House of Thebes (The Bloodstone Saga) (3 page)

“Your father hasn’t exactly wanted me to fraternize with his family,” Cadmus answered with a grin.  “He’s letting me venture into your gardens now to exercise my leg.   But before that, I was contained to the servant’s quarters.”

“But you are a mortal prince,” I answered uncertainly.  “How is life as a servant treating you?”

“It’s not bad here,” he answered, unconcerned.  “I was a soldier in my father’s armies, Harmonia. I’ve marched in the rain and slept in the mud.  At least my bed here is warm and dry.  And besides, the scenery is quite exquisite.” He reached over and grasped my hand, sending the strange electricity jolting up my arm. 

“Thank you,” I whispered.  He winced suddenly and I knew his leg pained him.  Guilt consumed me and I found that Zeus’ rules suddenly weren’t important. 

Jumping to my feet, I leaned over him, pressing my hands against his wound.

“What are you doing?” he asked curiously?  I pressed harder and he winced. “What are you
doing
?” he asked again. 

“Just be still for a moment,” I told him.  I focused on his wound and on feeling the infection in the air above it.  I closed my eyes and concentrated. 

White hot energy began to pool in my palms and I concentrated on that, allowing it to build up and build up until the mass of energy cause my fingers to straighten out abruptly as the infection in Cadmus’ leg moved from his body into my fingers.  My hands buzzed with the exertion and I squeezed my eyes closed. 

I felt the negative energy that had built up in Cadmus’ wound exit his body and enter my own.  Once in mine, it disintegrated because it couldn’t last long in an immortal.  It took several minutes, but finally, it was gone and I collapsed in a heap on top of Cadmus.  My energy was drained from the process and I found it difficult to even move.

“Are you alright?” Cadmus asked, pulling me up by my arms to look at me.  “What did you do? Are you okay?”

I looked into his face and found genuine concern there.  I nodded.

“I’m fine.  I just…I think I healed your leg.  That’s what I tried to do anyway.  Try and walk on it.”

He looked at me uncertainly, but then stared at his leg in wonder.  “There’s no pain,” he marveled.  “For the first time in weeks, there is no pain.”

He gingerly stood up and then bounced up and down on his ankles.  “Harmonia, I don’t know what you did… but thank you.  Thank you!  How will I ever repay you?”

My energy was completely depleted, but I found the strength to stand up and stare incredulously at him.  “Repay me? I injured you in the first place. It’s the least I could do.”

My shaking legs betrayed me and I collapsed back onto the bench. I trembled as I sat and Cadmus instantly sank down to sit next to me again.

“What can I do?” he asked worriedly.  “Should I get your mother?”

I shook my head quickly.  “Heavens, no.  Trouble will find me soon enough. I don’t need to hunt it down.”

“Will they punish you?” Cadmus asked me seriously.  He stared into my eyes and I found that he made it difficult to think.

“I don’t know,” I answered honestly.  I reached up with shaking hands to push my hair out of my eyes.  That had been the first time I had ever healed someone.  It was exhilarating at the same time as being exhausting.   Cadmus stared at my shaking hand.

“What can I do?” he asked firmly.  “There must be something.”

I looked around and found the nearest Lotus tree.  “Could you hand me a Lotus blossom?”

Cadmus immediately lunged to his feet and picked the biggest blue lotus blossom that he could reach and handed it to me.  I promptly took a bite.  Lotus blossoms were manna to the gods.  Along with nectar, they kept us young and strong.  They grew in abundance here in Olympus.

Cadmus watched me eat with interest, keeping his dark eyes trained on my face.

“Your color is returning,” he finally announced.  “Are you feeling better?”

I nodded.  “Yes. I think so.  Thank you.”

“Thank
you,
” he replied.  “You probably saved my leg.”

He stared into my face for a while longer and finally spoke again.  “You have the most unique color of eyes I’ve ever seen…such a bright green.”

I nodded.  “So I hear.”

“You are very, very beautiful,” he added softly.  “I’m sure you hear that a lot, as well.”

I shook my head.  “No. I don’t have many suitors.  Most are afraid of my father.”

Cadmus grinned cockily.  “I’m not.”

“No?” I asked, somewhat shocked.

He shook his head.  “No,” he confirmed. 

One more beat passed and he continued.

“Can I ask you a question?” he asked, then continued before I’d answered.  “Would you be offended if I kissed you?”

