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“Hey, at least I don’t snore,” Ariadne joked back with Helen.
“You both snore,” Claire chimed in, grinning. “It’s like rooming with a couple of dudes.”
They all got a laugh in at Helen’s and Ariadne’s expense. Helen was struck by how happy they all were just to be together—safe and comfortable in each other’s company as if they’d hung out like this a thousand times. But none of them could ignore why they were there for very long, and the easy feeling quickly dissipated.
“So what’ve you found out about the gods, Matt?” Orion asked, sensitive as always to the subtle shift in mood. “Have you heard anything?”
“Yeah. There have been some . . . attacks,” Matt said reluctantly.
“What does that mean?” Claire asked.
Matt tapped his iPad and started flicking through newspaper headlines, and everyone crowded together.
“Two days ago, a woman in New York City was found on top of the Empire State Building gored to death by what looked like giant talons. And this morning, a girl’s body was found trampled to death by a horse on a Cape Cod beach. Both women had been raped before they were killed.”
Hector took the iPad and looked at it. “This is a tabloid headline,” he said dubiously. “It says that the witnesses in New York claimed to have seen a woman getting carried off by a giant bird.”
“Eagle. It was an eagle,” Helen said softly, repressing a shiver. Everyone stared at her for a moment, expecting an explanation. “It’s just a hunch, but I’ve been having strange dreams and weird flashes, I guess you’d call them,” she admitted with a shrug, trying to downplay the full-blown memories she’d been experiencing until she understood them a bit better.
“When did they start?” Lucas asked, concerned. Helen scrunched up her face, trying to think back to the first time she saw him and the other guys in armor.
“Halloween,” she said, realizing it as she spoke. She looked at Orion. “Remember how I forgot everything for a second there after touching the water from that river?” she asked. She avoided saying the name of the River Lethe almost superstitiously, just in case it made her forget everything all over again.
“Uh-huh,” Orion replied with a small smile. Helen smiled nervously back at him, remembering how they had jumped on each other as soon as they forgot who they were. By the warm look he was giving her, Helen was sure he was remembering that as well. Then his face darkened. “You couldn’t even remember your own name for a bit. That was bad.”
“Well, when I did remember again, it was like there was too much in my head or something.” Helen sighed with frustration. “I can’t explain it yet, but now I’m getting all these weird images when I dream.”
“And one of them was of an eagle?” Matt asked.
“Yeah. Why? What are you thinking, Matt?” Helen asked, gesturing to his iPad and the articles about the murdered girls.
“I know this looks like tabloid nonsense, but Greek myths talk about women being carried off by gods disguised as animals all the time. I think the eagle is Zeus and the horse is Poseidon,” Matt said.
“Matt, I can turn into a horse,” Orion said with an apologetic look. “Everyone in the House of Athens can.”
“Get the hell out,” Helen said, whirling on Orion with wide eyes.
“What? I can turn into a dolphin,” Jason said like he was telling them the time.
“Shut up!” Claire and Helen shrieked in unison. Jason laughed.
“Some Scions can shape-shift into their god’s animal avatars,” Hector said, giving Helen a weird look. “How can you not know this?”
“Nobody told me, and I’ve never been able to do it!” Helen shouted back. She rounded on Orion again. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“It’s not like it’s useful or anything,” he said with a shrug. “Think about it. How many horses do you see trotting around town these days?”
“Yeah.” Jason chuckled. “And then when you change back, you’re buck naked. Try explaining that one. It’s crazy fun to be an animal, don’t get me wrong, but it’s rarely practical.”
“Yeah, but . . . ,” Claire sputtered. “Oh my god!”
“This is so unfair. I get all the miserable talents like descending and having freaky dreams, and you get to turn into a dolphin.” Helen pouted, throwing a pillow at Jason.
“Okay, okay,” Matt interjected, holding up his hands to get everyone back on target. “But how many Scions can turn into an eagle large enough to carry off a woman?”
“None.” Hector cocked his head to the side. “Okay, Matt. What do you think is going on?”
“I think the gods are doing exactly what they used to do before they were locked up on Olympus—running around and raping mortal women. But this time, they aren’t leaving their victims alive.”
