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“My dad. Flowers. That night, my mom tried to tell me something about my dad and the flowers we used to sell.” I bounded up after him. “Our shop was famous. We were hired for celebrity weddings, and we had at least three break-ins a year from rival flower sellers because ours didn’t wilt.
“Months and years later, our flowers were still as fresh and lovely as the day they were picked from the bush. Mom told everyone it was because of a special solution she and Dad invented. They put it in the water. But that wasn’t it,” I breathed. “It was my dad. He could do something special with flowers, couldn’t he?”
He stopped beside a rock and knelt down. I blinked at the smile he gave me.
“What?”
“Nothing, it’s just... Ten minutes ago, you were walking away saying none of this could be true, and now you’re wondering what kind of demigod your dad was. Feels good, doesn’t it?” he asked. “To know the truth. To know you were right all along.”
I blushed stupidly. Alexander had an absurdly beautiful smile that brightened his face and dimpled his right cheek. It was the kind of smile you were blessed to see and desperate to see again. “It’s still hard to believe, but you stop thinking you know everything about the world when a three-headed dog and half a woman glued onto a snake break into your home.
“As crazy as all this is, it’s also the only thing that’s made sense in two years, so... yeah.” I dropped down next to him, smiling back. “It does feel good.”
“Son of Chloris,” he said, crumpling my brow. “The goddess of flowers and spring. She gave your father his gift.”
I took that in. The truth always was there for me to see. Cut flowers that never wilted or died. Of course a thing wasn’t possible by science or serums, or so many rival sellers wouldn’t have tried to steal our plants and seeds. But then, they and I weren’t looking for a godly explanation.
“Does that mean I’m a daughter of Chloris?” I asked. “Like my dad?”
Alexander shook his head. “I mean, you could be, but it doesn’t work like that. The god or goddess chooses the vessel for their essence, not genetics.”
“Chooses the vessel for their essence? What does that mean?”
“There’s a lot I have to tell you.” Reaching into his pocket, Alexander withdrew a small vial of green liquid. I watched, transfixed, as he poured the contents on a small boulder. “But don’t worry, I will. Everything.”
He smiled at me again, and I blushed like an idiot again.
I cleared my throat. “Is this what you came here for? To pour juice on a rock?”
He laughed. “It’s a potion created by a daughter of Hecate. Goddess of magic. And this is a founding stone.” Alexander was so patient and kind, explaining things to me. It was hard to remember the last time someone had been either of those things with me—kind or patient. “A founding stone anchors a magical barrier.”
“Are you saying there’s magic in your world?”
“There’s everything in my world, Aella.” Rising up, he held out a hand for me. I gasped, liking the feel of his calluses against my soft and dry hands more than I’d admit. “Let me show you.”
“Now? We’re going right now? To Olympia... now?” My eyes darted around. “We can’t go right now. I don’t have clothes packed or—or—underwear.”Why in the hell are you talking about your underwear!“I don’t even have a toothbrush.”
“What are you wittering on about, ridiculous child! Your mother has waited two years for you, and you delay her for a toothbrush? Go with him now.”
Alexander cracked a grin. “I’m sorry, but I have to return. If I’m gone any longer, they’ll think I deserted. Besides, you couldn’t bring your clothes or anything from the mundane dominion. We don’t dress like them in Olympia, and you’d stick out for all the wrong reasons.”
“What’s wrong with me sticking out?” I asked, frowning. “You guys aren’t prejudiced against mundanes, are you?”
“It’s not that, Aella.” His expression changed, growing serious. “I realized this, so I’m sure you did too. The reason those monsters took your mom wasn’t because they thought it was time you took a little vacation to your homeland. They have plans for you that include holding your mother hostage to get their way.”
My expression melted away.
“We have to find out who is behind this, where they are, and what they want from you before they know you’re in Olympia,” he said. “That’s the only way we can make a plan that gets both of you out without springing the trap they want you to spring.”
“How are you so sure of this?” My voice was a thin rasp.
“Because they got out, Aella. Those monsters got free of the barrier, and instead of making their escape and wreaking havoc on the dominions, they voluntarily walked back into their prison. They also didn’t spread whatever method they used to get out with the other monsters.” He waved his hand. “I know because this city isn’t a smoldering pile of corpses right now. That they returned to Olympia and kept their escape a secret canonly mean one thing. There’s something they want more than their freedom, and there’s only one thing someone could ever want more than that.”
“What?”
Alexander trapped my gaze. “Revenge.”
A chill climbed my spine—as sudden and overwhelming as my twisting gut.
