Fire & Flood (Mythverse #1)

Book 3 Chapter 15

15

More than a few people from class give me a wide berth as we head to the cafeteria. The only ones that seem to be impressed by my violent side are—of course—members of Nico’sshifters-only war party. One of them claps me on the shoulder as we’re filling our trays.

“I knew you had it in you,” he says. “Even if we haven’t seen any real fire since the Spring Fling. Once a killer, always a killer.”

I smile wanly and give him a fist bump, nodding noncommittally when he tells me there’s a stalk and kill practice session planned after classes today, on the green.

“See you there,” he says, giving me an appraising once-over. He’s about to touch my shoulder, but rethinks it, settling for a wink instead. No doubt Nico has informed his entire army that I’m his intended—at least in his own mind. So hands off.

I’ve lost my appetite.

I’m dumping my full tray in the trash when I feel a hand on my elbow. Either Nico’s shifter friend just found his courage or—no wait, this is a cold touch.

I turn to find Val, his face a mask of worry.

“Not eating?”

I shake my head. “Not hungry.”

There’s a lot of things I’m not lately. Not hungry. Not brave. Not sure. Not confident.

But the one thing I know that I am, is perhaps maybe slightly possibly—a little bit in love with Val.

And I just tortured someone in front of him. Which might be a turn off.

His hand tightens on my elbow. “Walk with me,” he says.

Quite a few heads turn as we leave the cafeteria together; it probably doesn’t help that Val’s wearing a T-shirt that reads “FOUNDING MEMBER: STYMPHALIAN BIRD LOVERS CLUB.”

“Tina made you another T-shirt,” I say, with a nod toward Val’s chest. “I like the ambiguity there. Do you love Kevin or is Kevin your…” I stop, realizing that I don’t really want to make a s*x joke with Val.

But it’s too late. “My lover?” Val fills in, his face serious while his eyes laugh at me. “There is definitely chemistry between Kevin and me, but since we’re roommates, we both felt it was best to keep things platonic.”

I can’t help but laugh as we step outside, amazed at how just being with Val can lift my spirits. Kevin launches off Val’s shoulder, spreading his wings to catch the fresh air. He takes a lazy loop above us, before landing on Val’s shoulder once more. Meanwhile, Val’s hand trails down my arm until it closes around mine.

“You might want to be a little more subtle,” I tell him, although I don’t pull away. “There’s a werewolf with an anger control problem who wants to marry me.”

“I can handle Nico,” Val says, so casually that I can’t decide if I’m irritated by his confidence or turned on. “But I don’t want to talk to you about him. How is Mavis doing?”

We settle in beneath the branches of a willow, its long trailing fingers hiding us from the outside world. I tell him about my trip to the dungeons, how badly my sister is being treated, and how she believes the only way she can be saved is if Mr. Zee dies.

“And” —I take a deep breath, going all in— “She wants me to do it.”

Val nods, unsurprised. “And you could, because you’re Zeus’s daughter.”

I pull back, my thunder stolen. “How did you know that?”

“Let’s see.” He pretends to think hard, ticking reasons off on his fingers. “You’re the first dragon shifter to ever exist, your parents smuggled you off campus after you were born and raised you in secret—”

“Wait,” I stop him, and ask again. “How did you know that?”

He drops his hand, and levels his gaze at me. “Because I’m working with the monsters.”

“Val!” I instinctively reach for him, clutching his hands. “That’s incredibly dangerous! Nico has an entire army of students on the lookout for spies and traitors. If he suspected you, it would be the perfect excuse for him to come after you.”

“I know,” Val agrees. “And I’m being very careful.”

I narrow my eyes at him. “I wouldn’t say that, exactly. I know there was another Moggy out after curfew the other night. Your bird gave you away.”

“This guy has more than one use,” Val says, reaching into his pocket for some granola, which the bird gently pecks from his fingers. “Kevin may mark me as a Moggy, but I’ve trained him to run messages as well. There’s a drop not far from here, in the swamp. And a centaur waiting there every evening with treats. Isn’t that right, buddy?”

