Immortal Heat (10 page)

 "A big name for such a little stool," Hephaestus said.

 "We'll have to see if he likes it. Thank you for giving him wheels. He might not have been able to do what he did if you hadn't." She kissed him quickly on the mouth.

 "Why didn't you just aetherize away from here? Talos and the Nedas would have managed."

 It was the second time he had asked that of her, and Aglaia refused to skirt the question again. She buried her face against his shoulder.

 "Because I
can't
," Aglaia said, her voice muffled against his leather.

 "You can't?"

 She shook her head. "I have no sense of direction. I never appear where I should unless it's at a very short distance. I don't know why, but it's always been that way."

 She waited but he didn't laugh.

 "I'll always be here to aetherize for you," he said, looking down at her with a tender smile.

 "Always?" she asked breathlessly.

 "Always." His mouth slipped over hers in a hungry kiss. "Aglaia, will you stay with me and be my wife?"

 Aglaia's heart pounded in her chest. "Why?" she asked.

 "Because I want you and I need you," he whispered, "but most of all because I love you."

 Tears of joy clouded her vision, but she didn't need to be able to see to answer him. "Yes, Hephaestus, I'll stay with you and be your wife because I love you, too."

 * * * * *

 Hephaestus had a table, food, mattress, and bed linen brought to a naturally flat outcropping of rock on the other side of the cliff. Long ago, he had cleared a passageway to it from the caves and built a stone wall around the outer edge.

 The Nedas had outdone themselves. The mortal food was fit for a king...or a couple of immortals, Aglaia thought with a laugh. Crusty bread drizzled with olive oil, fresh fruit, cheese, and watered wine, but strong enough to make her light-headed after a couple of goblets.

 Queen Eupompe wasn't dead. The shock of what she'd seen and the Nedas descending on her had rendered her unconscious. Although Aglaia had feared otherwise, the Nedas had done no more than ensure she didn't rise against Aglaia. Hephaestus wanted to smite her, but Aglaia convinced him that violence in retaliation for violence would serve no purpose. And Aglaia didn't want anything more to upset the princess' wedding day, especially the death of the queen.

 When the sun had gone down, Hephaestus grudgingly aetherized Eupompe to a place near her palace, and they could only hope she learned her lesson. If not, the plan the cousins put into effect on the morrow would thwart the queen's endeavors, and that was revenge enough.

 Aglaia didn't want to know what had happened to Phlius.

 Aglaia and Hephaestus ate and drank their fill under the silver-bright moon and then huddled together under the woolen blankets as they made their plans for their wedding and their future on Mount Olympus. The night air was chilly, but they generated enough heat to keep them warm throughout the long star-studded night.

 III

 When Aglaia was announced at a palace in Achaea, the household went into an uproar. Tebris and Cydippe flung themselves at Aglaia and wept out of sheer happiness.

 "We thought you were dead!" Tebris cried out.

 "On the cliff, they found some cloth torn from your chiton," Cydippe sniffled.

 "And you never came back." Tebris hugged her again.

 "Oileus will be so pleased," Cydippe said, holding her hand tightly.

 "And so will Dameon," Tebris added.

 "Then you followed the plan?" Aglaia asked.

 "Oh, yes!" the cousins said at the same time, and they all laughed.

 Tebris and Cydippe led her from the vestibule into a small, cozy room. When a handmaiden brought refreshments, they settled on comfortable couches and Tebris and Cydippe took turns explaining what had happened.

 "We thought it was strange that we didn't see you before it was time to retire," Tebris began.

 "But we thought maybe you were tiring of us," Cydippe said apologetically. "We'd been crying on your shoulder for days, so we thought we'd give you some time to yourself."

 "But I couldn't sleep," Tebris explained. "So I went to your bedchamber, hoping we could work out the details of your plan, but you weren't there. When I couldn't find you anywhere, I woke Mother and Father. They immediately organized a search party."

