Sweet Legacy (Sweet Venom) (3 page)

“How?” I repeat.

“Greer, I—” His gray eyes shadow over. “It’s complicated.”

“I have an IQ of 154. Try me.”

He takes a deep breath and looks me in the eye. “I . . . don’t know how to.”

“There was nothing there.” Grace’s cheerful whisper cuts through the darkness, but not the tension. “Guess I was hearing things.”

If she was trying to leave us alone to talk, she didn’t give it enough time.

Thane pulls away to a less intimate distance. The space between us feels like miles.

Grace crawls back to my side.

“Here,” she says, pressing a water bottle into my hand. “You should probably stay hydrated.”

I cast one more look at Thane, who is staring toward the cave entrance, lost in thought. We will finish this conversation later.

“Thanks,” I tell Grace. I twist the cap off and take a drink.

The water is cool and crisp and I feel it hit my stomach, spreading out in an icy wave. If my stomach is this empty, hours must have passed since I forced down a protein bar before we opened the portal. This is time wasted. We didn’t venture into the abyss to sit around in a cave recuperating.

“We need to get moving.” I shift, testing the pain. It’s a little better. My body isn’t one hundred percent, but my mind knows we should be doing something.

“
You
need to rest for a little longer,” Grace replies.

“I’m fine,” I insist.

“
Besides
,” she says, giving me a scolding look, “Gretchen and Nick are coming back here when they’re done scouting. We have to stay put.”

I am not a particularly patient person. Sitting around waiting goes against my nature. But a small part of me is relieved—I am nowhere near full strength yet. Besides, we can’t do this alone. We need to remain where Gretchen and Nick left us until they return. Which means that, for now, we wait.

My questions for Thane wait, too. In the dim glow of the flashlight, I watch him while he pretends not to watch me.

CHAPTER 3
G
RETCHEN

E
ven with my eyes fully adjusted to the practically nonexistent light of the abyss, I can barely make out our surroundings. Black, black, and more black, with a greenish tint, just in case it wasn’t revolting enough. Good to see nothing’s changed since last time.

The beastie ambush was a surprise. I’d like to know how they knew we were coming and where we’d come out—especially since we didn’t even know we were coming until a few hours ago.

Luckily, my sisters held their own, and the boys turned out to be more useful than I expected. Not that I’d admit it to them, but I’m glad they came.

“Looks like the coast is clear,” I say when I’m pretty sure none of the monsters have stuck around for a second try. The last thing we need is a repeat performance now that Greer is injured and we’re down by one while she recovers.

If Thane hadn’t acted quickly with the antidote, we’d be down by one permanently.

I turn to head back to where we left him and my sisters—I don’t like the idea of them being out of my sight in this place—and run smack into Nick.

His hands wrap around my arms and he holds me in place.

“Gretchen . . .” His dark blue eyes narrow in pain. “I had nothing to do with that attack. I was just as surprised as you were.”

I watch him for a moment, checking for some reaction in his face and for some flicker of doubt in my gut. His face remains completely steady, and my gut is more worried about getting back to my sisters than the boy in front of me.

Question answered.

Finally, I nod. “Yeah, I know.”

He flashes me a cocky grin, like he knew I’d believe him. I see the relief below the surface, though. He’s worried that I’m still not convinced he’s on our side. To be honest, I’m worried too, a little—worried that maybe I’m putting my feelings first. In any case, I’ve decided to trust him, and my gut agrees. Decision made.

Without another word, we turn and start back for the cave where we left the rest of our group. We haven’t gone five steps when I hear something. I raise a hand, wordlessly telling Nick to stop. He freezes behind me, and I tune my ears to listen. Vast silence, punctuated by moans and groans from the depths of the abyss, nothing more. Maybe I only imagined—

Then I hear it—a soft shuffle. Quiet footsteps on the cave floor. More than one set—at least five that I can count. The swish of something dragging across the ground.

Whatever it is, it’s coming toward us from the other side of the rock formation just ahead.

I place my hand around Nick’s wrist and—without waiting for him to respond—pull him after me. Seeking a better strategic position, I move up, over onto the nearest boulder. He follows right behind, and I release my grip so I can move stealthily.

Belly-crawling across the smooth surface, I inch toward the edge of the rock, toward the sound that could be a million things. A million dark and nasties.

