Apollyon

I slumped against the wall. “I think he took a few years off my life.”

Aiden’s brow arched. “I still think we need to put a bell on him.”

My lips twitched. “And I still think that’s a good idea.”

He glanced at the door and then took my hand, tugging me toward the bathroom. “We only have a few minutes. Let’s make them worth our while.”

More than a few minutes later, Aiden and I stood in the large living room with everyone else. Apollo was busying himself with a bowl of the stew Laadan and Deacon had made.

“Hungry?” I asked, after several moments of awkward silence stretched out.

He looked up. “Not really, but this is delicious.”

Laadan all but beamed from the couch. “Thank you.”

“We wouldn’t know,” Aiden said. He was leaning against the wall, arms crossed.

Apollo’s lips spread into a smile. “Sorry. I’ll try to come after di

“Let’s do that,” I murmured as I hopped up on the desk, letting my feet dangle off the edge. “You said we needed to talk.”

“We do.” Apollo drifted toward where Olivia and Deacon sat primly beside Laadan. He looked at them a long moment, as if he could see something beyond what our eyes were capable of, and then turned around. “First, I need you to fill me in on everything the First has shared with you.”

Kicking my legs off the side of the desk, I gave him the quick and dirty version of events. There wasn’t much to tell, and Apollo didn’t pass over that fact.

“That’s it?” He didn’t even attempt to hide his irritation and disappointment. “You guys have this unbreakable bond that nearly destroyed the entire world, and all you can tell me is that you thinkhe’s heading north, which is something I already know?”

My lips pursed. Way to make me feel like an epic failure of an Apollyon.

“It’s not her fault,” Aiden snapped, eyes flashing like quicksilver. “He kept most of his plans to himself.”

“Probably because he feared that she might eventually break the bond,” Marcus said. “So the question remains—what do we do with the knowledge that we have?”

“And hopefully you have some knowledge to bring to the table?” I fixed an i

His eyes narrowed.

“Can you tell us how Thanatos was able to discover us?” Marcus asked.

“Yes, that’s rather easy. Alex’s little display of akasha while fighting Aiden drew Thanatos to her.”

I frowned at the reminder. “But I’ve been practicing with it since then.”

“Practicing with akasha is one thing, Alex. It doesn’t even register on our scale, especially if you stayed within the wards I sensed outside.” His eyes slid toward Aiden. “Using it to try to kill someone is like throwing up a homing beacon.”

Flinching, I looked away. “So you’re saying not to use akasha then?”

“I have a work-around for that.” Apollo held out his hand and the air around it shimmered an electric blue. A second later, a small medallion appeared in his palm, co

Apollo dropped the necklace into my palm. It was a reddish-gold color, and a crudely shaped wing was etched into it. “Ha,” I said. “It’s like Harry Potter and the invisibility cloak.”

Everyone stared at me.

I rolled my eyes. “Whatever. So I’m invisible if I wear this?”

Apollo laughed like I’d asked the stupidest question ever. “No. Your energy will just be hidden from the gods—all except me—even if you use akasha.”

“Oh,” I said, holding up the necklace. “Handy.”

As Aiden came over and helped clasp the necklace, he asked, “What else have you been able to find out?”

“Oh, you know, I’ve been doing nothing.” Apollo glared at us. “I’ve managed to convince my brothers and sisters to stop their destruction long enough to give us a chance to make this right, but they will not be held back for long. With every moment, Lucian and the First draw closer to overthrowing the Council. And with daimons attacking humans in droves, they will risk millions of i

“Not because they’re actually concerned about the mortals.” I tucked the necklace under my shirt, ignoring how oddly warm the metal was. It hung about an inch below the crystal rose. “But because if Lucian and Seth overthrow the Council in the Catskills, then they’ll be one step away from overthrowing the gods, right? Because whoever controls those seats are the rulers.”

Apollo said nothing.

“You know, that’s what I don’t get.” Deacon stretched out his long legs from the chair, wiggling his toes. “I know that, if Seth and Lucian overthrow the Council, it’s a big deal for the Hematoi, but the gods can’t be that frightened.”

Without saying a word, Apollo faced Aiden’s brother. I knew that he was probably giving the boy one of his Leon/Apollo looks that said do I really need to explain this?

Deacon fidgeted. “I mean, you guys can just hide in Olympus and call it a day.”

“He has a point,” Luke said carefully. “Not like Seth can storm Olympus—not really.”

I rifled through the memories of the other Apollyons, and nervousness moved through me, quick and slithery like a snake.

“Well…” Apollo sighed. “There isa way to get to Olympus.”

My jaw smacked off my knee. “Portals?”

He nodded. “They are headed there. It’s how we move between Olympus and the mortal world.”

“You know,” Aiden said. “This kind of information would’ve been helpful weeks ago. We could have had Sentinels we trust guarding these portals.”

“And what Sentinels can you truly trust?” Apollo asked evenly. “Lucian’s offer is enticing enough to sway them to his side. Most of the Sentinels have turned on the Council, turned on the gods. Besides, it wasn’t necessary for any of you to know that.”

Aiden looked like he wanted to say more, but wisely remained quiet.

“And luckily we’ve kept their locations secret, even from the previous Apollyons.” Apollo’s gaze flickered to me. “What have you learned from the Awakening?”

I was sort of surprised by Apollo’s faith in my ability to block Seth. I doubted that faith would remain if I told him about Seth and Hermes.

Still kicking my legs, I shrugged. “A lot of it is about their lives, and there are so many. It’s like watching every episode of a TV series that has been on for a mille

An unsympathetic look crossed Apollo’s features.

Well, wasn’t like I was expecting a hug from him. “Most of it is how to use the elements and akasha. And Greek—I can read Greek now.”

Most of the room looked unimpressed by that, but Aiden caught my eye and smiled reassuringly. I gri

“Well, that’s all fine and dandy,” Apollo said, letting out an exaggerated sigh.

I kicked off the desk extra hard, my leg bouncing.

Aiden slid me a look. “What do we do from here? Obviously the gods expect us to do something.”

“The gods expect herto do something.” Apollo jerked his chin at me.

“But how can she fight him without touching him?” Aiden pushed off the wall and strode to the middle of the room. “The gods have to understand that.”

“They do.” Apollo’s eyes narrowed on me. “But I was hoping there was something knocking around in her brain that held the answer to that little problem. But—”

Apollo smacked a hand down on my leg. “Must you always be moving some part of your body?”