 At least Eupompe had kept her word. Aglaia wondered if she'd wept in mock grief, as well.

 "It was horrid, Aglaia," Cydippe said. "Oileus returned carrying that bit of cloth and we knew it was from your chiton. We recognized the embroidery."

 "But we didn't want to believe it." Tebris shook her head at the memory. "We begged Dameon and Oileus and the others to keep looking. We just knew that you had torn your chiton at the cliff, but you didn't necessarily have to have fallen. You could have slipped anywhere along the way and lay hurt and unconscious and waiting for someone to rescue you."

 "Oileus and Dameon did go looking for you again, and we went with them when the rest of the search party thought it was useless. We searched until dawn with torches."

 "Sunlight made it easier, so we looked again in all the places we'd been." Tebris swallowed. "When we could find no sign of you, we searched at the base of the cliffs."

 "We found your sandal," Cydippe said softly. "And we had to face the truth, that you'd fallen from the cliff."

 "I'm so sorry you had to go through all that," Aglaia said and hugged the cousins in turn. "I did fall from the cliffs, but I didn't hit the rocks below, except my leg which must have knocked my sandal free."

 It was a necessary lie. There was no point to incriminating Eupompe. Tebris and Cydippe were free from her influence and that was what mattered.

  "I had gone too near the edge of the cliff," Aglaia told them. “When I stood to leave, my chiton was caught. I tried to pull it free, but I lost my balance and fell, mostly into the water. I had washed up on shore when I came to, and I had a bruised and swollen ankle. A man found me and took care of me until I recovered."

 She didn't mention Eupompe, Croco, and Phlius, or even Hephaestus by name.

 "A man?" Cydippe asked.

 "Who?" Tebris asked.

 "He's a smith, but he was very gentle in caring for me, and to our surprise we fell in love. We will be wed soon."

 Tebris and Cydippe squealed in delight.

 "What a wonderful ending for all of us!" Cydippe laughed.

 "Now, you must finish telling me what happened with you two," Aglaia prompted.

 "I pleaded with Mother to postpone the wedding so we could mourn, but she wouldn't. I was very angry with her for not listening to me again. Then she said something that made more sense than she knew. Mother said you would want what happened to you not to interrupt our plans. Of course, she was talking about the wedding, but I thought about the plan you came up with and I agreed."

 "We did as you said," Cydippe took up the story. "Tebris' veil was very sheer. Anyone would be able to see who wore it. We came up with a suitable substitute that hid the face, but the one who wore it could still see how to move around. At the wedding feast, I complained of nausea. Later, I sent word that I wouldn't be able to attend the ceremony after all, because I could barely stand on my feet. Aunt Eupompe came to see me, but when I pretended to retch into the chamber pot, she fled."

 "After the wedding feast, when I went to my room to dress," Tebris continued, "I took considerable delight in ripping the sheer veil. The strange thing was that Mother didn't say a word. She didn't get angry or anything."

 "She was very different just before the wedding," Cydippe added thoughtfully. "She had gone somewhere early the day before and by nightfall everyone was wondering if something hadn't happened to her, too. Uncle Euneus was about to start another search party when she returned. As far as I know, she gave no explanation as to where she'd been or what had happened."

 "No, she didn't. She wouldn't talk to Father about it and she remained subdued until the morning after the wedding," Tebris said. "But I don't want to get ahead of myself. After I brought out the substitute veil, I told her to go and make sure everything was ready, that I could dress myself. Amazingly, she agreed. Cydippe came into my room and dressed in my clothes and the veil, and I slipped off into her room."

 "I was so frightened," Cydippe confessed. "I was certain Aunt Eupompe would take one look at me and know I wasn't Tebris. But when she returned, she barely looked at me at all. She and Uncle Euneus led me from Tebris' room, through the palace, and out to the cart. They handed me up to Oileus and when he took my hand, I knew everything was going to be all right. I squeezed it in a signal we had prearranged so he would know the switch had been made and all was well. I couldn't say a word because of Tebris' brother in the cart."

