I glared at Rhadamanthys.
“No need to worry about him, boys,” she said. “He’s here for his own reasons.”
“I came seeking counsel,” Rhadamanthys said. “I’m as surprised to see you as you are to see me.”
I grabbed a beignet and tore off a piece. “Long story short, I killed Cardinal Azevedo. He gave me a Judas Coin, which forced me to kill Dionysus. Since he was a Director, the Pantheon wants my blood. I’m looking for a way to end this that doesn’t require me to die.”
“It’s not just the Pantheon that wants him dead,” Rafael supplied. “The Church is hunting both of us as well.”
“The Church and the Pantheon working together.” The Oracle leaned back in her chair. “Now that’s wild.”
“Not as wild as who’s behind it,” I continued.
"Baron Constantine," Rafael said.
I shrugged. “Also known as Judge Minos. Same guy, apparently.”
Rhadamanthys froze.
"He told us Zeus controls both institutions," I added. "That they're two arms of the same body. That he's been consolidating power for decades."
The coffee mug shattered in Rhadamanthys's hand. Coffee and blood spread across the table, mixing with powdered sugar in a mess of white and red and dark liquid.
“Minos is Constantine?” Rhadamanthys’ voice was almost a growl.
"It would seem so," the Oracle said gently.
Rhadamanthys stood. The chair scraped loud against worn linoleum. His hands were shaking. Actually shaking. Blood dripped from his palm to the floor in a steady rhythm.
"The oath is absolute." His voice was hollow. "Judges protect the organization. We uphold the law. We don't use it as a weapon." He looked down at his bleeding hand. "Without that, we're nothing but animals with titles."
"The oath you took was to a system already corrupted," the Oracle said. Her voice stayed calm, gentle even. "Doesn't make the oath less real. Just means you were lied to from the start."
Rhadamanthys turned away from the table and stared out the window at rain falling in the dark. His shoulders were rigid, every line of his body straining against collapse.
The Oracle gave him space and turned her attention back to me.
I reached for another beignet and bit into it, almost groaning at the sweetness. The Oracle watched me for a long moment. Then her expression shifted.
"Dionysus saved you." Her voice changed. Harder now. Sharp. "Took you in when you were feral and half-dead. Fed you. Clothed you. Gave you purpose."
The beignet lodged in my throat, refusing to go down.
"And yet you killed him." She leaned forward, eyes boring into mine. "All those years of protection, of training, of being treated like a son. You ended it in a night club because someone handed you a coin."
My eyes stayed fixed on the table.
"People have refused before," she continued, relentless. "Died rather than betray everything they believed in. But you pulled the trigger.You chose survival over loyalty. Over love." She leaned forward. “What kind of man kills his savior?”
Rafael's chair scraped back as he shot to his feet. "Enough. Lorenzo did what he had to do. You'd have done the same. You don't get to judge him."
The Oracle sat back and smiled.
He stood his ground, shoulders rigid, still facing the Oracle. Completely fearless.
Nobody had ever defended me like that before. And fuck, that made me want him more than any of the violence ever had.
Rhadamanthys made a quiet sound came from near the window. He held his bleeding hand pressed against the glass, head bowed. "Ade..."
