“Possibly,” he replied cautiously. “I’ll call her and find out. Come in,” he motioned.
I stepped gingerly past him and waited in the foyer as he closed the door.
“Have a seat,” he gestured toward the sofa. I took one, avoiding the furry creature still languishing in the sun. It opened one eye and stared at me before lazily closing it again. Stupid feline.
Gavin pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed a number. I waited, the anticipation lingering like expensive chocolate on my tongue. Harmonia was going to be furious, terrified… and would fall right into my hands. The Fates would be so pleased.
But he shook his head.
“Voicemail,” he murmured to me with his hand clasped over the phone. He waited and then spoke after the beep.
“Hi, beautiful. Hey, you’re not going to believe this but Tara Wilson is here looking for you. She wants to apologize or something. So call me. I love you.”
He flipped his phone closed, tossed it on the couch and shrugged at me.
“She didn’t answer.”
I smiled my most pleasant smile. “Is it okay if I hang out for just a minute or two to see if she calls back? I mean, surely she always returns your calls, right?”
He looked puzzled. “Of course she does.”
“Perfect. Then I’ll just wait a minute.” I patted the seat next to me. “Why don’t you come talk to me? I owe you a few apologies, too.”
He stared at me suspiciously again. “You owe me an apology? What for?”
“I owe you a couple of them. Sit down and I’ll explain.”
He stared at the empty seat next to me and I almost laughed. Men were so easily led around by their noses. But his hesitation did annoy me.
“Come here,” I coaxed, in a sugar laden voice. “I don’t bite.”
He hesitantly settled onto the edge of the couch next to me and I stroked his arm. He moved away, staring at me in apprehension. I fought back my agitation as I felt my temper begin to flare. How dare he prefer that simpering nothing to me?
I scooted a little closer and leaned into him, inhaling his mortal scent. He smelled of cedary musk and sunshine, like the outdoors. It worked for him and I had to admit that I liked it. This wasn’t going to be a hardship, by any means.
“I apologize for being so mean to your girlfriend. I truly do. I didn’t mean to be so… vicious. She and I have had a misunderstanding, but I want to rectify it.”
“A misunderstanding?” Gavin raised his eyebrow. “You stole her boyfriend last year. I don’t know how, but you did. And that was cold. And that is entirely for her to forgive, not me.”
“True. But I wanted you to know, too. You clearly love her.”
He stared at me with cold dark eyes. “Yes, I do love her. Now, what was the second thing?”
“Oh, yes…” I trailed off, resting one hand on his. He automatically pulled it from my grasp, his stare hardening. “There was one other thing. Just a small thing, really. I’m sorry for this, Gavin.”
He looked at me in annoyance. “Sorry for what, Tara?”
“This,” I murmured. Reaching for his phone, I flipped it open and hit redial. While he watched me in confusion, I waited for the beep and then started speaking.
“Harmonia, I have Cadmus. The poor dear thinks he’s in love with me. Can you believe that? Find me and don’t dally. Bring your bloodstone and the Map of Souls.”
“What are you talking about?” Gavin demanded, as he snatched his phone from my hands. “I don’t think I’m in love with you and why did you call me Cadmus?”
“Oh, my sweet. There are so many things to tell you. But we should probably begin with this.”
I stood and quickly shimmered back into my goddess body and stood proudly before him, beautiful and strong. I felt the strength returning to me as it pulsed through my veins. Gavin stared at me incredulously, fear forming in his eyes as he leaped from the couch and backed away from me. I enjoyed fear, though. I could smell it a hundred yards away. And he was covered in a thick blanket of it now, anxious and apprehensive. I licked my lips and took a step toward him.
“What the hell is going on?” he demanded as he backed further and further away. I had to smile. Did he really think he was getting away? So cute. I took another step.
“Ah, sweet Gavin. Or should I say Cadmus?”
He stared at me in confusion. “Why do you keep calling me Cadmus?”
“There is so much to catch you up on, Cadmus. So much. But you’ll need to come with me, first.”
He shook his head. “You’re crazy and I’m not going anywhere with you. You need to leave. Now.”
I laughed, a malicious and cutting sound, even to my own ears.
“Or what? You’ll call the police and tell them that Tara Wilson just morphed into the goddess Eris right in front of your very eyes? I think not. They’ll lock you away in a mental institution.”
“The goddess Eris?” he repeated slowly. “What the hell are you talking about?”
I sighed. “This is getting tedious. Let us just get this over with.”
I leaped across the room in two single bounds and pinned Gavin against the wall. I had to give him credit-- he was strong for a mortal. But I was using goddess strength and he had no chance. The scent of fear was so strong in the air around us that I couldn’t help myself. I licked the side of his neck and found the taste to be exquisite. Terror was such a turn-on. I licked him again, oblivious to his protests and struggles.