 That had been an unfortunate turn, Eupompe insisting Tebris' brother ride in the cart instead of Oileus' choice, Dameon.

 "I watched from the window and it was a beautiful sight," Tebris told them. "Everyone held lighted torches and followed the cart in a wide arc around the front courtyard. Of course, the cart returned to the palace, and when it stopped, Oileus and my brother got down. My brother lifted Cydippe and handed her to Oileus who carried her through the palace to a special bedchamber that Mother had prepared."

 "When Oileus and I were alone and I lifted my veil, I felt as if I were exactly where I belonged," Cydippe said with a sigh. "We talked through the night, getting to know one another. This is most embarrassing, but we didn't—we didn't consummate our marriage that night."

 "I explained to Cydippe what she must do to make everyone
think
they had if they chose not to that night. Because if there was no proof the consummation had taken place, the marriage would not be considered valid, and Mother would insist that I marry Oileus."

 "So I pricked my finger and let the drops of blood fall onto the bed linen," Cydippe murmured, her face turning pink. "Must we continue to talk about this?"

 "Needless to say, they have consummated the marriage since then," Tebris said with a grin.

 "Tebris!" Cydippe gasped.

 Aglaia smiled at the cousins. Their teasing was only a sign of their great affection for one another.

 "How did Queen Eupompe take the news the next day?"

 "Uncovering the deception brought her out of her lethargy. She was furious. She said that the marriage couldn't be valid because the arrangement had been for Tebris and Oileus to marry. When we assured everyone, including Oileus' parents, that we were in love and this was what we wanted, and when Tebris had assured everyone that this was what she wanted as well, no one else seemed to mind."

 "Mother continued to rant, but by then no one was listening. Most of the guests began preparing to leave, but Dameon called everyone together and made an announcement. He asked that everyone should remain one more day, so that he and I could wed and celebrate with our family and friends, too."

 "That's when Aunt Eupompe fainted!" Cydippe crowed.

 "Everyone thought she was being delicate, but I think she passed out because she wasn't able to breathe at that point," Tebris said. "By the time she regained consciousness, Father had signed an agreement with Dameon's parents and there was nothing she could do. Dameon and I
properly
consummated our marriage that night."

 "Tebris! We don't need the details," Cydippe, blushing once again, reprimanded her cousin.

 "Please don't be a hypocrite, cousin," Tebris said, rolling her eyes. "You know you enjoy the act of consummation as much as anyone. Anyway, we left with our husbands a few days later. Mother never said another word to me and that's just as well. Perhaps one day we'll be able to speak to one another, and I hope she can let go of her bitterness. If she can't, then she will have to live with it. I have never been happier in my life!"

 Aglaia visited with the cousins a while longer, but she was anxious to return to Mount Olympus and begin her own wedding preparations. She bid them farewell and promised to visit again although she didn't think she would. Her errand completed, she foresaw no reason to enter their lives again.

 * * * * *

 On Mount Olympus, Aglaia waited in Aphrodite's rose garden. The beautiful blossoms were full and intact signifying that the goddess of love was in a serene mood. Their sweet scent perfumed the air and helped to calm Aglaia's anxiety.

 Even though Hephaestus had told her of his visit with his former wife and assured her Aphrodite was pleased with their union, Aglaia still felt a little apprehensive at seeing her sister for the first time since falling in love with Hephaestus. Aglaia knew Aphrodite had never loved him, but the two had shared an intimate bond that could never be severed.

 "Aglaia, dear," Aphrodite said as she entered the garden. She linked her arm with Aglaia's. "Walk with me through the garden while we talk."

 Aglaia told her everything that had happened with the cousins and the princes, and how her plan succeeded in matching them up the way they wanted to be. She also told her how ruthless the queen had been toward her interfering.