Chapter 7

CHAPTER SEVEN

R om and Laverna were already organizing one of Rom's sailboats for them to use. It was docked at Ostia, and they would grab what they needed from Enzo's apartment before heading to it. Eris had her usual bag of gear in the car as well as the palladium in the back seat. She was used to moving around quickly, and she wanted to leave Rome as soon as they could be ready to sail.

"You really didn't have to come with me. I could have met you in Ostia," Enzo said for the third time since they had left Rom's place.

Eris drove them back through the city and towards Prati.

"You think I'm going to give you the chance to try and run away on me? I'm not that stupid," Eris replied. "Besides, I want to meet your nonna."

"You say that now, but you should prepare yourself," Enzo said, shifting his weight in the passenger seat.

"You think an old human woman can intimidate me? It would take a lot more than that."

Enzo snorted but didn't argue with her. "I wouldn't have tried to run away on you. I said I would help, and I will. I'm a man of my word."

"I don't know you well enough to believe that." Eris's hands gripped the steering wheel tighter. "Look, I know I sound like a bitch right now, but this is an opportunity I can't afford to fuck up. The Fates can be fickle. They might decide to change their mind, and I can't keep doing this…" She broke off, afraid she had said too much. She really didn't know him enough to trust him or tell him her secret fears. It was a vulnerability she didn't like to feel.

Enzo's hand moved to rest on top of hers, and her grip on the wheel unclenched a little. "I understand, Eris. I want to help you. Believe it or not, I know a little of what it's like to feel cursed. It might be good for both of us to get out of Rome for a while," he said, slowly removing his hand.

Eris wanted to ask exactly what he meant by that when he pointed to an apartment building. It was old and gorgeous, like many of the buildings in such a central neighborhood.

"Nice place," she said, staring up at it.

"Like the bar, it's been in the family for a really, really long time. We can't let the real estate go at this point, and my nonna won't leave Prati unless it's in a casket," Enzo replied. Eris followed him through a well-lit marble foyer to a set of golden elevators. Enzo ran his hands through his curls.

"Are you that nervous to bring a girl home?" Eris teased.

"You're not a girl. You are a goddess. I'm mentally preparing myself for how she's going to react. I have an adjoining apartment, but she likes to interfere with my love life as much as possible." Enzo laughed awkwardly. "You were the first person I asked out in over a year, and she's never going to let me hear the end of it."

"Really? A year?" Eris looked him over, trying to figure out what was wrong with him. "Why?"

Enzo's expression shut down. "It's a long story."

Eris wanted to know what made him close up so fast, but she knew better than to push it. They were going to be stuck on a sailboat together for days if not weeks, and she would have time to get it out of him.

Enzo got out of the elevator and walked to a white and gold trim door. He took a deep breath. "Prepare yourself."

Eris's laughter died on her lips when the door opened, and a woman of indeterminate age appeared. Her hair was perfectly set in large golden bronze curls, and she was wearing a peach satin nightgown with feathers on the sleeves. She looked like she could be Sophia Loren's blonde baby sister.

"Enzo! What time do you call this?" she said and then saw Eris standing behind him.

Enzo cleared his throat. "Nonna Bianca, this is…"

"Eris," Bianca said, her perfectly groomed brows going up.

"How did you know?" Enzo asked, looking between them.

"Humpf, the divination shells told me I was going to have a visitor," Bianca said, gesturing at them. "Come in and have some brandy with me."

"Don't mind if I do," Eris replied, grinning at a flustered-looking Enzo. "You didn't tell me that your grandmother is a devotee of Aphrodite."

"And La Madonna. As I said, she's hard to explain," Enzo whispered back.

The room felt like Eris had stepped into an enchanted seashell. Sure enough, on one wall was a large print of 'The Birth of Venus' by Botticelli in all its glory. The colors in the room matched the painting, and everything that could have a glint of gold on it was gold.

"Goddess of chaos and discord, what brings your dark shadows to my house?" Bianca asked, pouring more brandy into tiny crystal glasses. She didn't look a day over forty-five, and Eris would have bet any money that she enchanted her beauty products. This was definitely a woman who didn't need Enzo worrying about her so much.

"I need to borrow your grandson for a quest to return the palladium to Troy," Eris replied. Enzo shot her a look. "What? She is a devotee of the goddess. She doesn't need to have it sugar-coated."

Bianca served the brandy and sat down on an apricot and cream velvet loveseat. "Enzo likes to fuss and think that I am made of glass in my old age. He even makes me carry this ugly thing." She held out an emergency monitor that had indeed been decorated with tiny diamantes and pearls.

"I thought you were joking about the hot glue gun," Eris said.

