Goddess (Starcrossed 3)

“Lucas agreed to take Hades’ place in the Underworld in order to bring Hector back,” Andy finished for her.

“Why?” Cassandra asked, her face pleading. “Does he think we love him any less than we love Hector?”

Orion looked at Helen. “He did it because he thinks we’re together. Lucas thinks we . . .”

“I know,” Helen whispered, trying desperately to figure a way out of it. “I have to descend and tell him it’s not true.”

“Helen. I’m so sorry,” Daphne said, her eyes wide with panic. “You have to believe me. If I knew it was going to be Lucas, I would have left you two alone. You have to explain that to Lucas—make him understand that it wasn’t that I didn’t like him. Please.”

“What are you talking about?” Helen asked, a sinking sensation in her stomach. “Mother, what did you do?”

“That’s why I lied,” she said quickly and quietly, like she was trying to speed past it. “If Orion was going to become the new lord of the dead, why wouldn’t he want to restore life to his one true love’s father?”

“What?” Helen said, baffled.

“A dozen times now I’ve nearly died. Every time I’ve gone down to the River Styx, I’ve begged Hades, but why should he listen to me? My only hope was the prophecy that said a Scion would come to replace him,” she said, a desperate light in her eyes. “Who else could it have been but Orion? Orion is Hades’ twin!” She looked around at everyone pleadingly.

“And if I did replace Hades?” Orion asked, a horrified look on his face.

“You’d still have to agree to give me what I want, and even though you care for me, there was no guarantee. I had to ask myself, what would make me do anything? Love, obviously. If you fell in love with a girl, and that girl thought she had lost her father, why wouldn’t you restore her father to life for her?”

Helen shivered, like someone had walked over her grave.

“She wasn’t supposed to fall in love with Lucas,” Daphne said, turning on Helen and pointing an irrationally accusing finger at her. “You were supposed to meet Orion first and fall in love with him. It would have been perfect. You would have Orion and I would have Ajax and no one would have gotten hurt. I tried to keep you away from Lucas. I tried to get you off the island as soon as I saw the connection you two had.”

Helen remembered. When the Delos family moved to Nantucket, her mother, disguised as an older woman, had tried to kidnap her repeatedly to get her away from them. Daphne had told Helen it was to protect her from the Delos family so they wouldn’t kill her, but her mother had always known that Helen wore the cestus and was impervious to weapons. She also knew that Helen was stronger than all of them combined and didn’t need to be rescued. Daphne’s real goal had been to try to keep Helen away from Lucas.

“I meant for you to meet Orion first. I thought I had more time—you weren’t even seventeen yet, and the only boy you’d ever kissed was Matt. I thought I had more time,” she repeated, like this was what she regretted the most.

Helen half collapsed, half sat down on the bench that had been pushed back from the kitchen table and stared at the floor.

“How long have you been watching me?” Helen asked, dazed.

“All your life. Always with a different face, but I never left you for long, Helen,” Daphne said, falling on her knees in front of her daughter, and taking her hands. “One day, I was the tourist asking to take your picture, another day the customer at the News Store who chatted with you, asking questions about your day at school. Once, I was even that exchange student that came for a month. Do you remember Ingrid? She learned all the gossip, and then disappeared? They were all me. I’ve never left you for long.”

Faces seemed to flash in front of Helen’s eyes. Dozens of people who had struck up conversations with her over the years were all Daphne to Helen now, and she had the creepy feeling that most of her life had been staged. She glanced up at Orion and saw a matching look of disbelief on his face.

But even through the shock, Helen realized that Daphne hadn’t been that far off the mark. Orion was the only guy Helen had ever really considered being with apart from Lucas. And she knew that Orion would do anything for her—even raise the dead “father” she never got a chance to know for her—if he had the power to do it.

Her mother’s plan, as crazy as it seemed, might have actually worked. Except for the fact that it didn’t, and in the process, it had broken all their hearts.

“You’re insane,” Helen whispered.

“No. Just willing to do anything for the man I love.”

Helen saw Andy, Noel, and Cassandra all startle at this admission, like it was too close for comfort.

“So we all have something in common, then,” Helen said calmly as she stood.

She looked at Orion. Lucas had traded himself, but it wasn’t a fair trade because he had been tricked. Who could she go to if she wanted to object to the trade? Who would even listen to her case in the Underworld? Helen had an idea—she just hoped it would work.

“Stay close to Cassandra,” she told Orion. “Even if the Fates will be able to see me in the Underworld, they won’t be able to speak through her and maybe I can pull this off.”

He nodded once in understanding.

“Ask Lucas to give me Ajax. Please, Helen. I’m begging you!” Daphne sobbed, grabbing Helen’s arm. All her plans were ruined, but she was still trying to get him back. Helen wondered if she would act any different if it were Lucas. She could only hope she would, but she doubted it.

Helen yanked her arm away from her mother and vanished in a puff of air that was so cold it left a disk of frost on Noel’s kitchen floor.