Medusa's Desire (The Fate of Eros #1) (The Fate of Eros Series) (16 page)

"A whole village full of warriors attempted the same thing and failed."

Medusa sighed. "Fine, but make sure you both shield your eyes. I don't want to take anyone else down, too."

The waves roared as the monster emerged. Water showered down its body as its large teeth neared the entrance to the cave. The giant, black dragon's red eyes bore down on them. Something about the shape of Ketus was familiar, but with sea-weed dripping from it, she couldn't make it out clearly.

Perseus grabbed her hand. "Remember that we're in this together. We'll fight the tyranny of the gods by rescuing their victims. This is just another person who needs our help."

Medusa squeezed his hand and then the two of them pulled apart. Perseus positioned himself in front of Andromeda with his sword raised. "Cover your eyes!"

They both looked away.

The men below ran into their shelters. Families huddled together and held one another. She wasn't just saving one person, but a whole village full of people who had been attacked.

She ripped the helmet off her head. The snakes writhed free, snapping at the air. The giant eel growled loudly as it looked into Medusa's eyes. It screamed and so did she.

With all the water raining from it and the commotion below, she hadn't recognized the monster at first. They had been shouting "Ketus," but she was pretty sure now that they meant to say "Ceto," but mispronounced it because of their accent. This wasn't just any sea monster: it was her mother.

Ceto's face twisted in a way that no mother's should upon seeing her child. Medusa once thought that it was horrible to watch strangers scream when they saw her and their faces freeze in horror. That was nothing compared with this. Her mother's body writhed until it slowly grayed. She turned into the largest snarling statue Medusa had ever seen.

She threw her helmet back on and flew up to her mother. She grabbed her cheek, screamed into her face, and begged her not to die. The waves that slammed against her mother's body made her crumble, but hid Medusa's outbursts in their loud crashes. She had to find a way to fix it, but knew it was hopeless. Her mother's body was breaking apart in her hands and the villagers below were throwing rocks and stealing chunks as they cried out in victory. There was no cure for being a statue.

Medusa had tried to do something good and once again was suffering the consequences for it. It pained her to do this, but there was no alternative. She flew to where she guessed her mother's heart was and ripped out a chunk of stone. It disappeared in her hands because of the invisibility helmet.

She flew from the village and landed in a place so void of life it reminded her of how her heart felt at the moment. She dug into the ground, tears pouring down her cheeks.

"Forgive me," Medusa said. "I turned you into stone and now your soul doesn't exist anymore. It would have been better if I was never your daughter."

She grabbed the piece of her mom that lay nearby and kissed it. She placed it gently in the hole. "You have the biggest heart. Even though you're no longer around, the good things you did for me, like providing for me and holding me when I cried, will never be forgotten."

She covered the piece in the ground with dirt. Even though she'd already lost her mother once to the sea, it hurt to lose her permanently. She hadn't realized how much she depended on the thought of her mother, out there, somewhere, still caring for her.

She would find Perseus and he would hold her. The two of them would leave and never think about this place again.

By the time she arrived, Perseus had managed to saw Andromeda out of her chains. He carried the soft and beautiful woman in his arms. Medusa bit into her lower lip so hard she was bleeding. A part of her wanted to rip the skull on this woman's head off her body. She had not only killed Medusa's mother, but she was stealing her boyfriend! Death would be too good of a punishment for her. She didn't even care about her silent vow not to kill an unarmed person on purpose.

If she acted out, her presence would be revealed to all these people. The gods would find out the truth. Perseus' rebellion against their tyranny would be over. He would be punished and it would probably be assumed that her sisters conspired with her, so they would suffer as well.

She couldn't allow that to happen. She had to bite her tongue for now and wait for revenge at a more opportune time-one where hundreds of other innocents wouldn't be turned into stone as witnesses.

Perseus reached out his arm to stroke Medusa. He mouthed a thank-you to her as he set Andromeda gently on the ground. His eyes were bright and full of love.

It melted Medusa completely. Her hatred turned towards herself and tears poured down her face. She wanted to speak, but she knew if she opened her mouth, even to whisper in Perseus' ear, she would sob. She had just killed her own mother. This was the worst day of her entire life.

They had landed in front of the castle. Medusa hugged herself as numbness threatened to take over. She didn't know how to react to Andromeda giving Perseus a hug and pressing her naked body against his.

"Don't leave me here." Andromeda had grabbed Perseus by his chiton. "These people aren't my real family because they failed to love me like one. They didn't fight for me. They sent me to die to save their own lives." Andromeda looked into Perseus' eyes with adoration. "You, on the other hand, were a stranger who acted like a hero. Take me with you away from here."

