick?”

“Yeah, that’ll work. And I’m sure it’ll raise all kinds of questions regarding what sort of contagious disease I have.”

Screw
what
anyone
thinks.

Titus couldn’t help it. He chuckled at her thought, then regretted it when pain stabbed his cracked ribs again. He pressed a hand against his side, breathed through the burn. “Zander’s one lucky SOB, you know that?”

“Remind him of that when you see him. He’s still mad at me about Max. Do the others know? The Argonauts? About touching you?”

“We’re guys, Callia. We don’t go around getting touchy-feely with each other.” When she frowned, he added, “You think I need them looking at me as more of a freak than they already do?”

That
would
never
happen
.

He leaned his head back against the pillow. “Trust me. It would.”

She was silent for several seconds, and though thoughts ran through her mind, he tried to ignore them. But words got through:
awful
,
sad
,
lonely
. Words he definitely didn’t need to hear.

Just when he was about to tell her he didn’t want or need her pity, she turned for the door. “Don’t worry, I won’t mention it to any of them. Try to get some rest while I get that sign up.”

He trusted her to keep his secret. But he knew when she was playing the avoidance card. And no matter what weird shit was happening with him, what was going on outside these clinic walls was a thousand times more important.

“Callia.” When she glanced over her shoulder, he asked, “Where’s Gryphon?”

She was careful not to meet his eyes.
You
don’t need to hear this right now.

“Yeah, I do. Where is he?”

She hesitated, then finally sighed in defeat. “No one knows. The Argonauts are all out looking for him. It appears he climbed out his window, scaled the castle wall…No one’s entirely sure how he got out, but he did, and he got by Nick’s guards without anyone noticing.”

Skata.
“Nick’s gotta be pissed.”

“He is. His healer had to put twenty-four stitches in his arm. He was going to kick Gryphon out of the colony tomorrow. Orpheus was going to go with him. I’m guessing Gryphon figured that out and ran before it could happen.”

“Gryphon wouldn’t want O sacrificing anymore for him. What about Theron?”

“Theron wasn’t sure what to do about the situation and he didn’t have time to decide. Before he could come up with a solution, Gryphon bolted.”

“Shit. Nick’s men will kill him if they find him first.”

“I know,” she said quietly. “Which is why the Argonauts are out looking for him right this minute. Theron left Phineus here to make sure we were okay, but the others…they’ll find him, Titus.”

Titus ground his teeth and pushed the covers off his legs. “It wasn’t his fault. I should be helping to look for him.”

Callia rushed back to his side of the bed. “No way. You’re in no condition to move yet. Even superhero genes need time to work.”

“Get out of my way, female.”

Callia held her bare hands up. “Don’t make me use these again.”

Titus glared up at her, then remembered the way her emotional transfer had knocked him on his ass. Dammit, he hated the fact he was so freakin’ weak. Not physically—at least not normally—but emotionally. Just the slightest touch from another person could cripple him.

He clenched his teeth in frustration, but eased back against the bed again, not wanting a repeat of the I’m-a-giant-pussy ordeal. Especially in front of Callia. “Maybe I’ll just rest for a few more minutes.”

“Smart
ándras
,” Callia said, lowering her hands.
I
really
didn’t want to zap you again.
“I’ll be right on the other side of that door if you need anything. And don’t worry, I’ll be sure to keep you updated as I hear news.”

That didn’t leave him feeling all reassured. It only pissed him off even more.

She moved to the door, paused, and looked back. “Phineus was right. Most people wouldn’t be nearly as forgiving after what Gryphon did. You’re a special man, Titus.”

No, he wasn’t. He was cursed. And not only did he know why, he also knew he deserved it.

“Save your praise for someone who’s worthy.” He closed his eyes, blocking out her way-too-gentle eyes as he tried like hell not to hear her thoughts. “I just know what it’s like to be tormented by voices. And trust me, yours and everyone else’s are nothing compared to the voice that’s haunting Gryphon. I wouldn’t wish that shit on anyone.”

