Page 14 of Artemis' Bow
“Nothing, did you find anything on the other temples?” I clear my throat and change the subject.
“Nothing definitive but there was a sanctuary in Sparta and another temple near the coast of Attica. They could both be potential locations.” Jayden scrubs a hand over his face.
“I don’t think it would be in Sparta. They played that game already,” Raven says.
“What do you mean?” I ask.
“Ares’ temple was in Sparta. That’s where we got his item of power and the brainwashed students.”
“You don’t think they’ll use the same location twice?” Jayden asks.
“I wouldn’t. That would be tactically stupid. We cleared the monsters on that path already. It would be too easy on us.”
“You have a point. I don’t think Hera wants this to be easy on us. By now she knows we’re coming because we always do. We should cross Sparta off the list.” My shoulders slump.
“Hey, at least we’re narrowing down the locations.” Jayden squeezes my knee. “You heard Hermes; Artemis was loved by the ancient Greeks.”
“I don’t like this. Why can’t we find more information from this book?”
“Well, you haven’t finished reading the passage on Artemis yet, right?” Raven asks. “Maybe there is more and you’re just not there yet.”
“You’re right. I just don’t have a good feeling about this. I’m second-guessing myself and it sucks.” I sigh.
“Your gut is usually correct, but in this case, it won’t hurt to get all the facts,” Jayden says.
“Okay,” I grunt. “I’ll go back to the book.”
Jayden and Raven share a glance when they think I’m not paying attention, but I ignore it. I’m off and have been for a while now. If I can’t get my act together before we have to set off on our next mission, what will happen along the way? I could get us all killed, but I can’t seem to pull myself out of this slump.
Other men have attempted to steal Artemis’ virtue of chastity and failed. The river god Alpheus is one such man. His love, on the other hand, was unrequited by the goddess. This enraged the river god and he went ahead with plans to kidnap her. The goddess saw the god coming and tricked him so he wouldn’t find her.
“I have a possible kidnapper but it’s a bit far-fetched that this river god has been pining for her for millennia.” I show them the passage about Alpheus.
“I’ve never even heard of that god before. He can’t be powerful enough to be able to kidnap and restrain even a weakened Artemis.” Raven shakes her head.
“Unless…” Jayden says. “He’s using her own power against her.”
“Do you think that is possible? How would he use her power against her, though?”
“The bow. He would have to have the bow to weaken her that much,” Raven says. “It might just be the perfect deception. The revelation of this as a possibility doesn’t matter much, however, if we don’t know where he’s taken her.”
“We have two possible locations. I haven’t found much in this history book about the temple near Attica and we crossed Sparta off the list entirely. We have some clues but nothing concrete.” Jayden snaps the book closed.
“We’ve got absolutely nothing useful. This sucks.” I flop back on the couch.
“It’s getting late, I think.” Jayden eyes the window and the sun shining outside with a grimace. “We need to rest. We never know when we’ll need to leave.”
Raven stands and shares a knowing glance with Jayden before walking out the door and closing it behind her.
“What’s really going on?” Jayden asks.
“Nothing. It’s just all the stuff with Artemis going missing and feeling defeated. We’re no closer to finding her or her bow.” I turn to the window.
The sun still shining through it only worsens my mood. The gods really don’t give a fuck who gets hurt in their petty arguments. Vindictive assholes throw a tantrum, and the humans and demigods are the ones who pay the price.
“That’s not it, and we both know it.” Jayden reaches for me.
I dodge his grip and his eyebrows arch. Something like hurt passes through his gaze so fast I almost miss it. The last thing I want to do is hurt him but that’s all I do lately. I don’t know how to be with him when my brain keeps telling me I’ll ultimately have to make a choice.
