12

Starting Thursday, we had several order pickup locations around Massachusetts as far as Springfield which was far west almost to New York. The one most requested to add was closer to Cape Cod, so we added one there. We also had two in New Hampshire and branched out into Providence, Rhode Island which seemed like it would be a madhouse from the amounts.

But everything was already picked up by Costco and all we had to focus on was the orders. And if I made extras with my power, that was fine.

The media was a bit mixed about us giving cookies to prisons and churches, but we also gave a lot to hospitals again. Some were complaining that we didn't give to schools, but it was a religious holiday… But so was Christmas, so they weren't wrong that I was being a bit hypocritical.

But it was also a bit different. Rationally, we all knew that.

Easter was different than Christmas. Really, it was.

Still, a few reminded people of the reports I was trying to add to child obesity, and maybe that had something to do with why I didn't give to schools again? So they should blame themselves and the kids should be upset with them.

Apparently, they were.

Oh, boy. Well, that wasn't the goal, but I couldn't have seen that coming or handle all of the crazy always. People just looked for reasons to complain, and I had too much on my plate to worry about it all.

We did get a lot of good PR about selling our base cakes frozen to other bakeries and how it cut down on their costs. Even the cupcakes as well. It was all over social media that they were using our cupcakes and tagging us how they decorated them. Mary and Kary said we were trending like crazy and that helped with the orders.

We had cut off everything, but people were still planning to show up to locations to see if we had any extras like we had for St. Patrick's Day. Sure, we could make that work.

I ended up popping all around and reloading trucks in a way people wouldn't notice. A few basically left when empty and hid for an hour before showing up completely reloaded again. They were fridge trucks, so if nothing else, they could count towards the next day's orders since the drivers knew they might be sleeping over with the cargo.

They were fine with it. They all needed the money and wanted extras to take home to their covens or friends.

The only real problem we had was people showing up and trying to buy all the extras we had like we were too stupid to figure out what they were doing. I had been clear with Dion and his managers who I'd personally spoken to that there wouldn't be any of that. People could have two or three items, and if I found out they were allowing more, the deal was off.

That meant their Karma Bakery-specific treats and the hours they received to do this for us. Our drivers were also there to check on things and make sure it was all going to the right spots. We had a couple of trusted people from the factory in charge at each location using a Karma Bakery van and… We were covered.

And made a killing from the sales totals that I was seeing. Just from Thursday. Sure, it all cost a fortune, especially with the expansion and additions, all the salaries for sure, but the amount we were getting from Costco alone would pay for it all in no time.

These huge holidays were the other way.

Could we make up some more holidays? Ones that didn't help my brother's stupid power base?

Actually, that sounded like a great idea and something to seriously consider. Maybe just do this for a weekend when we changed up new menu items or added something. That seemed to be when we had the most crazy and sold out too fast, so we could make a weekend event of it at some discount.

Starbucks did things like that, right?

I had no idea, but I texted the twins what they thought and they loved it. Or even just to use as a focus. Mary thought it should be a weekend of pie and doing all kinds of everything, slab pies and some they could take home to bake. Highlight one product that maybe people wouldn't try on their own.

A festival of pies basically.

Perfect.

She thought we should do it in a few weekends because that was smack between the crazy now of Easter and Mother's Day and would be fun.

We liked fun. Sure. We could talk to Heitor about what was coming in the next shipment and make all of the pies.

Who didn't love an excuse to have pie?

Friday was even crazier. We had to keep posting on social media that we had limited extras and we would stop even allowing that if people misbehaved. I would keep making more appear, but there had been an issue at the Providence location where a mob had practically threatened to storm the truck and steal it all if they couldn't get what they wanted.

No, just… No. We weren't having that kind of crazy for Easter treats.

No.

Once we finished with the ordering times, the twins talked to me, and we decided the rest would be to areas in MA that we knew well. At least for this time. We talked to Dion and he agreed. He thought it was a bit too much crazy for his people even, and it was a good way to get the market wet for the idea, but people were taking things too far.

And he didn't want to get pushback from his parent company… Which was actually Chen. I hadn't known that, but it was part of cycling their covers and lives to the human world, but that was who bought out AMC however many years ago. They were smart and handled my realm better than I did.

It was good to have a relationship with them just for that.

We posted all over that given the amount of people who had relied on our extras instead of putting in orders and the problems we'd had at the new order pickup locations, we weren't bringing any extras. It would be orders with confirmation numbers and verified texts for the pickup locations only. We would still have extras at the bakery and that was all we could handle while ramping up production.

And we were hiring at the factories.

There really was only so much I could sneak in even with all the expansions and misdirection we were working on.

