Sacrifice (21 page)

Evan acted as if he really wanted me to overrule Victor’s demand, or was that what he wanted me to think. I looked him in the eyes and knew that something was brewing behind them. He was still blocking me from finding out what it was. Maybe he was afraid of what might happen if he trained her. Why did I doubt him? It was obvious that Victor was setting him up. I’d never doubted Evan before. Not until last night.             

“No, I think it’s a good idea. Evangelia could benefit immensely from working with the fastest teleporter of all the Ischero.” I forced the corners of my mouth to curl up.

What the hell was I doing? Why was I throwing her right into his arms? I’d much rather throw her into a wall.

Those aching and desirous feelings that Zeus embedded in all of us were inevitable and nearly impossible to overcome. Would Evan succumb to them or would he fight for me? Maybe this was the only way to test him. It was wrong, but I had to see how well Evan would fair against the desires that even I was struggling to control.

“Alright, since Lia’s instruction has been decided, we can talk about what you wanted to talk about.” Evan said.

He took my hand and led me back to the sofa. His touch was soothing as always but for some reason, the idea of him shortening her name made their relationship seem more intimate, which made it extremely hard for me to focus on his caress. I felt like chunks of me were breaking away from my soul.

“My parents’ hearts are gone.” My voice cracked.

“What do you mean by
gone
?” Evan’s eyes widened. “You are the only one who has access to them, right?”

“Me and the gods,” I said and laid my head against the velvet sofa.

“Only one god comes to mind.” Evan said with a sneer.

“Hermes.” I declared, knowing the God of Thieves reputation as well as Evan did.

“He’s the only thief, Delia. Only the Gods know what he has done with them. I doubt he’s taken them to Mt. Olympus, darling.” Evan meant the exact opposite – the Underworld, where Hermes was a constant messenger.

“How I miss the council of elders right now.” I said, somberly. “I hope that my parents haven’t joined the ranks of the Underworld as well.”

“I do too.” Evan agreed. “But we can handle this.”

“I was just visited by Athena.”

“What did the Goddess of Wisdom have to add?”

“Another riddle – one about accepting an invitation which will reveal the workings of someone. I think she meant Hermes.” I didn’t bother mentioning what she had said about Victor or Ares. It didn’t make any sense to since I wasn’t certain of what she had meant by it.

“Hmm,” Evan murmured. “What else did she say? Did she leave any clues this time?”

“Well, she told me that I would see my parents again. She also said that I mustn’t forget their love for me, although they may not remember.”

“That doesn’t sound very promising. If they have been taken to the Underworld, how will we go about avenging them and the elders? And are we supposed to?” Evan asked.

“What do you mean by that? Of course, we’re supposed to. We can’t let Hades win this war.” I jumped up from the sofa and stared at Evan.

“I know, but how can we fight Hades when we can’t enter the Underworld?” I sighed, deeply, and tried to get my thoughts straight. Evan was right.

“That’s what I have to figure out,” I said.

We weren’t allowed to enter Hades’ realm, even if we could find it. It wasn’t as if we could jump into a roadster or on a train and head down there. Only one God could lead us in, and he may be the one who stole my most treasured possession.

Twenty-Four
-
Evander

Strategy

Evangelia arrived for her first lesson on teleporting and I felt my mouth become dry. I was stunned by her raw beauty and wanted more than anything to block what I was feeling.

She’s just a girl. I love Delia, I told myself. This was just infatuation, nothing more. I’ve never felt any physical or emotional pull towards anyone other than Delia. This wasn’t even a feeling, just the gods trying to gain control. I’d rather be damned to the blazing cobalt fires of Hades’ realm than to let the gods have control of my heart. Some choices were meant to be made without intrusion.

“The first thing you must remember is that you must project yourself where you are destined to be. See yourself where you want to go and you’ll be there.” We were standing about three feet apart, but I could smell her – orchids and lime. Her aura was intoxicating.

“I understand.” Evangelia nodded.

“Take a deep breath and harness your power. When I teleport I pull the ocean’s body of water at my finger tips and picture myself where I want to be.”

Evangelia stood very still in the center of my ballroom. My skin began to heat up as her temperature rose. The flames engulfed her body from within, and then outwardly. After a few seconds, the flames fizzled out. The dark misty smoke thinned out and finally dissipated.

