The Return (Titan 1)

Every muscle ached and burned, and my body throbbed as I trudged along beside Seth, grateful when the very unhappy-looking people in all black kept their distance as they followed us through the absolutely awe-inspiring lobby.

I focused on the intricate designs etched into every square inch of the building, instead of letting my mind wander back to Missouri. If I did, I would be in that fetal position and I wouldn’t get out of it. Part of my heart had been shattered in Osborn, and I gathered every cord of strength I had in me to hold it together. So I focused on the drawings of tall men and women wearing togas, on the beautiful writing that had to be an ancient language, and on all the glossy white statues.

I’d never seen anything in my life like this, not even in museums.

The man crossed under another archway, down a narrow hallway, and then we entered a brightly lit common room with a large sofa and several armchairs. The scarred man followed, closing the door behind us before leaning against a wall that looked like sandstone.

Seth dropped our bags on the floor by the door, and I stopped. Dead on my feet, I swayed a little as the stranger moved to the center of the room, crossing his arms over his chest as he watched us.

Reaching down, Seth took my hand and led me to the couch, never taking his eyes off the men, but there was no missing the surprise that flickered across the older man’s face when his gaze dropped to our joined hands.

“Sit,” Seth said in a soft voice.

I was not going to argue with that. The moment my butt hit the thick cushions, it thanked me. Seth didn’t sit. He stood beside me, arms also folded. For a moment, the three of them engaged in some kind of weird stare-off, and it didn’t take a genius to figure out there was some history there. Not a good history, but I was too tired, too whipped, and just…too numb to even care.

Then the older man looked at me, and I knew he stared at my neck. The neckline of the sweater had been stretched in my pitiful fight with Hyperion, revealing the tag. I must’ve looked a mess, but I also didn’t care about that. He softened his hard expression with a slight curve of his lips. “We haven’t been introduced.” His voice was deep, cultured. “I’m Marcus Andros, the Dean of this University, and you are…?”

I resisted the urge to glance at Seth, because I couldn’t rely on him at this point. He’d made it clear earlier that he was leaving as soon as we got here, and we were here now.

Clasping my hands together to keep them from shaking, I shoved them between my knees. “My name is Josie Bethel, and I’m…” My brows knitted. “I’m not quite sure what I am.”

His brows inched up his forehead as he glanced at Seth. The man with the scar chuckled softly and said, “Honey, I don’t think any of us quite know who we are, but that’s probably the strangest introduction I’ve heard in a while.”

Seth stiffened. “I do believe she said her name was ‘Josie,’ and not ‘honey,’ the last time I checked, Solos.”

The man with the scar, who I assumed was Solos, laughed again, but it was Marcus who almost looked thunderstruck as he stared at Seth, who appeared as if he was on the verge of throwing someone through a wall.

I shifted and winced when a dart of pain shot down my leg. My patience with—with everything—started to slip. “He brought me here because he was ordered to do so. It’s his job.”

Seth’s head swung toward me and his golden brows knitted as his eyes narrowed. What had I said to earn that look? Only the truth, so whatever. I bounced my knee, ignoring the licks of dull pain that shot up my leg.

“May I ask why?” Marcus sat in a leather chair across from us. “I’m assuming you know what we are, based on your…condition.” There was a pause. “No offense, Josie, but I cannot fathom why he would bring you here.”

“Because she’s not mortal,” Seth replied, and boy, the room got so quiet I could’ve heard a cricket hiccup.

Marcus blinked as he shook his head. “Seth, she isn’t one of us.”

“I didn’t say that she was, but thanks for pointing out the obvious,” he replied, and white lines formed around Marcus’s mouth. “She isn’t one of us. She’s completely different.”

Solos arched a brow. “You gonna give us details or drag this out as long as possible?”

I thought for a second that Seth was going to wing something at Solos’s head, maybe one of those sharp blades, but he sat beside me, so close that his entire leg pressed against mine. “Are you all aware of what happened with the Titans?”

Across from us, Marcus straightened. “Of course. And we’ve taken the necessary steps to ensure that our students and those here are safe, and not only from them.”

Seth smirked. “Message received,” he replied, and I had no idea what that meant. “So you’re warded against the Titans.”

He nodded. “We are, but what does this have to do with her?”

I wondered how you could ward against something as powerful and scary as Hyperion. Probably involved the blood of a dozen virgins or something equally archaic and creepy.

Seth leaned forward, meeting the brightest green eyes I’ve ever seen, and then he dropped the bomb. “Josie is Apollo’s daughter. She’s a demigod.”

Marcus and Solos swung their gazes on me. Both men’s eyes were wide, and they stared at me like I had suddenly morphed into a three-headed dragon. “No,” Marcus said. “There aren’t any demigods on Earth, and anyway, we would sense her if she was one. What kind of—?”

“Her powers are bound, Marcus. That’s why you don’t sense her. And she’s not the only one,” Seth explained as he reached over, clamping his hand on my knee, stilling it.

“Sorry,” I muttered, casting my gaze to his hand. As Seth started talking again, explaining to our rapt audience what I was, how many of us there were, and all of that good stuff, he kept his hand on my knee. I stared at the long, elegant fingers. Graceful, but deadly.

The weight of his hand made me feel funny, and I didn’t like it at the same time I acknowledged there was something comforting about the pressure, almost grounding.

“Gods,” Marcus murmured, drawing my attention to him. He was still staring at me. “A demigod—a born demigod. Never thought I’d be around to see that.”

I squirmed uncomfortably, and Seth removed his hand. “Apollo told me to bring her here. She needs to be kept safe, Marcus, until the rest of the demigods can be located.”