Page 4 of Whiskey, Thieves, and Bastards
“What do the two of you want?”
“Your ambrosia and answers.”
Athena tossed her black hair over her shoulder.
“You never liked ambrosia. You said it made your ass big. Why do you need mine?”
I pinched the bridge of my nose.
“Medusa? My fucking mate. You know, the one you cursed and got thrown into New Eden Asylum? They starved her and she needs it. You also owe her answers why you cursed her.”
“I didn’tcurseher. Why does everyone say that?”
“You turned her hair to snakes and made her gaze lethal,” Pax snapped.
Yeah, he’d do. He was ready to take on Athena for Medusa, so he was cool with me.
“You’re the champion. She’s finally met you?” Athena said.
Athena looked hungry at the idea that Pax and Medusa had finally met. Pax just looked confused and frankly, so was I.
“I’m her mate. One of them.”
“How many has she met?”
“Dionysus, Cas, Benji, and me.”
“Good. It’s time. I’ll get the ambrosia, and you can bring me to Medusa.”
I grabbed Athena’s arm before she could leave. I was glad she wasfinallywilling to talk, but she’d better not be up to something.
“If you so much as startle my mate, I’ll beat the shit out of you. She’s best friends with Hephaestus, Hades, and Persephone, so you might end up in Tartarus.”
“No, something is coming. She’s the key, and it’s time she knows the truth.”
I meant it. I’d been nice to Athena because I was hoping she’d lift her curse, but if she hurt my mate again, she’d get the Mad God.
Ihad Medusa crushed in my arms. I was worried about Pax. I didn’t know where Dionysus went, but Pax grabbed him when he disappeared and went with him. Benji couldn’t follow because he didn’t know where they were going. And Benji was a hot mess anyway, because Medusa was upset. So was I.
Pax wasn’t a shifter, so I knew deep down he was in the best position to leave, but that didn’t have to mean I liked it. I was still getting used to all these gods in my living room. My phone rang and when I looked down, it was Father Nathan. He was closer with Pax than with me, but he also knew I ran his town.
“Hey,” I said.
“I can’t thank you enough for finding Oberon, but where are the rest of them? You said you were getting them all out. Do theyneed a place? I can open the church if you let them know I’m not like the Coalition.”
“Thanks for the offer. Most of them are home looking for their families or here with me. We’re going to take them down. All of them. If you want to release the documents we sent, now is the time.”
“I’m not exactly sure what you did, butIknow Oberon was in New Eden Asylum and so does Oberon. But it’s like the place never existed. I even tried hacking into some places I’ve previously found information and it’s gone.
“It can’t be them deleting it because some of the databases I’d gotten into were people watching them trying to take them down. They wouldn’t have deleted what they had. I don’t think the Coalition is as good as me to get in there and it plays in their favor to say dangerous supernaturals broke out of their facility. They could rile everyone up.”
“That was a new member of my team, but I actually need more information about that. It’ll make you questioneverythingif you meet her. You might be the only outsider I trust on the mountain, but what we’re doing is very dangerous. Focus on getting that information out in a way that can’t be traced back to you and healing Oberon.”
Supernaturals usually lived in the commune up the mountain and the humans lived at the bottom. The humans were good people, and Father Nathan vouched for Oberon. We got to know him in New Eden and he was a decent guy. He wouldn’t expose us.
But first things first.
“How did Persephone erasealltraces of New Eden Asylum? Even secret databases only my hacker priest friend knew about are gone.”