But the delicious emotion was distracting me and I needed to focus. Shifting my purpose back into the forefront of my mind, I quickly stuck the leaf in my mouth, crushed it in my teeth and mixed it with my own saliva. Holding Gavin roughly against the wall, I forced his mouth open with my own, thrusting the crushed leaf into his mouth with my tongue.
He struggled as hard as he could in a valiant effort to escape. But I was 100 times stronger than he was in his mortal state. And I kept his mouth locked with my own until I was certain that the enchanted leaf had dissolved and he had swallowed it. The Fates had created it themselves with powerful magic, creating a strong love potion mixed with Awakening balm. He would very soon remember exactly who he was, with one minor little change. He would not remember that Harmonia was ever in his life at all. Instead, he would think that he was madly in love with me. Every instance that she had appeared in his life would simply be erased, which would leave a few confusing holes for him to deal with.
I knew the second that the potion had taken effect. He stopped struggling and stood limply against the wall, held firm by my arms. And then he moved against me, wrapping me in his embrace, deepening the very kiss that had just enchanted him against his will. I smiled against his lips. This was easier than I had thought it would be. The magic was indeed very powerful.
He pulled back and looked at me, his dark eyes slightly blank.
“Eris,” he murmured. “I’m so glad you are here. Where are we?” He stared around in wonder and bewilderment at the house that I knew his mortal body had grown up in. “I don’t remember how I got here. What is this place?”
I smiled again, forcing a pleasant expression.
“It’s of no consequence, sweet Cadmus. All that matters is that I’ve found you and I’m going to take you home. That’s what you want, isn’t it? To go home?”
His eyes were still glazed over in confusion, a side effect of the potion, as he nodded.
“Yes,” he whispered huskily. “I’d like to go home.” I tried to ignore the soft place inside of me that his vulnerable voice was awakening.
“Then come with me,” I replied softly, holding out my hand. He took it, wrapping his strong fingers around mine and staring at me with an expression of trust that I had never seen before. No one trusted me…with very good reason.
“Come,” I repeated.
And he did. Kneeling with him on the floor, I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and thought about my home in the Spiritlands. The white marble columns rising out of t
he horizon at dusk, the lanterns which spread their warm light, the ancient, thick carpets collected from all around the world, the silken tapestries and bedclothes. I could practically smell the sweet scent of my homeland as I felt the familiar weakening of my limbs and we began to fade from the mortal world.
And then suddenly, we were standing together in my home.
Gavin stared at me in the blanked over stare that I knew I should become accustomed to. As long as the potion was in effect, he would be perpetually confused. And oh-so-malleable. I smiled at him.
“We’re home, my sweet,” I said, leaning up to kiss him on the cheek. I sensed that he almost moved away from me, something that was annoying. Really? Even under the permeating effects of a love potion, he shirked away. That wouldn’t do.
I turned and pressed myself against him, kissing him long and hard. He eventually wrapped his arms around me and returned the kiss. As he did, I couldn’t help but become absorbed by it, allowing that soft place within me to swell, just for a moment. His chest was hard, his arms were firm and he smelled really good. It was of no matter to me that he wasn’t really mine. He was mine for now.
Cadmus pulled away and stared around me in puzzlement.
“Is this home?” he asked as he examined my home.
“Of course, sweetheart,“ I assured him. “We’re home in the Spiritlands. We love it here.”
“The Spiritlands,” he repeated in a murmur. “We do love it here, don’t we?”
I wanted to laugh at his perplexed gaze, but didn’t dare. I wasn’t sure exactly what would break the spell and I couldn’t risk doing anything. My freedom from mortal bonds was at stake, and nothing was more important than that.
I led him by the hand to a serving tray on a carved banquet table. Picking up a silver pitcher, I stared into his chocolate brown eyes as I lied calmly to his face.
“Cadmus, my love, I need you to listen. Never, ever drink from this pitcher. It is poison for you and I would never want anything to harm you. Do you understand?”
He nodded. “Of course. It is poison to me,” he repeated blankly.
I briefly wondered what it would be like to have a splendid man such as this love me. Truly love me as he did Harmonia. I slid my hands over his strong, muscled arms and lean torso as I leaned up to kiss the side of his neck. He no longer tasted like fear. He tasted like a man and I hadn’t had a real one in quite a while.
But this was important. He could never drink the nectar, because once he did, it would restore his immortal form and his true memories and then he would know everything. That couldn’t happen yet. After Harmonia came here, it wouldn’t matter. But until then, I had to be careful. Very careful.
“Don’t ever forget, my love,” I whispered as I licked his bottom lip. He nodded stoically.
“Now then,” I continued. “I should show you where you will be sleeping.” I took his hand and he trailed behind me as we walked down the marbled floors of my hallway. Opening the double doors to my bedchambers, I showed him inside.
He stared around at the massive bed, woven tapestries and gleaming ebony floor.
“Are these your rooms? I will sleep here also?” he asked tentatively as he walked further inside. I nodded.
“Is that a problem, Cadmus?” The words felt sickeningly sweet on my tongue, but he didn’t seem to notice. He shook his head.