Whatever it is, I have to draw it away from my sisters.

As I lean forward out over the edge to get a better view, I hold my breath. Surprise is a crucial advantage. Whatever is coming doesn’t know we’re here yet, and I don’t want to give away our position until I’m ready.

I peer down, but I can’t see anything in the inky space below. The shufflings stop—all but one. Then I hear a loud
“Oof!”
followed by a vehement
“Shh!”

“Sorry,” a small voice says. “Not know we stopping.”

“Shhhh!”
Louder, and more irritated.

“If you no want Sillus—”

A loud smack, followed by an angry “Shut.
Up
.”

Then a muffled “Sorry” that sounds more like “Rawry.”

I smile. Leaning out as far over the edge as possible, I can barely make out several shapes below in the faint glow. One gleams in the green light, golden, metallic.

The golden maiden.

I hadn’t realized how tense I was at the prospect of another battle this soon after the first until now, when the relief washes over me. The creatures below are no threat. For now, the fighting can wait.

I turn to grin at Nick, throwing a playful punch at his shoulder. Pushing to my feet, I scramble back down the way we came, leaving him to catch up.

Back on ground level, I have to smother a laugh when I see one of the onyx guards struggling to hold a palm over Sillus’s little furry mouth—or, I should say, his
big
furry mouth. The group of seven creatures is trying so hard to be quiet—and they’re failing miserably. As I step out in front of them, I say, “You guys suck at stealth.”

“Aaaack!”

“Shhhhh! For the love of Zeus, Sillus,” the golden maiden blurts. “Do you want the entire Nychtian Army to hear you?”

The little monkey monster peers out from under one of the pegasus’s silver-gray wings. “Sorry. Sillus say sorry. How many times?”

The golden maiden rolls her shiny metal eyes at him. Huffing out a tight breath, she turns to face me as Nick steps to my side. “Gretchen, we—” She blinks. “Wait—
are
you Gretchen?”

“The one and only.”

She smiles. “And this must be your friend.” She looks at Nick, cool and appraising. “The one you came here to rescue last time.”

“Hi,” he says, stepping forward and offering her his hand. “I’m Nick.”

She takes his hand between hers and gives him a squeeze. Then, turning to me, she says, “But you are not alone. We had heard—”

“Three huntress come through,” Sillus interrupts. “All three, in Abyssos!”

This time everyone in the party—including me and Nick—shushes him. His eyes widen. We all glare at him. Then he seems to finally get the message and draws his fingers across his mouth like a zipper.

“We were hoping to find you,” the golden maiden says. “We heard you and your sisters had come through a portal. There is news you need to know.”

That sounds ominous.

“Fine,” I say. “But it’s not safe out here. You’re not the only ones who know we’re here. Let’s get my sisters to your cave. Then we can talk.”

“I’m afraid that is impossible.” She shakes her golden head. “The cave is no longer safe.”

“Army find,” Sillus says, his voice quiet for once. “Break everything.”

One look at the golden maiden and I don’t have to ask why. The sad look in her eyes says it all. The monster bosses down here must have found out she and her friends helped me rescue Nick. They got punished. Anger rolls through me. If I ever see that dog-headed freak they call the boss again, he’ll wish I’d never been born.

I don’t like it when people get hurt for helping me.

“I’m sorry,” I say. “I should never have—”

“You are not at fault,” she insists. “You did not wield the ax.”

The cave had been an oasis of light in the dark abyss, a home for creatures who never hurt anyone, for the beasts who taught me that not all monsters are bad and that the abyss is worth saving. The image of the Nychtian Army taking an ax to the makeshift shelters and furniture makes my blood boil. I’ll make them pay, for that and so many other things.

“We have another place,” the golden maiden says. “It is not so . . . commodious. But it will serve.”

“Sounds fine.” I give her a grateful smile. “Let’s get my sisters safely there. Then you can tell us your news. “

“Yes,” the golden maiden says, “and you can tell us of yours.”

I study her. She always seems to know everything—or at least more than me. Maybe she already knows about our plans to travel to Olympus to rescue the gorgons. Maybe she knows, but maybe she wants me to tell her just the same.

She’s a cryptic one.

“So, Sillus,” I say as we start walking, draping an arm over the little guy’s shoulder, “how did you get back here? Last I knew, you were running wild in San Francisco.”