My breath froze on my lips and I could feel my heart pounding in my chest and beating in my fingertips.

Ba-bump.

Ba-bump.

Ba-bump.

“No,” I finally managed to eke out. 

“No, it won’t offend you?” Cadmus asked. 

“No, it won’t offend me,” I answered.

Bending his head, Cadmus lowered his lips to mine and my entire world exploded in this one moment.  He tasted like honey and man and his chest was rock-hard beneath my fingers.  I knew, right here and now, that I would never want to kiss another man again.  He finally pulled away and I felt dizzy as I caught my breath. 

“Cadmus?” I asked. 

“Yes?” he looked at me quizzically. 

“Do it again.”

Chapter Three

I spent every waking thought day-dreaming of Cadmus.  When I slept, my dreams were about him too.  I was consumed with wanting to be with him- every minute, every hour, every day.

I hadn’t been punished for healing his leg.  Zeus had been in a pleasant mood that day and so when he found out, he simply laughed at my spirit. 

“My granddaughter takes after me,” he had announced and then toasted my parents.  You never knew with him. He ran hot and cold as so many of the Olympians did. 

So far, Cadmus and I had kept our romance a secret, although it was difficult since my mother (and any other god) could read my mind.  I had to carefully conceal my thoughts and to date, I’d been successful.  But successfully keeping the secret didn’t change the sad fact that Cadmus and I weren’t supposed to be together. 

My father would have a fit if he found me with the servant.  My mother would be more understanding, but she would feel obligated to tell my father.  And in truth, I didn’t see what the issue was.  Since the beginning of time, gods had fallen in love with mortals.   Zeus himself had fallen in love with more of them than I could even count.  I truly believed that it simply boiled down to the fact that I held a special place in my father’s heart.  It was doubtful that he would ever consider anyone good enough to be with me.  I sighed at the thought.

I plucked another blossom from a rosebush, careful not to stick my finger on a thorn.  I had been out here, idly trying to find the perfect bouquet of fresh flowers for my bedroom for over an hour now.  I was simply trying to do anything that would occupy my mind and my time so that I wasn’t dwelling on thoughts of Cadmus, my Phoenician prince.  But it was a futile effort.  Every thought that I had was of him.

Sighing, I knelt and sniffed at a perfect white rose.   And then startled when a deep voice came from behind me.

“Little Harmonia,” a voice drawled.  I spun, dropping my basket of flowers.  Hades, the god of the Underworld, leaned on a nearby lotus tree. 

I stared at him in confusion.  “Hades.  What are you doing here?  Shouldn’t you be—“

“In the Underworld?” he interrupted.  I nodded, watching him.  Hades was a very interesting god.  He carried with him an edge of danger, an air of mystery.  He was startlingly handsome with his dark hair, olive complexion and dark eyes.  His teeth flashed white as he smiled at me. 

“And what brings you out here to the edge of the palace grounds, little Harmonia?”

His voice was like honey, smooth and sweet.  As he talked, he walked closer to me.  And the closer he came, the more I wanted to be near him.  It startled me, this magnetism.  I had heard of it before, how Hades had an impossibly strong charisma.  He drew everyone to him, either with their permission or against their will.  It didn’t matter.  Something about him made you think that you wanted him.  You felt like you wanted anything that he wanted.  It was a dangerous position to be in and I took a step back.

“Why are you here?” I asked quietly.  I glanced around, but I knew I was alone.  I meant to be alone.  It was my purpose in coming out this far.  I wanted to escape my mother, to be where my thoughts were private so I could think on Cadmus without interruption.

“Cadmus,” Hades mused, reading my thoughts quickly.  “Your father’s slave.  Interesting that you would think of him in such a way, Harmonia.  Scandalous!”

“It’s not scandalous,” I replied quickly.  “Not at all.  He’s simply a mortal.”

“A mortal indentured to your father,” Hades amended.  “How do you know that he returns your feelings, Harmonia?  As a servant, perhaps he just wants to use you to gain an early release from his bond.”

A horrible feeling grew in my chest as Hades’ words.  I hadn’t even considered that. 

“Of course you haven’t,” Hades answered my thought.  “You’re still so young, so fresh.  So beautiful.” 

He trailed his slender hand along my cheek and I sucked in my breath at his nearness.  He had such a dark energy, such a strong energy.  It was difficult to resist even though my mind knew it to be a trick.  I didn’t want him.  I didn’t want anything about him.  But my body thought that I did.

