Chapter 4

4

Nemea

I freeze when she drops that bomb.

“Does he know he had a kid?” I lift my gaze from drying my legs enough to study her a little more closely. Their resemblance is in the set to her jaw and in her sturdy build. Though just about every Amazon I’ve set eyes on were pretty sturdy women. She also has the same slightly curly, dark blonde hair.

“Mother’s hopefully telling him everything tonight.”

I wrap my towel around my body and grab my toiletry bag, slipping by her, uncertain what to say.

When I reach my locker, she follows, sitting on the bench across from me, silent. I glance at her, but she’s just studying me closely, head tilted to one side, like I’m some strange creature in her midst.

“I’m not sure what you want me to say—that I’m sorry you grew up without a dad? Honestly, I was better off when mine didn’t come around. Parents can fuck you up. My mom wasn’t much better, but after a while she was gone too.” I find the sweats and tank top, think about the underwear, but forego it. I’m still really tender from the last few days and want as little contact against my flesh as possible.

She waves a hand. “We don’t need men here, in case you haven’t noticed. I only really missed the idea of him, but the concept of an absent father wasn’t something that caused me any trauma. Plenty of the other women who’ve come to us have had backgrounds like yours, so I get it can be a big deal to some. It just wasn’t for me.”

“Lucky,” I mutter.

Do I have daddy issues? Probably.

Definitely.

And I should probably unpack that and how it relates to my current circumstances. Or at least where I found myself the last few days, being railed by a bunch of otherworldy prison guards and enjoying the fuck out of it.

But I glance at her again, a little envious now. To have a mom who showed up and was enough—I really could’ve used that.

“It’s the only life I’ve known, really,” she says. “But I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I just wanted to let you know you’re welcome here for as long as you need. I wanted to be up front about my whole part in this because I think you and Alcides have unfinished business. I didn’t want you to think I would interfere. I want to get to know him, if Mother allows him to stay. But I gather what you’re here for will take precedence.”

I snort a laugh. “More like un- started business. I barely know him. The only conversation we’ve ever had happened when I begged him to get me out of Tartarus.”

She sits up a little straighter, frowning at me.

I’m ripping a comb through my damp hair, belly tangled up with uncertainty about what’s supposed to happen next, at least with Alcides.

“He said you were his fate. Is that not true?”

My stomach tightens even more, and I can only nod at first. I still feel the others deep inside me, so… available . And patient, bless them. It’s a strange new sensation to start to believe you can actually count on people. And there’s already a very clear space being set aside for the others. Alcides, Campe, Cerberus; they were all in my head even before I was aware they were real.

“It’s true,” I whisper.

She’s looking at me with new appreciation. “What’s it like, to be touched by Fate?”

“I don’t know.” I sit down on the bench and grab the tube of lotion from my toiletries, raise my tank top up to reveal my tattoo, and begin liberally massaging the lotion into my skin. The flesh under my hand seems to vibrate as if experiencing a pleasure completely separate from my own.

“I don’t know that I ever really had a choice as Bloodline. It was either give in or die. Doesn’t Fate have their threads everywhere?”

She shakes her head. “They don’t venture here. We’re daughters of gods, and the gods make their own rules. The Higher Races are the ones who are bound to Fate, and humanity in general.”

“Fate wanted the Bloodline dead because we evidently sprang into being in a way that didn’t let them have dominion over us. But Deva Rainsong stepped in and promised to protect us. So it might be fate magic that affects us, but it was Deva’s fate hounds who probably determined where I wound up. I’m grateful, I guess? But it’s been kind of a mindfuck, if you ask me.”

She looks wistful, staring at the stone floor.

“How long have you been here?” I venture.

“My entire life. I mean, we travel plenty. There are events I attend as a representative of the winery or brewery. We do community outreach practically everywhere in the world. There aren’t many of us who are willing to leave once we learn how wonderful it is to live here, to be a part of something bigger than us, to help others. But it’s the only way I get to see the world.”

She still didn’t answer my real question. “How old are you, Ele?”

A sad smile tilts her mouth. “I’m over three thousand years old, Nemea. It’s been a long time not finding love. So I really hope this works out for you. Not every woman needs it, but every woman deserves it.”

The longing in her voice triggers an ache deep inside me, and I reach for her impulsively, grabbing her hand and squeezing. “No one in all this time? Really?”

She squeezes back. “A few of the gods tried to pursue me. Even Zeus.” She wrinkles her nose at this. “Mother put a stop to that fast. They’re not allowed here anymore, at least not the men. There have been mortal men, but I learned a long time ago that it only hurts worse to fall for them, because I can’t keep them. So I always come back here. Home is healing. I’m fulfilled here. And regardless of how things turn out for you, I hope you will be too, for as long as you choose to stay with us.”

She rises then, helping me up with her hand still in mine, then pulls me into a tight hug. I return it with fervor, grateful for her kindness, for her sincerity. “Maybe there’s an immortal out there for you still. I wouldn’t give up hope,” I tell her. “The ones I’ve met among the Higher Races aren’t all that bad.”

“Maybe,” she says. “But I’ve got time.”

“Well, I don’t, so I guess I should get some sleep so I can get started on whatever training is in store for me here. At least I think that’s why Alcides brought me.”

“We’ll get you sorted out. Good night.”

She gives me a peck on the cheek, which warms me to my toes, then turns and disappears through the door back into the barracks. I finish moisturizing in silence, for the first time finding it possible to relax. The lotion is faintly lavender-scented and begins to soothe me even before I’ve put away my belongings.

Just before I close the door to my locker, I spy a small black case, shrink-wrapped on the top shelf. I peek at it and find a small rechargeable silicone vibrator. Curious, I unwrap it and pull it out of its case. There’s a convenient outlet in the back of the locker for stealth charging and everything. The label on the vibrator promises discreet pleasure, quiet but powerful. I press the power button and it hums to life with a pleasant flutter, and is indeed powerful.

So this is how they survive with no men.

I stash the toy back on the top shelf, plugging it in for good measure. You never know.

When I head back into the bunk room, it’s dark, but enough moonlight filters in that I can make out shapes. I peek over to where I saw Ele when I first came in, and her eyes are open. She smiles at me as I make my way to the bunk with the number 26 on it. It’s a lower bunk, the upper empty. Women slumber all around in a faint chorus of breaths and snores, and the nighttime birds and crickets add to the white noise surrounding me.

But despite the weariness in my limbs, I lie awake, staring at the underside of the top bunk, wishing I could predict what would happen next.