Page 8 of The Chosen Son

“Ooh, yeah, I’ve heard of that,” he said, nodding fervently as he finally allowed me entrance into his pristine white Porsche.

“What can I say? Humans are weird.” For a being who’d been on this earth as long as he had, he was terribly naïve about humans.

I sat silently in the car, letting him carry the conversation, while I considered what had happened to me. Was it just because I’d been spending too much time around Phobos? Or maybe it had nothing to do with him at all, and maybe I was the problem.

Either way, as soon as we got back to the mansion, I loaded up a plate with pizza and headed toward my wing of the house. Phobos called after me, “Hey! I thought we could watch some reruns of Golden Girls. What do you think?”

“You know, I’m awfully tired…”

“Oh.” Phobos’s eager expression fell. “Right. Of course, I understand. Maybe tomorrow.”

The smile I gave him felt too tight for my face, and I wondered if my skin would split. “Sure. It’s a date.”

There was no harm in making plans for tomorrow, when I wasn’t even sure I would live through the night.

Chapter 4

Deimos

I stood deep inthe shadows of the building’s impressive marble pillars, allowing night to keep me hidden from sight. Across the street, city hall was lit up like a carnival tent, and all the politicians were the clowns.

There was some charity gala going on tonight, and all the city’s biggest hotshots were here wearing their best suits and gowns. It was so hypocritical, them raising money for the poor and needy while they themselves were wrapped in a veritable fortune in fashion and jewelry. In reality, this whole thing was a farce, yet another excuse for a metaphorical circle jerk where they all made each other feel better about what absolute fuck-wads they were.

“Smug, rich assholes,” I muttered, flipping up the collar of my black trench coat. This was the perfect opportunity to ambush Loki when he least expected it. He would be so busy playing Mr. Mayor, smiling for the cameras, shaking hands, and making nice with the public that he wouldn’t even notice me until I was melting his face off.

A series of limos had begun to pull up out front of city hall about half an hour ago. So far, I’d seen my old friend Anubis Ahket and his mate and co-star, Star Rueng. And try as I might, I couldn’tnotsee Apollo, fellow god and so-called “movie star.” He waved and smiled like the attention whore he was. I saw a few of the gods present scan their surroundings as if they sensed me, but they couldn’t be too obvious about it, what with the crowd of looky-loos, so they all made their appearance for the photographers before heading inside.

Then, of course, the deputy mayor pulled up. Azazel King, the red-eyed devil. I snorted. While I didn’t have anything against the guy specifically, being Loki’s righthand man put him in my bad books by default.

Eventually the limos tapered off, and the crowd outside grew restless. Was that it? Was everyone inside? I sure hoped not, or I’d dolled myself up for no reason.

I waited so long that I’d started to wonder if Loki wasn’t going to put in an appearance tonight, but finally, a sleek black limo with tinted windows pulled up at the curb. I swore I could feel him in there, his oily, backstabbing aura polluting my air. My lip curled back, and I began to take my barriers down brick by brick. The power rose up inside me in a surge, as if it could sense that its purpose had nearly come to fruition.

It happened like it was in slo-mo, as someone stepped forward and opened the limo door and Loki climbed out. I held my breath, silently thanking the goddess Apate for making this moment possible. I knew I shouldn’t get ahead of myself, counting my chickens before they were hatched and all that, but I was so close I could taste it, and I savored the taste of victory, of sated revenge.

It was time.

I let our city’s dearest mayor get comfortable. He waved for a few cameras, but he seemed eager to get inside.That’s right, I thought, sending soothing vibes in his general direction,go have a drink. Relax, have fun. I’ll see you in a few minutes.

And then I slipped off my trench coat and dropped it behind the pillar out of sight, straightened my tuxedo lapels, and I glided across the street. It was a simple thing to blend in with the crowd outside. No one even gave me a second glance. With my sight set on the doors, I walked forward like I belonged here. Just ten feet away… five… Somewhere in the background I heard a car idling at the curb, but it wasn’t important. I had only one focus.

Until someone in the crowd behind me gave an excited squeal. “Oh my gods! I can’t believe it’s him!”

And against my better judgment and the tiny voice in my head telling me to ignore it, I turned to see who it was.

Stepping out of the limo was a face I was far too familiar with. I stared into those same eyes every morning in the mirror, our mother’s eyes. I froze just three feet from the door to city hall, stunned beyond comprehension. “Phobos?” Well, shit. I couldn’t just walk in there and kill Loki now. My brother would know it was me.

Phobos paused and turned to look up the steps at me, because of course he heard me. His first instinct was to smile, the asshole, like he was genuinely happy to see me, and I nearly found myself smiling in return. It bubbled inside me, this lightness that only my twin brother could make me feel, the one person who knew me better than I knew myself. But then he blinked and it was gone, the bright beaming smile shifting into something else. It had hints of disappointment, pity, and shame. It was the same smile Dad gave me at every family dinner, which was just one of many reasons why I’d been ducking Harmonia’s invitations.

“Deimos,” he whispered, narrowing his eyes just slightly.

Then, without looking away, he took one step to the side and made room for someone else to slide out of the limo. Phobos offered his hand, but whoever it was pretended he hadn’t seen it, brushing past him, and I decided that even though I hadn’t yet laid eyes on the man, I liked him immensely.

But then I did look at him, and I liked him a whole lot more. Daaaaamn. How did my brother get himself such a delectable date?

The guy was young, and I didn’t just mean that in a non-pantheon way. He was young even by mortal standards, with this whole fresh-faced-optimism vibe going for him. When we locked eyes, though, I saw that wasn’t entirely accurate. Those dark eyes of his were not optimistic, and nor were they young. This stud had seen his share of shit. He was what people meant when they said someone had an old soul, and that only seemed to make him all the more attractive.

“Phobos! Over here! Can I get your autograph?” a young woman screamed, waving wildly to get his attention. It was disgusting the way she fawned over my brother, as if he were some kind of celebrity. My brother’s smile was blinding, and he took the time to sign his name and chat with her for a moment, though I could feel his eyes still on me.

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