Hades smiled. 

“I’m not so bad, am I?” he asked softly, stepping closer.  “I mean you no harm, Harmonia.  I am simply here to speak with my brother, Zeus. I decided to walk by way of the scenic route and happened upon you.  Completely by happenstance, I assure you.  But what a happy accident.”

“If you say so,” I mumbled. 

“Oh, I do.”

“What do you want from me?” I asked uncertainly.  It was well known that Hades didn’t bother with a person unless he wanted something from them.  He threw his handsome head back and laughed. 

“I want nothing from you, Harmonia,” he answered with a smile.  “What could I possibly want with the goddess of peace?”

“I don’t know,” I whispered. 

Whenever Hades was near, the air itself became heavy and thick, like a premonition almost. I found that I wanted to flee, but that I was afraid.  I didn’t want him behind me.  I wanted him to remain in front of me where I could see him. 

“Oh, Harmonia.  You are such a delight,” Hades smiled again, calmly and confidently.  “I am not here to hurt you.  I assure you.  You must believe me.  I just came upon you and happened to overhear your thoughts.  But now I feel that I must offer you a warning.”

I raised an eyebrow. “A warning?”

Hades nodded.  “A warning.  My brother Zeus is not what he seems to be.  I sense that he will somehow use you to his benefit.  I see Cadmus in your future, but I see great distress, great sadness.  Use caution when moving forward on this path, young one.”

My heart quickened in my chest at the tone of the dark lord’s words. 

“Great sadness?  Of what kind?”

“Sadness is sadness, Harmonia. It matters not what kind.  And I do not know. I cannot see the specifics.”

“But you definitely see Cadmus with me?” I was both relieved and elated at the thought.

Hades studied me.  “Yes.  But you are missing the point.  I see that you will suffer.  You might want to try and avoid that.”

“By not being with Cadmus?”  I couldn’t believe I was asking such a question of Hades.  As if he would give me an honest answer.  He had to have some sort of angle here, I just didn’t know what it was.

He nodded.  “If it were me, I might choose to avoid Cadmus.  In doing so, you might avoid the heartache that I see in front of you.  But I doubt you will do so.  The heart wants what the heart wants, does it not?”

With that, Hades winked and continued on his way.  He stopped only to pick up my flowers and replace them into the basket, handing it to me.  As his fingers brushed mine, he leaned in and kissed my cheek smoothly.

“You’ve been warned.”

And he was gone.

Chapter Four

“He’s a mortal, sister.”  Ortera, my half-sister, stared at me in consternation from across my bedroom. 

She stood in the light of the window and I marveled, as I always did, at her muscled form.  She was as thick as a tree trunk, but there was not an ounce of fat on her.  She was a lean, efficient warrior, a status that served her well as a queen of the Amazons.

“So?” I raised an eyebrow as I slipped on a clean white shift.  Belting it at the waist with a jeweled golden belt, I returned her gaze.  “Yes, Cadmus is a mortal.  I don’t see the issue.”

Ortrera snorted.  “That’s because you can’t see anything clearly at all right now.  All you can see is
him
.  He will break your heart, you know.  He will disappoint you eventually. They always do.”

“Honestly, Ortrera,” I sighed.  “I do not understand why you dislike men so.  To my knowledge, you’ve never been affronted by one.”

“Of course I haven’t!” Ortrera’s eyes flashed.  “Or it would have been the last thing that particular man ever did.” 

I sighed again.  Ortrera’s very personality was fierce, much like our father’s.  But unlike Ares, she never allowed herself the chance to relax or laugh.  It was as though she felt she had to prove to the world that she was as capable as any man.  It had to be exhausting.

“And father knows.  I can tell,” Ortrera added.  “He’s watching, so you had best be careful.”

“I haven’t done anything!” I protested.  “Cadmus and I have only been alone a few times.  We’ve only kissed.  A crime has not been committed, I assure you.”

“Tell that to our father,” Ortrera muttered.  “I’m sure he would just love to hear it.”

Picking up a silver hairbrush, I combed my dark hair and wrapped it into a coil at my nape. 

“You never said what you needed, sister,” I reminded her gently. She had arrived before I was even out of bed and all she had done was talk badly about men, mortals and Cadmus.  “I know you must have had a purpose in visiting me so early.”