Page 5 of Monsters of Mayhem

“She is my ex-wife.” I said the words firmly and clearly so I would not have to repeat them again, so she would understand what I was saying.

“Your wife?” She let out a low chuckle. “Aren’t you a man of mystery.”

Ratchet chuckled with her. I rubbed my five o’clock shadow. It felt like days since I’d been able to shave and I knew I looked haggard. Even demigods got tired sometimes.

“She needs protection.” I insisted.

“From what?” Vina queried.

“This is the part that gets a little tricky,” I said. “There’s a monster on this plane who is trying to get a hold of these two rings.” I opened up my hand and held out the two rings to her. “When they were looking for the rings, they discovered her and now one of their ways of getting to me is to try to get her. If they capture her, I’ll do whatever they say to get her back.”

“You love her?” Vina said, although it wasn’t really a question.

“All I’m saying is I’ll do whatever it takes to protect her,” I insisted. “She’s innocent.”

“What are you going to do with the rings?” Vina cocked her head to the side.

“They’re safest in the DGC’s vault I believe.” I motioned the rings toward her.

She stared at them, her eyes narrowing. “I can only assume they are made of adamantine, the metal of Typhon.”

“You guessed right.” I affirmed.

“The metal of the rings can open the rifts and let all the monsters come into the earth plane?” Vina asked coldly.

I gave her a brief nod. She knew her magic.

Vina chewed on her lower lip for a moment. “Leave the rings with me. They’ll be protected. What happens to your woman is really not my concern.”

“It’ll be your concern if she gets taken and I go AWOL to get her back. I’d rather see this entire earth overrun with monsters than to see a hair of her head get hurt,”

Vina looked at me thoughtfully. “Where is she now?”

“In Alameda with satyrs guarding her.”

“Don’t you think she’ll be safe enough with them?” Vina asked. “I mean, she’s in the witch’s stronghold.”

I began to lose my temper. “God dammit Vina, call them,” I said. I could feel the chaos rising inside me. “How many times have I come to the Demigod Corporation and asked for anything? Even one damn thing? Never. I’ve never come here and asked you for anything. The one time I do you give me pushback.”

Vina looked at me blandly. “You asked for two things.”

“I asked you to help me protect someone I care about.” I insisted.

“You asked me to hold the rings of adamantine” Vina pointed out.

“If you want me to solve this monster problem at all, you’re going to need to help me protect Caroline.” I gave her an ultimatum we both knew I couldn’t uphold.

Vina was about to answer when the phone rang on her desk. I stared at it. It wasn’t a real phone; it was a conch shell, the kind nereids used to communicate. My heart raced in my chest. Had something happened?

She picked up the shell and held it to her ear. “Okay. Understood,” she said. “Yeah. I’ve got him right here. I’ll send them over.”

“What is it?” I asked, the familiar tingling of every cell in my body telling me there was a monster loose.

“There’s a monster infiltration. They’ve broken through in the north where the ice giants live.” Vina said coldly.

“We are on our way.” I gave her a brief nod. This was my job. “Just watch the rings and send some of your people to protect Caroline. That’s all I ask.”

Chapter 4

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