Page 43 of Of Monsters and Mazes

The fucking irony that he thought I’d do anything for Jericho if I didn’t have to. It was easy to have so many opinions when you’re an untouchable, uncatchable fox from the heavens. He had no tie to the King outside of causing him havoc, and leaving me to deal with the aftermath. He thought I’d chosen Jericho over him all those years ago, when he’d put me in an impossible position, and never even considered that I might have other reasons.

But devil forbid he ever get my side of the story. No, just hold a grudge and whine about it. He and Butterfly did deserve each other.

“It matters because you’re the only friend I have in this place.”

I dragged my index finger and my thumb along the cuts across my cheeks, and immediately I recalled that single, misguided declaration she’d shouted at me so carelessly.

She thought I was her friend?

Why? What had I done to give her the impression I was trustworthy? What part of this violent, dark mess of a journey led her to believe I cared about her well-being? I melted Aegaeon because I hated the Centimanes. I saved her from Rai because Rai was a bitch who didn’t deserve to be the one to kill her. I only gave her hints to get her through because watching her struggle was giving me a literal headache. And that dream?

I tensed my fingers, and lashed out to rip a vine from the deep jade walls. I crushed the small limb of the flesh-eating ivy in my fist, and I listened to the maze squeal like a stuck pig. I hoped Rai felt that one.

Let’s see whose side Butterfly is on next time the Minotaur hunts her down. Alessi couldn’t stand up to Rai. His only skill was running away like the cowardly kit he was. They would both be fucked if and when they reached the Red Sector. They’d be lucky to make it through the Cronus in Orange.

I didn’t care anyway. I hoped they got stopped. I’d gotten way too involved this year, and I was over it. I shouldn’t have marked her. I still didn’t even know how that had happened, but who knew what kind of tomfoolery Jericho had been sneaking past the gods. If I had known my marks would take, I never would have delved into her mind at all.

That’s what I get for letting my emotions get caught up in a stupid human dream.

I was still huffing internally when I was forced to attention by a violent thrust against my shoulder. I was shoved into the wall with a thud that reverberated through my bones, and I swallowed down bile that practically knocked itself up my throat. Vines that would normally swallow me whole recoiled from the hit.

Or more specifically, they recoiled from the man who dealt it.

Jericho’s strong fist gripped my scarf, and I sucked in a quick breath before he could tighten enough to block off the airway. I held my composure best I could as he cornered me with his body.

“Why are you alone, Theron?” He growled, but he didn’t release my scarf. I had to wait for permission to be allowed to breathe or to speak. “Don’t you have a job to do?” He loosened his grip just enough to let me exhale once and inhale halfway. That was his version of granting permission to respond.

I wasn’t scared of him, but I knew better than anyone what he was capable of, at least when it came to the two of us. I tried to keep up the illusion of steady composure, but he could always sense my heartbeat, and that internal traitor never lied. His ability to read that unsteady pounding was innate, and he often took advantage of that fact. I hated how well he knew how to play me.

“She’s with Alessi. He’ll keep her safe. I don’t need to be there anymore.” I managed once he loosened a slip more.

“Alessi.” He moved his hold from my scarf to my neck, and he forced my chin upwards, putting painful and threatening pressure over my pulse. “Alessi doesn’t work for me, if you weren’t aware.”

What? Really? And here I thought the Olympus spy was your loyal subordinate. Tell me fucking more.

My sarcasm was thick even in my mind. Obviously, I knew that. I knew more about the Teumessian Fox than I needed or wanted to.

“What does it matter? He’ll get her through the maze until he gets bored, which will probably be in about twenty-three minutes, and then she’ll be in so deep, with no support from anyone, that she’ll be at your lap dog’s complete mercy. Or hell, you could get off your ass and deal with a tribute yourself for once. It’s completely within your power to decide if she gets any further or not. You win your stupid game either way, so why don’t you leave me out of it?”

Jericho narrowed his eyes at me. My heart skipped and my lungs hitched at that intensity, and I hated that he had that influence over me.

“Because I don’t trust Alessi.” Join the club. “And quite frankly, I’m not sure I trust you.”

“What have I done to make you mistrust me, exactly?” I feigned ignorance, though I knew very well the answer. “I’ve done everything you asked. I don’t normally accompany the tributes this far, so if anything, I went above and beyond for you. The girl would have been dead the moment she entered the Blue Sector otherwise.”

“You’re aware that Aegaeon is completely under my command, are you not?” He glared as he tightened his grip on my throat again. “His orders were the same as yours. There was no reason you needed to murder him.”

“Ha!” The laugh was involuntary. A titan was, at best, vaguely obedient. “If that was him acting on the same orders you gave me, then we have a very different interpretation of ‘keep the girl alive, but make sure she doesn’t make the deadline.’ The fucking monstrosity was going to tear her into pieces. I was the one following orders by stopping him from disobeying you, your royal fucking highness.” I spat in his face, and he leveraged my scarf to bang me against the wall. My horns scraped against the stone, sending a shiver down my spine at the sound of it, while the sensation shot a nauseating jolt through my gut.

“Do you really think I haven’t watched every one of your cute little exchanges with her?” He raised a brow, and I’d have to admit I didn’t have a good rebuttal. Other than the fact that ‘cute’ was absolutely not a word I would ever use to describe anything I was entertaining with SEE-luh.

“What exchanges?” I tried instead, moving the goal post away from his sightline. “You mean exchanges like severely traumatizing her with her own nightmares? Or the one where I let her hit her head into ever low hanging false wall? Or the one where I kept her still long enough to get Aegaeon’s attention in the first place? What about the one where I left her alone with the heartless fox, who will undoubtedly lead her astray? I’ve kept her alive. I’ve stalled her and gotten her in danger. I’ve done everything you’ve asked of me to a fucking T. So you’re welcome, but I’m done.”

This time, Jericho was the one laughing. “You mean the nightmare that you admitted you softened and rearranged, because you didn’t want to go too far and hurt her soft little heart? The maze of false walls, where you taught her what to look for, so she could advance to the next section? The ice segment, where you held her hand to keep her warm, steadied her when she stumbled, then cushioned her fall, because you liked having her on top of you? Or were you referring to the Centimane you murdered to protect her, and the way you swam with her to the surface because she couldn’t do it herself?” He yanked on my scarf again and twisted it tight. “Or did you mean the way you literally carried her to safety when you encountered Rai, cauterized her wounds, and rescued her from the vines?” He leaned in close, until I could feel the heat of his breath on my neck. He followed the line of my carotid artery with the tip of his nose, then stopped only when he reached my ear. I swallowed thickly. “And now you left her in the care of a man who you’ve been playing cat and mouse with for several thousand years, pretending he wasn’t the safest way to defy me. How convenient that you can now pretend her successful navigation was all just Alessi doing as he pleases, being a thorn in my side, just as he always is.” His frustration only grew with every word. “Do you think I’m blind? Or just oblivious?”

He didn’t want me to answer that question.

“That’s just your interpretation.” I turned my head to the side, trying to make what little distance I could. “Why are you so paranoid, Jericho? You’re the King of Devils. You claimed your place on the throne indisputably. Are you this scared you’re somehow going to lose at your own game? To a little girl with a temper even worse than yours?”