Amazingly, Kevin rests his forehead against Val’s for second, and emits something like a low coo. It’s sweet, and almost cute—except now I’m worried that Kevin is going to get Val killed.

“Val, if anyone catches you…”

“What about you?” he asks. “You marched straight into the dungeons.”

“To see my sister!” I counter. “It was worth the risk.”

“Worth killing Zee?” Val asks, and I drop my gaze.

“I don’t want to kill anyone, ever again.”

Val laughs, a short sharp sound. “Does that mean Tina can stop telling me her plan for how she’ll kill you if you win the ‘Most Murderous’ prize at graduation instead of her?”

I frown at Val, because I’m pretty sure this isn’t a joke. “In this scenario is Tina murdering me because I won instead of her, or to prove that she deserves the ‘Most Murderous’ title?”

“I think it’s kind of a two birds, one stone type thing.” At this, Kevin squawks in protest at this and Val reassuringly pets his head. “Look, Edie, I think it’s great you want to be a pacifist dragon shifter, although it’s kinda weird to hear that after what you did to Hermes in class today.”

I can’t help but stiffen. “You disapprove?”

“Disapprove? No. But...” Val makes a humming sound low in his throat, then he tilts his head to study me for a minute. “Do you know what makes a vampire a vampire? Beyond needing special sunscreen and our hemoglobin heavy diet?”

“Vampires don’t sleep, they’re cold to the touch, and can sometimes levitate. Remember I’ve been Tina’s roommate for a while now. I know more than you think.” I shrug, not liking the turn this conversation has taken. “But what does that have to do with anything?”

“It matters because you need to understand how you’re different,” Val answers. He turns to me, his eyes intense. “Vampires that are made, the ones turned from humans, are animals. They can’t think or feel anything beyond their hunger. We kill those vampires, because they give us, the born vamps, a bad name. The only difference between them and us is that we can control our hunger, but we are all killers at heart.”

“You’re not like that,” I can’t help but protest.

“I am exactly like that.” Val’s mouth twists into one of its half smiles. “I watched the life fade from Maddox’s eyes. She died at my hands, Edie. And I took pleasure in it.”

“No.” I turn away from him, not wanting to hear anymore.

Of course, I’m not an i***t. I know what Val is. I know he’s dangerous. And I’ve been fairly certain he was responsible for Maddox’s death. But when I’m with him, none of those things seem true.

“Why are you telling me this?” I ask.

“Because I can’t make my heart start beating, any more than you can make yours stop. You’re not like most of the students here and that’s a good thing. But the way you were with Hermes today...it scared me.”

I scoff. “You—the big bad vampire—were scared?”

Val’s hand closes around my chin, forcing me to look at him as he tells me, “I was scared for you. Of what this place is doing to you. You should leave Mount Olympus and never look back.”

Val makes it sound so simple. But this has become my home. I don’t know where else I would go. Also there’s the small matter of, “Mavis.” I say her name aloud, reminding Val of why I can’t leave even if I wanted to.

“I know.” Releasing me, he sits back. “The monsters are putting together a rescue mission. They haven’t forgotten everything Mavis did for them—or you, Edie. The family of the monster baby you saved has vowed to return the favor by freeing Mavis.”

“That’s…” I feel tears pricking my eyes. “That’s so sweet.”

But Val shakes his head. “It’s not sweet. It’s war, and this is an alliance.” Suddenly, he’s not the Val who never takes anything seriously. Instead, he’s all business. “I need to know everything you can remember about the dungeons. Where is Mavis being held? How many guards are there? What kind of protective spells are on the bars?”

“She’s in the—” I begin, but Val stops me.

“Tell it to the bird,” he says.

“Um… what?”

Val reaches into his pocket, retrieves a little bit of pink powder, and gently blows it into the bird’s face. Its eyes go wide and staring, and its beak falls open.

