Page 53 of Winter Queen
“You’ve not told them yet?” I ask him incredulously and he shakes his head, still chuckling.
“I will on the flight.”
“Looking forward ta it,” Arc grins. “I like boobs.”
I give them all one last hug, then usher them out of the room.
“Stay safe,” I repeat. “See you soon.”
* * *
The party is stillin full swing when I return to the hall. The orchestra has started playing and some of the Gods are dancing, but most are still sitting in small groups, talking. I hope they’re all debating whether to join us. According to Tamara, now that we have Flora and Apollo on board, we have more allies than Angus – but he has the Morrigan, who’s as powerful as several Gods put together, and who has an entire demon army.
Flora comes up to me when she sees that I’ve returned.
“Anubis, Demeter, Krishna and Hathor have all pledged to support us. Ganesha is close, I think. Poseidon is almost convinced as well.”
“Well done. Thank you for your speech earlier, it was exactly what we needed.”
She shrugs. “It was the truth. They needed to know what that bitch is capable of. She’s unpredictable, and who knows who she’ll target next if she suspects them of knowing things they shouldn’t.”
“Still, thank you.”
I give her a spontaneous hug and after a moment of surprise, she returns it. Her gown is smooth and silky and I’m almost jealous of it. It’s strange hugging a woman – I haven’t done that for a while. My mother isn’t really the hugging type.
“I better get back, there were more people wanting to talk to me. Oh, and you should have a chat with Hades. He seemed interested in meeting you.”
I swallow hard. I’ve met Hades before, although I bolted as soon as I saw him, pretending to be busy. He emanated darkness and with his reputation, I didn’t feel like getting to know him closer. My mother told me off for reacting like that – Hades isn’t all that bad, apparently. Like so many Gods, he’s got a bad reputation, but he’s not actually evil.
I better do this now before I decide otherwise.
“Thank you, Flora. I’ll go look for him. If you see Crispin, can you let him know I want to talk to him?”
Hades’s eyesare like bottomless pits, drawing me into their darkness. His black hair is pulled back into a ponytail, his thick brows furrowed as he looks at me. He’s been doing that for half a minute now, simply observing me like some kind of specimen he’s trying to figure out.
“My sister tells me she supports you,” he finally says in an incredibly deep voice.
“Your sister?” I curse myself for not knowing how all the Gods here are connected. I read Tamara’s notes on their abilities and powers, but most of them didn’t mention if any of them were related.
“Demeter. The Goddess of the Harvest. She’s been talking to Flora all evening.”
He points towards a beautiful woman in a green dress, the same one I saw Flora with earlier. The vines around her waist are actually moving, gently hugging her.
How is the God of the Underworld related to a fertility Goddess? That doesn’t make any sense. Maybe they’re adopted? But then, that doesn’t make any sense either. The Gods were created by Angus and Beira, there are no other relationship bonds. Maybe they were made at the same time and that makes them siblings?
“I’ve not met her yet,” I admit. “But I’d love to make her acquaintance.”
Hades frowns. “Trust me, you don’t. She talks too much. But she’s also naïve. I don’t want her to get into trouble. If she fights with you, I will be there too, protecting her. I’m not your ally. I’m hers.”
With that, he turns around, breaking the gaze that held me prisoner for the entire duration of our short conversation.
What a strange God. Well, I don’t mind that we’re not officially allies as long as he’s not on Angus’s side.
I make a mental note to have Tamara add him to her list of supporters.
“Godspawn, there you are!”
A roaring voice makes me turn around and almost bump into Thor. The God of Thunder isn’t shirtless this time, but his leather vest doesn’t leave much to the imagination. Next to him is a girl with hair just as fiery as Thor’s. She’s in her late teens perhaps, but while her sparkling green eyes make her seem older, an abundance of freckles on her cheeks and nose counteract that effect. She reminds me a lot of Pippi Longstocking, not just because of her name.
