Page 66 of Crown of Olympus
I guessed Fate had determined that Nyssa was to be the night sky — infinite and untouchable — and I was to be the dawn, always chasing her away.
We moved closer to the pair.
“You—” Aros began, swallowing roughly. “You’re alive.”
His tan complexion had paled, his usual bravado nowhere to be found.
Nyssa moved to stand, and Aros jerked forward.
“Don’t touch me,” she snapped. Aros’ face shuttered.
“I’m fine,” she assured, noticeably more gentle.
But I could taste her lie in the air. I saw the way her limbs trembled and how she swayed slightly on her feet.
“You’re not fucking fine,” I growled, rivalling my wolf in menace. Every word dripped with a fury that hung heavily in the silence. Nyssa just glared at me.
Aros stood frozen, fists clenched at his sides. He did not move to help her again, but it was clear how rattled he was.
Nyssa straightened with unwavering determination. Facing the dim, junk-filled room, she inhaled deeply and bellowed.
“Footsteps!”
Aros and I exchanged a bewildered glance, both clearly wondering if she’d hit her head harder than Apollo had realised.
Then the air shifted as Hermes appeared with a sharpsnap. His thick arms were crossed, and he wore a scowl that could rival my mother’s.
“You’ve stolen our footsteps,” she explained. “None of us have made so much as a floorboard creak since entering this space. Not one speck of dust has stuck to our boots, nor anyprints left in our wake. I could jump from the top of one of these stacks right now and it still wouldn’t make a sound.”
My jaw slackened as I realised she was right. How she had worked that out — and remembered it after being poisoned — was beyond me.
“Footsteps,” I repeated, impressed.
“Footsteps,” Aros echoed, bewildered.
Apollo grinned with mirth as he spelled out the same.
“You have all passed,” Hermes declared, scowling. “Twenty-six hours, fifty-four minutes apiece. Link hands and let’s go.”
With a half-hearted swish of his wrist and between one blink and the next, we were magically transported back to the Parthenon, and to our eager animal companions. All except Nyssa, who had opted to shadow-walk instead.
Probably the wisest decision, considering the nausea now swirling in my stomach.
Lykos eagerly nudged my hand toward the small chalice containing the antiserum — the foul-smelling concoction that would restore our mental bond. I gulped it down quickly, surprisingly impatient to have his presence back in my mind. Being disconnected from him for the last twenty-six hours had felt like a year, or like trying to compete with a missing limb.
The next time one of your gods attempts to use that abomination of a serum again, I’ll bite their hand off and feed it to Diana’s python.
I couldn’t help but agree, even though I knew it was likely in our future again.
CHAPTER 21
Nyssa
“Fucking Diana,”Aphrodite sneered from her lounge chair.
We were sprawled out in the sunlight — still a wondrous experience for me — on the white marble balcony overlooking her extensive gardens. They’d flourished tenfold since I’d last seen them — granted, that was at night, and approximately a year ago.
“Your landscaping looks wonderful now, Aph,” I told her.