“Tell him,” Val says.

Feeling awkward, I turn to the bird and reveal everything I know about the dungeons, adding that Mavis is wearing a collar that prevents her from shifting, and that Kratos is now personally guarding her cell.

I nod to Val when I’m finished, and he reaches into his other pocket, this time producing a blue powder. One whiff of it and the bird c***s its head the other direction, beak still open as my voice comes out of its throat, repeating everything I’d just said, word for word.

“Oh gods, make it stop,” I say, burying my face in Val’s shoulder.

“I know, it’s a little bizarre,” he says, tapping the bird between the eyes. It stops talking, then looks to Val for a treat. He hands over the granola, and the bird happily chomps away.

“But wait,” I say. “When I told you about Mavis getting a trial, you basically said it was hopeless.”

“I know, and I shouldn’t have said that. Ever since Larissa died, optimism has not been my first response.” Val shakes his head. “And I won’t lie to you—it is a long shot. Maddox’s last attack on the monsters was a brutal one. They weren’t wiped out, exactly, but a lot of them lost the will to fight. You were there, Edie, you saw it. Maddox didn’t fight with honor; she was killing non-combatants. The monsters are just like us. They have families and children, and people that they love. A lot of them don’t want to risk the lives of their loved ones against an enemy that will stoop that low.”

“I used to have a family, too,” I say, my chin raised high. “And now all I have is Mavis. You’re right, I’m not a stone cold killer. But I will fight for those I love. So what can I do to help the monsters?”

Val hesitates and I wonder if he’s not going to answer. But then with a shake of his head, he says, “We’re still gathering information, trying to see if there’s even a way to get her out of there. Anything you know, any possible weakness could be used to our advantage. But Edie…right now everyone believes that you’re a patriot, a true supporter of Mr. Zee. I’ve been outed as a Moggy and the entire campus knows vampires killed Nico’s mom. I’m not risking anything more by spying for the monsters.” He pauses before adding, “But you are.”

“I accept that,” I say. “Now put this bird on record again, I’ve got a lot to say.”

I tell Val—well, his bird—everything. I spill the beans about the weapon in three pieces, how I believe there’s a piece at each Academy, and how I’ve already located the one at MOA. I don’t say where I found it, though. I would trust Val with the information, but I still can’t forget that a monster killed my father. Each side has its share of good and bad guys.

“And,” I add, finishing up, “I’m pretty sure Themis is poisoning Mr. Zee.”

“What do you mean?” Val asks, eyebrows raised.

“Haven’t you notice that Mr. Zee has been a little…off?”

“He’s been like that for a while now.”

“That’s because of Themis,” I tell him. “Although she’s not doing it directly. Hepa helps by delivering the poisoned ambrosia to him every evening. By itself it won’t kill him—”

“No,” he says, understanding, “but it can wither his powers. Possibly to the point where he can be killed. And there’s a sword out there strong enough to do that, along with a prophecy saying you must be the one to swing it.”

“But I’m not going to,” I assure him. “I meant what I said about no more killing. I’ve done enough.”

I think back to the night of the Spring Fling, and the monsters I slaughtered, including Ocypete, my harpy flying instructor who’d tried to bring me over to their side. I ended up allied with the monsters after all, but not before I charred her to ash.

I shake my head again. “I won’t kill anyone. Not even if they deserve it. But I need the sword as leverage against Mr. Zee.”

Val stands and then holds out a hand to me. I take it and he pulls me up...and then into his arms. I lay my head against his chest, no longer minding the silence that would normally be filled with the beating of his heart.

“Edie, I can get us into Underworld Academy. And I’ll do everything I can to help you find another piece of that sword,” he says softly. “But this is not a place where weapons are used as bluffs. If you put that sword together, you best be prepared to use it.”

He kisses the top of my head. Gently. And then releases me and leaves.

Alone beneath the tree, I hug myself, chilled more by Val’s words than his touch.