Page 51 of Bonds of Hercules
“Do you understand what we’re saying?” Augustus asked, his voice velvet wrapped in steel.
Praise?
Cruel?
“Carissima,” Kharon said with sinister gentleness. “Tell us that you understand.” Tendons strained across his tattooed neck. “Now.” He pinned me with his gaze.
My mouth went dry.
Shadows clung to Kharon’s sculpted face as his expressionturned sinister. A vein bulged in his forehead as he pointed at me. “TELL ME RIGHT NOW THAT YOU—”
“I GET IT!” I yelled back, desperate for him to shut up.
Augustus stepped toward me. “Oh, Alexis,” he whispered darkly. “I’m so glad you comprehend what’s happening here. That’s … mygoodgirl.”
Kharon seethed and Augustus smiled.
My nervous system shut down.
Acute full body paralysis, all systems failure.
There was no cure.
Never, in all of history, had a woman ever been so unequivocally screwed.
7
THE LOVER
PATRO
Augustus and Kharon stepped out of the locker room, Alexis sandwiched between them with flushed cheeks and dilated pupils.
Chthonic crowns gleamed atop their heads.
Emotions choked me.
Alexis wasmymentee.
Iwas the one who’d housed her, clothed her, and guided her through the crucible. She was my charge. I’d helped her first. I’d introduced her to Sparta.
The SGC was this August, only a few months away, and since Alexis was still technically our mentee, her performance would in some ways be a reflection of us. We should be the ones by her side, preparing her.
Sure, in the beginning we’d been slightly hostile, me especially. And yes, she wasnothingcompared to Achilles. But there was still something between us—a nascent spark—potential energy.
Alexis wiped at her face, flashing her hideously expensive diamond.
It was a kick to the teeth.
A reminder.
I was standing before three Spartan royals, and I was … nothing.
A nobody.
Heart hammering painfully in my throat, I tasted the past.
Patroclus, your human heritage makes you weak. Stop struggling. The Gorgons are going to fix you. They’ll break the bitch out of you.
