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“It’ll just be the two of us soon,” Ares murmurs. “We can go to the beach… and you can wear absolutely nothing.”
The model giggles, shooting me a searing gaze. Why she has apparently decided that I’m her enemy, I exactly don’t know.
We close in on the shore. Now I can make out the Valencia orange trees dotting the shore and even a person strolling down the shore with an armful of boxes.
As we approach a long dock, I notice a familiar looking large white sailing vessel docked nearby. My heartbeat picks up. It’s the same ferry boat that I took months ago with Hades at my side.
Sure enough, Ares slides the speedboat into a slip very near the ferry. My heart is in my throat; I’m at an advantage here because I have seen the surrounding docks and ferry terminal area.
I close my eyes and yawn, feigning tiredness. Ares sees my little show and smirks as he strides over to untie my hands and ankles.
“Now we’re all nice and docile, just like I prefer my women. Maybe if ye weren’t pregnant with my brother’s seed, I’d keep ye for a few weeks.”
He slides his hand onto my thigh and wiggles his eyebrows, teasing me. I turn my head away to show my repulsion, tasting bile again.
He grins as he fastens cuffs to my wrists. “I’ll take that as a no.”
I don’t respond. Instead I press my lips into a firm line and continue looking away toward the horizon. My right hand tingles like crazy, throbbing to indicate that I will be achy from confinement later. I stretch my hand as best as I can, aware that I need to be ready to launch into action at any moment.
Ares helps the blonde out of the boat. I tense, knowing I’m next. He turns and lumbers over to me, jerking me to my feet. I play at docility, pretending to be cowed as he leads me to the dock.
Ares eyes me. “My plan will be the best for everyone involved. You’ll see. You might not warm up to Angus right away. But eventually, you’ll settle in. Besides, can you imagine having a child with a man as hated and hunted as Hades?”
Blood suffuses my cheeks, but I simply don’t answer. His question stays with me, though. Because I can imagine a life of fleeing from one place to the next, a target on my back.
That’s no way to raise a child.
Ares steps up on to the dock first and then reaches down, grabbing at my tied hands. I let out a squeal of surprise and pain as my right arm refuses to move upward easily. My shoulder has been frozen since my accident and I haven’t been able to lift my right arm past shoulder height since.
Ares doesn’t stop. He just continues to lift me until my whole body is on the dock, stiffened with the searing pain he’s just unleashed on my poor body. My eyes tear up and I cry out.
Ares drops me on my feet with absolutely no ceremony. “Shut up.”
He turns, looking down the dock toward the ferry terminal. The pretty blonde model is halfway skipping up toward where people spill out of the ferry’s private walkway, shooting him occasional pouty glances over her shoulder. Ares stands still for a moment, wobbling a little as he stands near the edge of the dock.
All around us, there is dark water, swirling and lapping. I don’t even put that much thought in my actions. Lunging forward, I give Ares a hard shove. He flails for a second before tipping off the dock, heading for the water with a big splash.
I take off down the dock, running for my life. In my head, I am thinking about finding a policeman or a security guard, anyone who will take one look at me and realize I’m in trouble.
But when I get up to the ferry terminal, there is no one even who even vaguely resembles an authority figure. There are a cluster of young girls taking selfies near the ferry. And over by the gift shop, an older couple compare greeting cards.
Everyone else has left the terminal and headed out into the city just beyond the doors.
I run through the terminal, headed for the exit. Glancing behind me, I am astounded to see recently-drenched Ares pounding up the dock and entering the terminal.
Shit! I sprint out the doors, bursting out onto the street. It’s not terribly crowded right now, just the usual very groups of tourists putting their bags into cabs. I make a beeline for one taxi in particular that waits patiently, its doors open while the driver and passenger load the luggage in the trunk. I get in, slamming the door, massively out of breath.
Looking back, I see Ares burst out of the doors, looking around wildly for where I have gone. I duck down but he spots me easily, storming toward me.
My heart hammers against the wall of my chest. I look around desperately for anything that will hold him off, even for a little while until the guards can be called.
My eyes fall on the front passenger seat, where the driver has been cutting out articles from the local newspaper. And right beside it are the sharp-looking scissors.
I reach forward and grab them, arming myself. Ares flings open the door and I drive them down over my head, slicing at his arms.
He makes a startled sound, drawing back and looking at me like I’m somehow the crazy one. “Are ye serious, Persephone?”
“Stay back!” I shout, wielding the scissors again. “I’m serious, Ares!”
