Page 64 of The Shadow Gods

I wished I could hear what he was saying. It would be important, whatever it was. It would tell me why I was looking at this. And why I was stuck here and why they were here.

Approaching cautiously, Paris held out a hand to Hector.Oh god.Paris's face.

Dark purple circled his eyes, like he'd been punched. The blue stood out so bright against the dark color. But his expression.

Or lack of one.

This was a dead man walking. He placed his hand on Hector's shoulder.

“What are you saying?” I asked.

“Punished...” Paris's voice came through like a suddenly clear radio frequency. “Because of us.”

“Push the blame onto them.” Pollux moved toward the brothers and my breath caught. The man who stood in front of meglowed.Pollux was handsome, yes, but this version of him was otherworldly. His tan skin caught every facet of light like a diamond, and his green eyes were hypnotizing.

“Says the son of Zeus. Of course, they aren't to blame, according to you. Your father whisks you to safety the moment your life is in danger. You have everything you want.” Achilles went from standing to squatting, face buried in his hands. “You have...nothing to lose.”

Their words were becoming clearer, though every so often, their voices became so quiet I'd miss something.

“I have lost as much as you!” Pollux suddenly yelled. The wall between us vibrated so hard my teeth clacked together. “I lost the one person I cared about most in this world, and he was taken by my father. It was a game to him, to the King of Gods. What will you give me for your brother? Everything!” With each word, the light around Pollux burned brighter and brighter until I had to turn my head or be blinded. “I would have given him everything.”

Pain.It dripped from every word and every look.

I couldn't bear it.

Finally, Orestes's voice, quieter than all of them but somehow clearer, reached my ears. “We must deserve this, if this is our fate. We've offended the gods even when we followed their commands. Accept it.” I gasped as his face came into focus. An ugly, ragged wound split the skin on his face. The edges gaped, and blood seeped from the side to trail down his skin. It had to be painful, but he gave no sign of discomfort.

“I won't,” Hector replied. He crossed his arms. “I won't let my son's death be for nothing. I won't let my father's and mother's deaths be for nothing. Or my sister.Mine.They brought us back to life—for what? What is there to live for?”

I couldn't breathe. My vision blurred, and I quickly swiped the tears from my eyes. This was before they'd made the seal. Before they'd trapped the gods.

This was the agony they'd suffered.

“I wish I could make it better,” I whispered. I wanted to hold them so badly my arms ached, and this stupid. Fucking. Wall. Was between us. “Goddamnit.”

Rearing back, I struck it with my fist. As my hand connected, I waited for the pain, but there was none. My hand went right through it.

A loud snap echoed around me as the wall began to splinter. Hector whirled toward me, blue eyes wide, as it disintegrated into nothingness.

“What?” His lips formed the word a second before I was pulled away. I held out a hand to him, but he didn't reach for me.

The lights flickered. I glanced up quickly, then back to Hector. Our gazes locked.

He saw me. Narrowing his eyes, he took a step toward me. The lights flickered again, and in that split-second of darkness, his hand wrapped around my wrist, tugging me forward.

“Where were you?” His lips pressed against my temple, arms embracing me.

Pulling back, I ran my eyes over his face. The scars were gone. “I've been here the whole time.” Trailing my fingers over his arm, I searched for them, but there was nothing. Having seen Orestes, I now knew how badly they'd have to be injured for there to be a scar.

I stepped away to study each of them. These were the men I knew. The ones from my time. Not the ones I saw seconds ago. Holding out a hand to Orestes, I waited for him to come to me. When he did, I traced the line of the white scar over his face.

“I saw you,” I said. He didn't flinch from my touch, but the skin near his eyes tightened with discomfort. “You were arguing.” I peered over my shoulder, but the place I had been was gone. Tall marble walls took its place, and above us, blue sky. “Where are we?”

“The temple of Apollo,” Pollux replied. “I came here after the war. It's also known as the Temple of the—”

“Twins,” I finished. “Because it was built for Artemis and Apollo, and they were twins.”

He nodded. “I came here to beg for my brother after Zeus gave him immortality.”