“Of course not. Your rooms are beautiful.”
He walked to the veranda doors facing us and stared out at the vast expanse of land that backed up to the house. Wild flowers and tall grass blew across the empty plains of the Spiritlands. There was nothing else as far as we could see.
“Are you looking for something?” I asked, watching his face. He seemed hopelessly lost and I knew it was from the holes in his memory. It was so entertaining.
He shook his head slowly. “No. I don’t believe so. I just feel odd. Like I shouldn’t be here, like someone else needs me.”
A flash of anger burned through me quickly and my head whipped around.
“No one else needs you but me. Do you understand?” I snapped. How was it possible that even in this bewitched state he was so closely tied to Harmonia? It was unfathomable. Her hooks were embedded deep within his handsome, bronzed skin.
He turned to me in surprise. “I meant no offense, Eris. Truly.”
My ire faded somewhat. It was true. He did mean no harm. That was something about him that had never changed. He was a good person, with a pure soul. And if that fact didn’t sicken me so much, I would almost feel badly for doing what I was doing. But that wasn’t in my nature and in my opinion, being good made him weak.
I walked smoothly to his side and kissed his cheek.
“Don’t worry, my love. I’m sorry that I snapped at you. I am just tired and I’m sure you are as well. Why don’t you rest for a bit before we have dinner?”
He nodded in compliance and walked obligingly to the bed. As he slid onto my silken bedclothes, I was briefly tempted to join him. My time with him would be short and I should take advantage of the time that I had. I wanted to know, at least one time, what it was like. But there was something I had to do first. Turning on my heel, I walked briskly from the chambers and to my desk by the fireplace in the great room.
I pulled a sheet of parchment from a drawer and while I was thinking about what to write, I noticed a movement from the corner of my eye.
A black raven with blood red eyes sat watching me from the open window. It was silent and still and held a rolled up paper in its sharp beak. The Fates had wasted no time. I motioned to him and he fluttered from the window to my desk in the space of one heartbeat, dropping the missive unceremoniously in front of me.
“Lachesis would like to know if it is done?” the bird politely queried, cocking his head and staring at me with a crimson eye.
I nodded, freezing in trepidation in spite of myself at the mention of the middle Moirae sister’s name. “Yes. Cadmus is at this very moment resting in my bedchambers.”
The bird kicked the paper toward me with one clawed foot. “She wants you to read this and respond,” he creaked.
I stared at the bird for a moment before unrolling the paper. It was frustrating, to say the least, to listen to the condescending tone in his voice.
But instead of reacting, I turned my attention to the feminine scrawl on the paper.
Harmonia will arrive with Aphrodite. Leave Harmonia unharmed and
bring Aphrodite to us. We’ll send Alexi to escort you.
“What kind of trickery is this?” I asked the bird in annoyance as I tossed the message onto my desk. I hated the uncertainty that I heard in my voice and quickly sought to harden it as I continued.
“They told me to imprison Harmonia by any means necessary and deliver the bloodstone to them. And now I am to ignore Harmonia and focus on Aphrodite?”
And I had so been looking forward to using ‘any means necessary’.
The inky black raven stared at me unblinkingly and slightly judgmental.
“Are you questioning the Fates?” he asked calmly.
The threat was clear in its voice. I quickly shook my head. I should not anger them. There was no point. Obviously, I would do what they wanted.
“No. I do not question them.” I stared at the bird defiantly, daring him to challenge me. He did not. Instead, he cocked his head again, motioning silently toward the blank paper in front of me.
Gritting my teeth, I reached for a pen.
It will be done.
I rolled up the parchment and handed it to the bird and he balanced one foot on it while staring at me.
“You can do whatever you may,” he croaked. “But remember. Harmonia is the Chosen One.”
My head snapped up.
“You believe the prophecies?” I asked incredulously.
He stared at me, his bloody red eye staring straight into my thoughts, it seemed.
But he remained frustratingly silent.
For a brief moment, one split sec
ond, a rush of white hot fear flooded through me and stilled my heart. Could it be true? Would Harmonia be the one who would demolish the Moirae sisters’ rule over the Spiritlands? Could she restore the throne in Olympus?
But I shook my head. It couldn’t be. How could the goddess of harmony and contentment be anywhere close to powerful enough to conquer the Fates? It was impossible and I willed my rapid heart beats to still. The bird did not know what it was talking about. It was only one step above a carrier pigeon.
He stared at me in amusement and I fought the urge to strangle him.
“It’s foolish to doubt,” he observed.
“Just deliver my message to the Fates,” I snapped. “Be gone.”
He scooped up my missive in his beak and waddled to the edge of my desk before flying out the window in a flurry of black feathers. I sat still for a second before I moved. I would be fine. The Fates would not be toppled. And if I served them well, they would allow me to stay here in my home. I sighed despondently. I definitely did not want to return to the mortal world. And that very thought made me remember the beautiful mortal slumbering in my bed at this very moment and I smiled.