***

A shiver racked Maelea’s body. Startled, she jolted awake. Confusion hit as her eyes adjusted to the weird glow. Something hard pressed against her face. Bracing one hand beneath her, she pushed up and looked around.

The cavern. The underground waterfall. The river. Trying to escape the half-breed colony. Gryphon.

Memories rushed in on a wave and doused her spirits. It hadn’t been a dream after all.

She moved to sitting, swallowed down the panic. Something fell from her shoulder. Looking down, she realized it was her shirt. She was wearing nothing but her bra and underwear, but her pants and shirt—still slightly damp—had been draped over her like a blanket.

She reached for the garments and scanned the dark cavern illuminated only by the green glow coming from the bottom of the lake. Nothing moved around her. No sound echoed except that of rushing water. No sign anyone else had ever been here besides her.

She had no idea how much time had passed or how long she’d been asleep, but the fact that her clothes were still damp told her it hadn’t been that long.

Rising on unsteady legs, she tugged on her long-sleeved black shirt and noticed Gryphon’s clothes were missing.

A clicking sound echoed somewhere to her right before she could wonder where he’d gone. She swiveled in that direction on bare feet, hands stilling in the process of tugging her shirt down. Listening carefully, she waited, but the sound didn’t repeat.

Her imagination. It had to be. Logic told her Gryphon had likely ditched her when she was asleep. Now that they were away from the half-breed sentries and he was warm, he didn’t need her anymore. She should have been relieved by that fact—she wanted away from him too—so why wasn’t she? Irritation brewing, she reached for her pants and shoved her foot in the right leg. A click echoed somewhere close again.

Her head came up. Her hands froze on the garment. “Gryphon?”

More clicks echoed in the shadows. Maelea’s heart rate kicked up as she frantically scanned the eerily illuminated darkness, searching for the source of the noise.

“It’s scared,” a raspy voice whispered.

Maelea’s adrenaline surged. That definitely wasn’t Gryphon’s voice. They weren’t alone down here after all. She tugged her pants the rest of the way on, hastily buttoned them.

“Scared is fine so long as it’s tasty,” another voice said, this one just as raspy, but deeper.

Oh, shit.
Maelea scrambled for her boots. Shoved one foot in, then the other, the whole time scanning the dim cavern for signs of whoever or
what
ever was out there.

A sniffing sound echoed. Then, “It’s female.”

“We haven’t had a
female
in ages!”

Pulse racing, Maelea looked all around her for something to use as a weapon. Only, shit, there was nothing. No loose rocks, no twigs, nothing to grab on to and swing or hurl to defend herself.

She eyed the river. Even though it was freakin’ freezing, if she had to, she’d jump back in and let it carry her downstream.

Shuffling echoed, followed by more clicks. Maelea moved for the river just as a three-foot-high gnomish creature peeked out from behind a boulder and blinked at her with wide, catlike eyes.

She hesitated, because what stared back at her was not the monster she expected. If anything, it was cute. Pointy ears, a long chin, and a nose that twitched from side to side. Yeah, it had scales and long claws, but the way it gripped the rock, the way those eyes seemed to grow bigger the longer it looked at her, it was as if it was more afraid of her than she was of it.

“Don’t antagonize it!” a voice hissed from behind the rock.

A little of her adrenaline waned. She tried to look around the creature to the voice behind. Still couldn’t see anything else. “Who…who are you?”

“It’s talking to me,” the one gripping the rock whispered, his knuckles turning white. “What do I do?”

“Don’t answer it!”

Oh yeah, they were definitely scared. Maelea let out a relieved breath. She was otherworldly herself. She knew there were creatures in the world not often seen by humans. That didn’t automatically mean they were evil. Look at her.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” she said. “Why don’t you come into the light so I can see you both better?”