I was exhausted by the time I got home and wanted to crash… Instead, I had a BBQ spread waiting for me that made my mouth water and a very sexy man giving me looks that I was going to enjoy my night to the fullest.

I could find the energy for that, right?

Yes, I was a goddess and would make it happen.

"No work talk," he told me after we sat down. He shook his head when I opened my mouth to argue.

"But I wanted to hear more about your opening."

"Nope, we've been talking about it, but not tonight. No family. No work. No issues."

I blinked at him for several moments as he made me an overloaded plate. "I have no idea what to talk to you about then."

"Yes, you do," he chuckled. "You just aren't always the best at being thrown for a loop. I want to get to know you. Don't you want to get to know more about me?"

"Yes, of course, but…" I wasn't sure how to say what I was feeling, but he gave me such a kind, curious look that I found myself saying what was in my heart. "I find knowing about people's pasts doesn't tell me who they are. I'm completely different than who I was. You are too. That's your past and yes, if you want to tell me, I'd love to hear the stories, but you are who you are now."

"This is why I like being with you," he said as he made his own plate and smiled at me. "You see things from such a different perspective, and it's not just because you're a goddess. You've seen people come such a long way. You've seen the best and worst of us. You've seen the heavens and underworld and so much in between. I mean, you've seen actual sea monsters of mythology. That's horrible but so cool."

"The first was a joke," I admitted, nodding as I took a huge bite of some delicious pulled pork. "Poseidon wasn't happy that his realm was the oceans and waters when people weren't even close to traveling them. They hadn't even invented fire yet and were living—he knew Zeus gave him that realm because he had no faith in him.

"But really, I think the only one of us he loved was our baby brother, so he didn't want to ever feel competitive with Poseidon. But Hades and I agreed with the decision because Poseidon was bratty, back then at least." I smiled. "He's grown into the man I always thought he could be." I hurried on when Jamie gave me a look to remind me that we weren't talking of family.

But really, we were, so it was a bit of splitting hairs.

"He asked what he was supposed to do with so much water that had barely any sort of life, but Zeus said it was only like that because he lacked imagination and he could do whatever he wanted. The next time we checked on him, there were huge monsters and he was having the time of his life like a kid playing with toys.

"It started so innocently, but they had no food because this was even before most fish evolved as you know them now and—it became a mess. Yes, we laughed and watched the monsters fight each other, but then they would attack settlements near the water desperate for food and… The fights we had. Poseidon was so damn stubborn back then and—maybe he was lost too.

"I don't know, but it started funny." I gave a sad smile as I moved onto the ribs. "He talked me into making dragons that way, but then they killed a whole village, and that was when Zeus started really trying to control me. It was as if it was the mistake he'd been looking for—"

"Sorry," Jamie whispered, clearing his throat. "It really is all tied to family and the bad of your past for you. I didn't realize that. Sorry."

I shrugged. "Maybe now that I'm healing some I can see some of it better. I haven't been able to laugh about those sea monsters. Some of them were so fucking goofy that—Poseidon really did have quite the imagination. It was all just so underhanded. If Poseidon was doing that and distracting me too, we weren't helping Hades. That had been Zeus's real goal."

"Yeah, it's so hard to see how far back it goes, and the pain never really goes away," he muttered.

I knew that tone and the defeated air around him. "Something happened with Barb?" I pushed a bit when he looked like he wasn't going to answer. "Jamie, I want to be here for you the way you are for me. I can be understanding too. Don't let this burden you because you want this perfect night for us. It's perfect because we're good for each other."

"Yeah, it is," he agreed. "Thanks."

"Always." I winked at him and gave a nod for him to tell me.

Steam about came out of my ears as he did. Barb was still on lockdown by her parents, the cover that she was in rehab from her drinking, but basically she was being beat down and rehabilitated from her stupid and trying to destroy her family because she was so selfish.

I had strong opinions about her after all.

But she wasn't allowed her phone or any form of technology. Her grandmother was overseeing her under Hades's direction and working on her rehabilitation or whatever. So she couldn't communicate with Jamie directly like that, and Jamie had blocked her number anyways since he was going to cut all contact with her, but Barb found another way.

She'd told her grandmother that she wanted to write some letters asking forgiveness like people did in actual rehab… And her grandmother had allowed it thinking it was a good step in accepting she couldn't keep behaving as she had.

Except she hadn't read them first.

Apparently, Jamies's was about forty pages—front and back—of bile. Absolute bile blaming him for everything and basically saying she was sorry that she hadn't killed him the moment she was able to so she didn't have to suffer all of this now. That everything would have been different without him being the embarrassment of their family and just toxic drivel.