“I’m still here. I didn’t go anywhere, did I?” She asked with her head cocked to one side.

“You won’t go anywhere unless you concentrate really hard. Let your mind
see
where you want to go.”

“I want to be back in my room, at home.” Evangelia eyes pierced right through to the core of my soul and I was afraid that she could sense what I was feeling – desire for her.

“Alright,” I said, and cleared my throat. “I will follow you. Try again.” I nodded.

Evangelia was gone. A split second later, she re-appeared and slammed right into me. I grabbed her by her arms. Her body was pressed up against mine. Her chest rose and fell rapidly and I trembled from the heat rising within me. I didn’t know how much longer I could conceal the trembling. I clenched my jaw and fought not to give in, but her crystal-like, gray eyes drew me closer. I felt a desperate need to hold her close to me for a few seconds longer. I released her and stepped away, rather abruptly. The awkwardness was like a blanket wrapped tight enough to smother us.

The lure of Evangelia’s aura was like waking up to a deliciously ripened nectar after starving for years. Everything about her woke something up in me that I didn’t know was asleep. Those clear, crystal eyes, that creamy, milky skin – which I was dying to touch, her jet-black, wavy hair – which found a way to brush against my face, and the scent of her  – wild orchids and fresh lime,  left me yearning to wake up to her every morning.

Here I was trying to teach her the basics in teleporting, which she was failing miserably at, and all I could think about was kissing her. What am I doing? I’m engaged. Get a grip!

“I’m sorry. I don’t know why I can’t do this,” Lia said, and started biting her lower lip.

“It’s alright, really,” I said. “It takes a bit of practice. You’ll get it.” I couldn’t help gazing into her eyes. My body was warming up. It felt like she was pulling my entire body towards her.

Damn it. Stop and get a grip!

“I feel like a complete idiot.” She looked away from me and down at her hands.

She was shaking, trembling as I was. Perhaps, maybe… she was feeling what I was feeling. How could I be sure? In a flash, an image of Delia – beautiful, powerful, warrior empress – my fiancée,  appeared in my mind. Suddenly, Delia faded from my psyche as Lia gazed up at me, fluttering seductively long, jet-black lashes.

“I want to try again.” She took two steps to the center of my ballroom, and away from me. I nodded and said nothing.

At this point, I didn’t want her to teleport. I just wanted to be near her, and look at her. She was stunning in a way that caught your breath.

“Alright, I take a deep breath and…,” Lia’s voice trailed off, and she glanced at me. Oh my gods, those eyes are my weakness. She caught me staring and all I could muster was a terse nod. Her gaze alone left me speechless. 

The bright reddish-yellow flames ignited all over her body and her arms flailed about. She disappeared for a couple seconds and then reappeared again. This time when she landed, the impact was direct heat from her body being pinned against mine. I had a choice here. Either I put her back down on the floor immediately, or I press my lips to hers. Ah, the choice was getting harder to make.

Delia, the love of my life. Delia, my entire world.

I placed Lia on her feet.

Victor was a bastard at heart. His strategy was eating me alive and he knew it would. He knew exactly what I was going through in Lia’s presence. He wanted me to feel what he had been feeling all along in Delia’s presence. Victor knew I’d be able to differentiate what I felt for Lia from what I felt for Delia. The feelings were worlds apart. I loved Delia. I knew that I always would.

Lia? Dear gods, Evangelia, I sighed.

I hungered for her. I could no longer breathe or think straight unless I was with her. I thought about her, relentlessly, since first setting eyes on her in the forest and now I never wanted to be away from her, not for a moment.

“Oh my gods, why can’t I do this?” Lia kept her eyes closed, her arms to her sides, and wriggled her hands nervously.

“Evangelia, we’re in your bedroom!” I exclaimed.

“Oh my gods!” She turned toward me and started jumping up and down. “I did it!”

“I never doubted you, Evangelia.” I couldn’t stop my mouth from breaking into a huge grin.

Then she stopped jumping, took a step closer, and did the most incredible thing. She took my hand in hers.

“Please, call me Lia.” She looked deeply into my eyes.

“Lia.” I whispered.

“You have the most beautiful blue eyes I’ve ever seen,” Lia said. She parted her lips and smiled, timidly.

