Stone Heart (Dark Olympus 2.50)

“I’m sorry.”

She pushes forward, her words coming faster. “The scholarship only covered the basics, so I was on my own for books and all the other little expenses that add up really quickly. I tried to work, but then my grades suffered. Then one of my professors came on to me.”

“What?”

“Don’t sound so shocked. It’s far more common than you’d expect.” Tension bleeds into her body. “I resisted at first. But he kept sneaking little gifts to me—little expensive gifts. I…let him seduce me after that. And then he started buying my books and funding the things I needed.” She lifts her head and looks at me. “He wasn’t terrible. This thing with Odysseus might give you the wrong idea, but I don’t make a habit of sleeping with people who treat me badly. My relationships have just been more explicitly transactional than most.”

I smooth her hair back. “I’m not judging.”

“Most people do.”

“I think we’ve established that most people suck.”

She huffs out a laugh. “Yeah, I guess we have. I misjudged Odysseus. I knew it was never going to be permanent, but he’s charming in his way. I let him convince me it was love.”

And then he turned around and facilitated her attempted murder.

I gather her closer, once again wishing I could stand between her and all those who used her and hurt her. “You deserve to be valued for more than fucking, Calypso.” I frown. “I realize that seems really hypocritical considering what we just did, but I mean it.”

“I know.” She presses a quick kiss to my throat. “Like I said earlier, I’m no innocent. Maybe I haven’t done the exact same things you have, but I understand doing what you need to in order to survive. There’s no shame in that.”

She keeps saying that, but the choices she’s made and the ones I have are markedly different. She’s offered me her past, her truth, and I can do nothing but meet her halfway. I exhale slowly. “I said my parents were dockworkers, right? It’s kind of a generational thing. I wasn’t like you. I didn’t have lofty goals. I’m a hard worker and good at the physical stuff, but I barely passed my classes growing up. I was visiting my parents when I was eighteen and that’s when I ran into Poseidon—the last Poseidon.” From all accounts, the current one isn’t quite the same as his father, but what would I know about that? I’ve taken great pains to avoid him and the rest of the Thirteen, aside from Athena.

I frown at the ceiling. It’s a nice ceiling. No water marks or faded spots. “He decided he liked the way I looked, and I’m not good with words or subtly. I told him to fuck off, that I wasn’t interested. He…didn’t take it well.” The understatement of the century. “He hit me. Several times. And I was too damn stubborn to go down even when he pulled out a knife, which might have stopped it. Or not. Maybe it would have just made him bolder. No one stepped in. Not the other dockworkers. Not even my parents. Because he was fucking Poseidon and the Thirteen can do whatever they want.”

“Oh, Medusa.”

Now it’s my turn to rush, to get the words out so that the story is over. “I don’t know what Athena was doing at the docks that day, but if she hadn’t intervened, I think he would have killed me. She saved me. Took me back to her office building, got me stitched up and bandaged, and offered me a job with the promise that I’d never have to see him again.” I blink past the burning in my eyes. “My parents didn’t try to help, Calypso. I… Maybe one day I’ll get over how much of a betrayal that feels, but I don’t know. We don’t talk much anymore.”

“I don’t blame you,” she murmurs. “And I understand that you feel like you owe Athena for that, but how long has it been since that happened?”

“Twelve years,” I whisper. Athena didn’t send me out right away. There were several years of training before she decided I was ready. I was still as naive as Calypso undoubtedly believes I am now; I honestly thought that I would just join the main special forces population, serving in a squad beneath one of the people I so admire. It didn’t occur to me that it was strange she kept me mostly apart, aside from my instructors. I can’t pretend it would have made a difference.

Athena saved me. I worshipped the ground she walked on.

It wasn’t until recently that I noticed the cracks in the flagstones beneath my feet.

CHAPTER 9

CALYPSO

Medusa falls asleep in my arms. I’m too damn jaded to believe this could be love after a few hours, but I can’t deny the connection I feel with her. Maybe it’s trauma bonding. Maybe it’s something more. I don’t care. All I know is that I’m not willing to give it up without a fight.