I was steaming as I listened to it all as we both ate more than a few humans could.

"You have to tell your mother and grandmother, Jamie," I told him, shaking my head when he tried to argue. "No, you can't protect them from this, love. They need to know this to make sure things are working as they should and she—they thought this was a step in healing and clearly it wasn't. They could let her back out into the world thinking she's better and—"

"Yeah, okay, yeah, good point," he agreed with a heavy sigh. "I didn't think about that. I just keep—this is going to hurt them both so much. It… It's really bad, Arabella. I mean they're both mentioned in it and how weak they are for letting all this happen—it's so psycho. She's blaming Grandma for becoming a minion and not taking over Hades."

I let out a heavy sigh and rolled my eyes. "Seriously, she's going to end up being put down like a rabid dog if she doesn't stop. She can't talk about things because of Colton's curse but…" I shook my head.

Now she was resorting to writing letters so long they were short stories to get out her bile? I mean… Was there really any way to save her?

Was she worth saving?

I didn't think so, but I didn't think my relationship with Jamie or even Patti would recover if Barb died.

We finished eating and I gave him a kiss to thank him, asking if he could clean up and call his mom to say he needed to talk to her. I gave him a look that he should get it off his mind and let her know the truth.

"Then we'll relax and have fun," I promised, having a few things to do of my own.

One of which was putting a leash on a rabid bitch.

Colton had the right idea, and I was over letting things go. When Jamie agreed, I went upstairs to give him space and used my power to appear in front of Barb.

I immediately silenced her. Even if she was going to vomit from Colton's curse, I wasn't in the mood. I gave the grandmother a hard look as I covered Barb's ears magically. "Is there some sort of plan here or are you foolish?"

She sighed. "The letter to Jamie wasn't an apology, was it?" She nodded at whatever was on my face. "I was a fool. I won't—I still see the cute child who used to beg to tussle as wolves. I died almost ten years ago. A lot has changed."

"Fine, but you should have checked it before Jamie died inside reading it. And you know she's lying to you about everything she's saying about him, right?" I felt better when she gave me a look that she wasn't that stupid. I didn't know the plan, but I didn't like it. "I want her behavior to change as well, but I'm not willing to do damage to Jamie to get it to happen."

She frowned. "I figured he was smart enough to know what was going on."

I sighed. Heavily. "He loves you. He missed you dearly, and then you were siding with Barb. How often does your logic work when it involves the ones you love?"

"I really am an old fool," she rasped. "So much fell apart and…" She shook her head. "I don't think I'm making anything better, and your brother made it clear that I needed to."

I opened my mouth but then closed it. I worried he wanted her to end Barb so I didn't have to and wasn't the villain. Then he would be for making their grandmother his minion and she'd have to do it and that would be a fucked mess.

More than it already was.

I went over to Barb and took off the magic so she could hear me. "I know Colton muzzled you, but apparently you need a fucking high-voltage shock collar, you're so rabid, you stupid bitch." I moved my hand over her head and thought of what I wanted.

Almost instantly, she fell to the floor grabbing her head and crying out in pain.

"What did you do?" the grandmother asked, dipping her head to say she was asking respectfully.

"Every time she thinks her bile she'll get a splitting headache. Every time she deludes herself and blames others or—all of it. She'll have to start thinking of puppies and kittens only if she wants the pain to stop. Anything other than stewing in her hate and indignation—her bullshit that she's the fucking victim of anything."

I smirked at Barb as she stared up at me with horror. I squatted down to her level and gave her an evil smile that I knew would set her off. Sure enough, she cried out and grabbed her head.

"If you want to be a victim, I will make you one, Barbara Kraft," I purred. "I will come here and tell you all about things that will drive you fucking insane."

"You wouldn't—"

"Your brother is living with me in my huge new mansion," I told her, nodding when her eyes went wide. She screamed and grabbed her head. "I'm going back to him so we can sit in my hot tub at his request. He wants to lick my body all over, all night. Just that because he enjoys me that much."

She kept screaming and I simply chuckled as I stood.

"You shouldn't have gone after my lover when he's been such a good brother to you. He's the only reason you are not dead, child. If you want to be the victim so badly, I have no problem coming here and making you one. I will torture you with the truth until your brain explodes and you cannot wipe your own ass or feed yourself. Savvy?"

"Hera should—" Colton's curse kicked in and she vomited all over the floor.

I used my power to clean it up, giving the grandmother a look that it was all she would get from me. I wished her luck and returned home… Only to find Jamie standing in my bedroom giving me a knowing look.

Shit.