Page 105 of Flame and Fury

I don’t get a chance to respond because Atlas is crushing my lips in a claiming kiss. If my knees weren’t already weak, they would be now.

“For gods’ sake! Stop making out and help us,” Greer growls, and Ares belts out a carefree laugh.

EPILOGUE

WREN

“No one told me the revolution would involve so much paperwork,” I grumble and redo my messy bun. It’s been falling out for the last hour, but I haven’t had a spare moment to fix it. It’s been four months since the gods were put back to sleep. Four months since I died and came back to life. Four months since Nathaniel Rogers, AKA Dolos, the god of trickery, has been seen.

We didn’t know it at the time, but Kat confirmed later that the Underground was able to pull off a revolt across Zeus and Hera’s territory. The Boar came through on his end. With his contacts and the vast network of the Underground, people were ready to fight. Shrines and temples run by the clerics were toppled that day, wresting power from the corrupt bastards and ending their reign of terror.

It hasn’t all been smooth sailing. There were riots, including the one outside the Shrine of Olympus in Chicago. The crowd was so riled up, it took hours to calm them down. The Underground did their best to patrol the city since the guards fled once they didn’t have the protection of Zeus and Hera. Ares, Hades, Persephone, as well as my friends, helped, but it wasn’t as simple as telling everyone to go home.

Greer won the games, even though they were essentially shut down the moment we put the gods to sleep. People still look up to her as the winner of the last Olympus Games, which she loathes. I think it’s hilarious. She did demand her prize, even though the games were defunct. Her winnings included a boatload of money and a high-rise apartment in the city of her choice. She says she picked Chicago because it’s not a total dump, but I secretly think she likes having friends close by. We’re both still adjusting to the fact that we have real friends.

I’ve learned a lot since that night. Mainly that elections, government, and all that bureaucracy bullshit moves really slowly. Kat and her team worked as quickly as possible to get elections set up, but candidates needed time to declare themselves. People wanted to know what they stood for. Atlas keeps insisting everything has unfolded quickly. I guess I’m just impatient.

“Take a sticker,” Greer snaps at a guy who just voted.

“I don’t want a sticker.” He blinks rapidly.

We’re standing behind the voter ballot turn-in table at Jerry’s bar, the Hole. I never expected this place to become the hub of something so upstanding as voting. It’s a central location in our neighborhood, and Jerry offered it up for our use. Most of us helping today have been here for nearly twelve hours. Greer isn’t chipper on a good day. Twelve hours with little food and non-stop running are really pushing her to the limit.

Greer pulls a sticker off the roll and slaps it on the man’s chest. He moves to peel it off, but she points a finger at him. “Don’t you dare. You’re going to go out there and remind other people to vote today. Do your fucking duty.”

I stifle a laugh. The poor man looks terrified as he scrambles out of the bar, but Greer’s not wrong. We want as many people here voting as possible. Even if that damn sticker gets one more person through the door, it’ll be worth it.

“Easy, tiger. Have a sandwich.” Jerry’s bald head and crooked nosed face appears from the crowd. He drops a plate of food in front of Greer, along with a beer.

“Where’s mine?” I jerk my head toward the food.

“I don’t think I’m allowed to feed you, kitten.” Jerry looks over his shoulder, but I can’t see what he’s looking at through the crowd.

“Really? Also, why is she a tiger and I’m a kitten?”

Jerry winks at me and disappears back into the mob of people with an agility that belies how long he’s worked at the bar.

Greer rips into her sandwich with a groan. “That’s right, kitten. You’re just a fluffy little ball of fur.”

“I know for a fact she has claws.” The crowd parts to reveal Atlas holding a plate just like the one Jerry brought Greer. He sets it down in front of me, and then leans in to press a soft kiss to my lips. My shoulders relax, and I make a happy sound against his mouth.

“I’m eating,” Greer grumbles. “Hey, take a damn sticker,” she yells at another voter trying to leave our table without catching Greer’s attention. The woman giggles nervously and accepts the sticker before scurrying away. We’ll be lucky if anyone comes back here to vote ever again.

“When did you get here?” I ask, and then take a bite of my sandwich. Atlas has been helping Kat with her campaign as much as possible these last few months. But not at the expense of being away from me. He hasn’t spent a night out of my bed since that day at the Shrine of Olympus.

“Drake and I got here about ten minutes ago.” Atlas nods to the bar as rounds the table so he’s standing next to me. I look over at the bar and spot Drake sipping a beer and chatting with Lark, Estella, Nico, and Jasper. They’ve been here all day with me and Greer. We’ve been alternating between serving food and beer and harassing people to take a sticker.

Atlas pulls me into a hug like it’s been days since he’s seen me instead of hours. I squeeze him back, soaking in his strength and the familiar scent of his skin.

He presses a kiss to the top of my head before he pulls back to survey the crowd. “It looks like there’s been a good turnout.”

“The people haven’t stopped coming in all day.”

Even Nyx came down and voted early this morning. Despite being lauded a hero, she’s not big on crowds. It’s hard to break the habit of hiding after so long.

Jerry has the big projector out for the occasion and the news has been focused on the elections all day. I look at the screen and marvel at the long lines of voters waiting to cast their ballots.

“You made that happen,” Atlas murmurs as he nods toward the screen.

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