He shakes his furry head. “Is long story, huntress.
Long
story.”

I laugh but then quickly bite my lips as the golden maiden turns to scowl at my outburst.

“I’m sure it is,” I whisper to the little monkey. “You’ll have to tell me when we have time to talk freely.”

My smile fades. As we head back to the cave where Grace, Greer, and Thane are hiding, I wonder what this news is. I hope it’s either good or useful, because we could use some of that.

The golden maiden hadn’t exaggerated about their new location. Smaller, colder, and with only a small magical fire in the corner to chase away the shadows, the new cave smells like mildew and dirty gym socks. There must have been a phoenix living here before they moved in.

But my sisters are here, and it’s safe, and right now that’s my top priority.

Greer looks much better than when I left her—she’d been pale and passed out in Thane’s arms—and Grace seems very relieved that our sister is recovering. I’m sure we’re both wondering just how Thane knew to use hellebore to cure the scratch of a Keres demon. Right now he’s standing sentry over Greer, and I want her rest undisturbed, so I’ll save my questions for later.

I cross the cave to a bench—really just a long, flat rock—where the golden maiden sits, staring into the fire. They’re pretty much without amenities here, and what passes for furniture is whatever pieces of stone suit the job. And it’s all my fault.

There’s no time for guilt. Greer is almost well enough to move on, and we have a big mission ahead of us. And first, we need to hear what news our Abyssian friends have to share.

I sit down next to the golden maiden on the bench. “Is it anything I want to hear?”

She inclines her head as she lays a golden hand on my thigh.

That’s what I was afraid of.

“One of our spies”—she glances pointedly at Sillus—“overheard the boss talking about a mission to Panogia.”

I should have known it was something about the pet-store mash-up who runs things down here. First he kidnaps my guy, and then he busts up my friends’ stuff, not to mention the big battle back home that finally convinced Greer that some things are more important than a snooty tea.

“We already know about that. We faced his army earlier today,” I reply, remembering the crazy scene in Greer’s school gym. It feels like days, not hours, since we got caught between the Nychtian Army from the abyss and the Arms of Olympus. “We took care of them.”

Between the three of us opening a giant sucking portal and Grace autoporting us the hell out of Dodge, we’d come away from the skirmish unhurt. And all the beasties had been sent straight home.

“Not the army,” she explains. “He has sent assassins.”

“No. After us? Why didn’t he just kill me when he had the chance? When I was in his office.”

Zeus’s bounty and the reward of freedom from the monster realm must have gotten to be too great a temptation for boss man. My muscles tense. I should have taken care of that flipper-fisted moron the last time I was here. I might not have made it out of the abyss alive, but he’d be off our backs.

“You are correct.” The golden maiden shakes her head with a quiet squeak. “He did not send assassins after you.”

“Boss no kill huntress,” Sillus adds. “Need huntress. Three.”

Oh, yeah. Can’t forget that.

Sillus is right. Killing us doesn’t make sense for the beastie side of the war. The boss is on the side that wants us to open the door so monsterkind can run free in the streets of the human world. Killing us first would definitely prevent that from happening. They want to wait to kill us after.

My eyes narrow. “Who?”

She hesitates just briefly. “We cannot be certain,” she says, “but he seeks the woman who produced the Key Generation.”

“What does that mean?”

“We believe,” she says, her voice soft, “he means to kill your mother.”

Grace gasps.

I turn my head and find her standing right behind me. I hadn’t even realized she was listening.

“How did they find her?” she asks.

“That I do not know,” the golden maiden replies. “I know only that they have sent several teams to your realm. They believe she holds the key to finding you, to controlling your powers.”

“Why send assassins?” I ask.

“The boss believes that if she is dead”—the golden maiden swallows hard—“your powers will die with her.”

“No,” Grace whispers.

I grab her hand.

“Is that even possible?” I ask.

The golden maiden shrugs. “We do not know. The lore concerning your line, your legacy, has been hidden for so long. I suppose it is conceivable, but we do not have enough information.”

“It doesn’t matter if they will or not,” Grace says, her voice tight with emotion. “If the boss believes it, then our mother is in danger. We can’t let them kill her. Not now that we know for certain she’s still alive. Not now that we can find her.”

I can see the pain in her silver eyes, and it hurts me to see her hurt.