I continued gazing into her eyes, letting them swallow me up, saying nothing. I was powerless in her aura – like being set on fire and not wanting to extinguish it with my tidal wave.

“Evander, I– I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have… said that.”

“Don’t be sorry.” I reached up and touched her cheek. Her skin was as soft as a petal.

“But I am. I mean, I know that you and Delia are engaged and…,” There was a long pause following her words as I fought not to kiss her.

“I want to kiss you, Lia.” I whispered, lost in her beauty.

“Yes, please.” She whispered back.

Suddenly, in my peripheral, I saw a shadow move. I turned and saw that Victor was observing us from the hallway. Our eyes met and a wicked smirk crept over his face. He mouthed the words ‘check mate’, and then he turned and disappeared.

I let go of Lia’s hand, realizing the enormous mistake I had made. She let go, reluctantly.

“It’s me who should apologize. I’m sorry. I
am
engaged and I, well, I shouldn’t have…,”

“No, it’s my fault.” Lia turned away from me and busied herself with fiddling with the belt at the hip of her dress.

“Let’s forget all about it and start over fresh tomorrow.”

“No, I can’t forget this… feeling. I’m so sorry.” Lia said as the tears rolled slowly down her face.”

Unexpectedly, Lia disappeared before I had a chance to stop her. I was left standing alone in her bedroom.

Wait a minute. She knew how to teleport. Had she been faking not knowing how to?

Then it dawned on me.

Lia kept landing in my arms each time she had tried to teleport because in my arms is where she wanted to be.

Twenty-Five
-
Victor

Meant To Be

The moment I saw Evander and Lia, practically in an embrace, I knew that the plan to split Delia and Evander was working. Even while I lay there in the woods bleeding to death, I knew Ares’ idea would work. Right there at that moment, as my life hung in the balance and I choked on my own blood, I knew the stage was set. I called for Lia and she sensed where I was. Of course she came. She thought I was the emperor – just a small tidbit of information I had left out. The plan was too get mauled and rescued in time. The strategy was a major risk since I could have died, but if successful, the plan would guarantee my strengths being restored.

I was afraid for Lia when she arrived in the woods. The last thing I wanted was for her to get hurt. Arguing with Ares about using her had proved to be futile. He said it was the only way. I doubted him, yet I couldn’t have hoped for a better outcome. At first, I felt ashamed for sacrificing Lia. It had been a wrong and a gamble, but sacrificing her had proved to be successful. I thank the gods for that.

I could never let Delia know what I had done, not ever. If she were to find out, that would be the end of us. Even though the number one reason I had done it was so that we would be together, finally. Delia was level headed. Maybe she would understand that I did it for us. We deserved to be together, not living in constant pain. The gods saw to it that we were all in constant pain.

Evander thought he had his emotions in control, but he hadn’t been exposed to his betrothed until now. Now he was imprisoned with the raw desire for Lia and soon he’ll discover that no one, other than Lia, will ever satisfy the insatiable appetite he has for her. Moreover, poor Lia didn’t know what hit her. Now that she’s seen Evander and felt the unbreakable attraction, she will always find a way to be near him to alleviate the pain.

I just wished that Delia didn’t have to be hurt in the process. I grabbed my chest and rubbed it, brutally. I needed to calm the blaze that imploded within me. I needed to be with her now and only one thing prevented that.

Delia genuinely loved Evander. She had always believed that she was in love with him – only because she had nothing to compare it to, until now.

She would grow to love me more. That
was
a certainty. I could end her anguish with a simple kiss if only she would let me. I’m her cure and she’s mine. She’s my other half. She may love Evander, but I’m the one she’ll spend the rest of her life yearning for.

When I arrived at her building this morning, my heart heated up and blistered the whole elevator ride up to her apartment. It does that when I’m near her and I can’t touch her. Delia appeared to be waiting for me. She was sitting at her desk when I walked into the library, exactly where I sensed she was. The moment I walked into the large room, she spun around in her swivel chair and jumped up. Her brows were set in a wrinkle, her eyes were narrowed, her lips were taut, and her hands were balled up into fists. If we weren’t on such good terms, I would have braced myself for her bolt. Even though she looked rather pissed off, I couldn’t resist wanting to kiss her.