Bianca's smile widened. "Ah, you were the one my dear Enzo was on a date with? Enzo! How dare you not tell me it was Eris?"

"Because I didn't know who she was until tonight when she kidnapped me, Nonna," Enzo replied.

"Tch. No excuse, nipote . I taught you better. He thinks I'm crazy," Bianca said, turning her attention back to Eris.

"You are," Enzo shot back fondly, making Bianca tilt her head back and laugh prettily.

"You will have to excuse my moment of gloating, Eris. He's never listened to me about his destiny, and I need to lord it over him that I was right," Bianca said with a wicked grin.

Eris grinned back. "Please go ahead."

"You know, nonna, you could be even a little bit upset that I was kidnapped tonight," Enzo said, crossing his arms.

Bianca shrugged her delicate shoulders. "Why? You seem fine."

"Did you at least eat something for dinner?" Enzo asked and headed into the kitchen. "Nonna! What did I say about charcuterie not being real dinner?"

"Enzo Enea Silviano, I am a grown woman, and I will eat what I wish!" Bianca called back. She gave Eris an apologetic look. "Don't judge the boy too harshly. He's been a worrier since his parents died a few years ago. He thinks I'm to die at any second."

Eris thought it rather sweet. "His name is Enzo Enea? King Aeneas? You must have seen a lot further than they all believed to name him that."

"Of course. His parents thought I was crazy too, but I knew where we came from and where we were going to go back to. The goddess, our grandmother, talks to all of us if we bother to listen."

Eris sipped her brandy. "She also seems to help enchant your beauty lotions to keep you looking so young."

"A woman does what she can. I would still be working in the bar if Enzo let me. I'm glad you have come. The boy could use a bit of chaos to shake him out of his stupor," Bianca commented. She reached into the pocket of her gown and pulled out a gold and mother-of-pearl cigarette case. She offered a pink cigarette to Eris, who took one. She liked Bianca more and more by the second.

" Mio Dio ! Now you are smoking?" Enzo scolded when he came back from the kitchen. He set down a plate of sandwiches in front of Bianca and, surprisingly, one in front of Eris.

"Will you relax? One cigarette is not going to kill us," Bianca chided.

The vein at Enzo's temple throbbed, and Eris took pity on him. She offered him the keys to her car. "Why don't you go and get the palladium and bring it up? I think Bianca should see it. Just don't touch the bare wood again."

"It is here? Why didn't you say?" Bianca demanded, sitting up.

"I'll go get it, but only if you eat those sandwiches," Enzo said, taking the keys.

Bianca put her cigarette back in its case and picked up one of the small panini squares. "Look! I'm eating! Go and get it."

Enzo gave Eris a look that clearly said, See what I have to put up with? Before he headed back out.

"I love that boy with all my heart, but talk about fuss . No wonder he's getting gray hair," Bianca said and lit her cigarette before offering the golden lighter to Eris.

"He seems to have a good heart," Eris replied tactfully.

Bianca hummed. "About his heart. If you break it, I will make the Fates' curse on you seem like a walk in the park."

"Trust me, I don't intend on any harm coming to Enzo or crossing one of Aphrodite's bloodline," Eris replied. Of all the Olympians, Eris knew that Aphrodite was the one to be afraid of the most.

Bianca nodded and blew out a stream of smoke. "Good. I have seen this journey in his future for a long time. I prepared him the best I could and made sure he learned useful things like how to sail and how to fight. I just wish he wasn't such a worry wart and would have fun occasionally."

"He said he felt like he was cursed. Is there anything I should know about?" Eris asked and ate her panini. It was good and complimented the brandy. Dinner had been hours ago.

"He loved the wrong person that is all. The people in our family have an abundance of love," Bianca said, and her wicked smile was back. "I had two nice husbands but unfortunately outlived both. Now, I'm happy being single. Enzo worries about me being alone, but I really am fine."

"All the same, Romulus has organized someone to stay in Enzo's apartment next door to ensure you are looked after while we are away. We will also have someone to manage the bar. Everything will be kept running as normal in Enzo's absence," Eris assured her.

"I don't need a babysitter," Bianca replied primly.

"It's not for you. It's to make Enzo and Romulus feel better about leaving you alone. If you think Enzo makes a fuss, you wait until you meet Rom," Eris said. Somehow, she knew that Bianca was going to be delighted by both Rom and Laverna.

Bianca inspected her perfect manicure. "It's about time he came to visit his family."

Eris was saved from having to reply to that by Enzo's return. Bianca was up on her heeled feet in seconds. "Don't put it in here! We must put her in the altar room."

"Altar room?" Eris asked.

"As you wish, nonna." Enzo looked pained, and Eris followed him through the lush apartment, smiling from ear to ear.