Page 32 of Salt & Blood

She was still trembling with apprehension and disbelief when Evander gently guided her toward the shadowed witch. Shoving her emotions aside, Mona took a deep breath and followed after the witch, descending further into the darkened jungle.

CONVINCING

CYRUS

Prue’s expressionof betrayal and heartbreak flashed across Cyrus’s mind as he sat in his chambers, sipping the despicable Elysium wine Apollo had given him.

He couldn’t shake that sight from his thoughts. It was the ultimate treachery, to turn against his wife and side with her enemy—her wretched father who had caused her family so much suffering.

He closed his eyes, allowing the sickeningly sweet nectar to slide down his throat with another gulp. His skull throbbed from the strain of having to play his role for Apollo so perfectly.

He needed to convince Apollo to trust him. The only way to do that had been to allow Hyperion to enter his palace.

Hyperion had been the least dangerous of the Titans, though he was still lethal in his own way. It was just much more subtle. He seemed the best option out of all the Titans to bring back.

But first, Cyrus had needed to convince Lagos to break open Tartarus for him to retrieve Hyperion. Only an overseer of Tartarus had access, and Cyrus, in his human form, no longer had the power to do it himself.

“You wish for me to bring a Titan here?” Lagos had asked, his voice strangely calm. “Why?”

“Apollo will find a way,” Cyrus had said, sitting forward in his chair and rubbing his temples with his fingers. “With or without our help, he’ll do it somehow. You know he will.”

“That’s not a good enough reason.”

Cyrus sighed, looking up at Lagos, who stood in front of him, arms folded over his chest, his animal eyes betraying no emotion.

“I need Apollo to trust me,” Cyrus whispered. “And this is the only way.”

“You need to tell Prue.”

“I can’t,” Cyrus said through gritted teeth. “Apollo loves to gloat. And he will lord this over her once she finds out. Prue’s emotions are so easy to read. If sheknowswhere my true allegiance lies, Apollo will be able to read it on her face. Her surprise, her shock, will not be convincing enough for him.”

Lagos was silent, his face stoic as ever. He was the complete opposite of Prue. He had a bull’s head, which made him impossible to read. He simply blinked once at Cyrus.

“I serve Prue,” Lagos said slowly. “If I do this, I will be betraying her trust.”

“You are the only overseer left,” Cyrus said, his voice on the verge of pleading. “You are the only one who can do this. And I would much preferyoudo it than some Elysium lackey of Apollo’s.”

Lagos released a low huff of disapproval, and Cyrus knew the demon was envisioning some fool from Elysium tampering with the magic of the Underworld and causing even more problems with their ignorance.

“What is your plan?” Lagos asked quietly. “How do you intend to betray Apollo?”

“Apollo has promised me a way to get my magic back.”

Lagos snorted. “And you believe him?”

“No,” Cyrus said at once, although that wasn’t entirely true. “But if thereisa way, only someone like Apollo would be able to find it.”

“So, that’s your plan? Trust this god, who lies to everyone, that he will grant you your powers back, making you strong enough to defeat him?” Doubt filled Lagos’s voice.

Cyrus resisted the urge to cringe. Gods, when he put it like that, it did seem like a stupid plan. “It’s not the only reason I’m doing this.”

“Oh, good. Because for a moment there, I was worried you were trying to convince me to betray Prue all so you could get your magic back.”

Cyrus winced. He was a horrible, terrible person. He knew this. But there were sound reasons for his plan. He needed Lagos to see that. “If Apollo trusts me, he will tell me more of his plan. For instance, I know he intends to eventually releaseallof the Titans.”

Lagos grew very still. “Are you serious?”

“Yes. He thinks it’s the only way to stop Pandora’s magic.”

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