Medusa shook all over. The temptation to slap Andromeda overwhelmed her. Medusa's mother had betrayed her as well and unlike Andromeda, she had actually been forced to suffer the consequences for it, but she wished to have her mother back. Andromeda should be thankful that her own mother was still alive. Only a brat could think differently.

Perseus shoved her so roughly that she almost fell over. "My rescue was not an attempt at seduction."

Andromeda pouted.

They entered the castle and the servants inside scattered around wildly in search of some new clothes. All of them were dressed in loin-cloths, which couldn't possibly keep them warm enough in the winter. Sadly, they were paid so little that the rags were all they could afford. No one seemed to care about their skimpy clothing.

Medusa looked at all the carvings on the walls and statues in the castle. She remembered when she had been starving herself and forced into prostitution. This marble and gold was excessive. No wonder Andromeda was full of herself; this castle was decorated like a temple to a goddess.

Pictures of their gods were everywhere. In this place, the gods all had animal parts and barely resembled humans. She had heard that the gods were the same, but appeared in different forms when they visited other civilizations. She looked at each portrait and wondered which figure belonged to whom. One was a black cat that looked as if she was going to jump off the wall and cut her neck. Medusa smiled. That had to be Athena.

Two beautiful people with purple robes hanging from their bodies and elaborate eyeliner entered the area. They wore rings on every finger. Crowns rested on the top of their heads. This must be the king and queen.

Andromeda was dressed, but still trying to drape herself all over Perseus, who kept shifting away from her.

They introduced themselves as Cephus and Cassiopeia. They asked for Perseus' name and told him that they would be retrieving the monster's head and dipping it in gold in his honor. They couldn't just hurt Medusa's family-they had to do it lavishly. They thanked him repeatedly while Andromeda glared coldly at them.

"You must stay overnight," King Cephus said. "We will have a feast in your honor."

More than anything Medusa wanted to leave so she could mourn in private. Her forehead wrinkled as she tried to communicate this to Perseus with her mind.

"That would be wonderful," Perseus said.

She failed.

The servants ran around, spreading word about the feast, but many people were already there, eager to meet the man who had saved their lives. They filed in and out so quickly, Medusa couldn't relax. She wove back and forth, avoiding the ones that tried to charge straight through her. She was tired of being invisible already.

Herbs and vegetables soon decorated a table in the middle of the room. She considered eating some, but they weren't bitter enough and the events of the night had made her lose her appetite. In fact, once she got a break from dodging all the people, she was allowed to think again about what had transpired. Tears filled her eyes.

Andromeda made googly eyes at Perseus. She kept stroking his arm, even though he was pushing her away.

Medusa watched Perseus closely, trying to see whether he would blush or take pleasure at Andromeda's touch. Nothing happened, but she didn't trust her eyes to pick up on it all.

Perseus distanced himself from Andromeda and held the attention of the crowd using his endless wallet.

"Come here." He motioned towards one of the slaves.

He was given an odd look, but the slave complied. He opened the bag and placed it on the slave's head.

"What are you doing?" someone asked, laughing. "Leave that poor man alone."

But soon the bag had worked its way down and swallowed the slave whole. The crowd whispered as their eyes widened. What kind of witchcraft was this? Was he gone for good?

His wife came out and hit Perseus repeatedly on the shoulder. "Bring him back!" someone translated her saying. She waved her hand in the air surrounding them to make sure there was no place where he could be hiding.

Perseus reached into the bag and grabbed the slave's hand, pulling him out again. His wife embraced him.

Perseus was cheered and clapped for. Soon other people wanted to have a try at fitting into his bag. Several people went inside at once because they wished to know how many people could stand inside it at one time.

From across the room, a man named Phineas glared at the two of them. The way he looked at Andromeda, he must have been her fiancé. He was much older and could have been her father.

He walked to Perseus and shook his hand. "I would like to thank you for rescuing my betrothed." His face kept his smile, but he leaned forward and his voice grew gravelly and cruel. "If you dare touch her, I will rip your fucking head off with my bare hands."

He had seemed harmless before because of his age, but as he said these words and continued to shake Perseus' hand, the muscles flexed in his arm. He was stronger than he looked. He had the physique of a man who had spent his life as a soldier.

The feast dragged on for hours. It gave Medusa too much time to think. She vowed never to voluntarily turn someone into stone again. Her powers were a curse, not a blessing, which she had proved that day, no matter how much Perseus tried to convince her otherwise. She couldn't make the same mistake again.

Servants escorted Perseus to his room, where a large bed with silky sheets waited for him. He washed his hands and face in the glass bowl on his night-stand. Medusa had followed him.

Now that Perseus was alone, all the words Medusa wanted to tell him weren't coming out. She didn't know where to begin. She opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a knock on his door. The king and queen wanted to give him a tour of their castle. He politely accepted, but Medusa decided to stay behind. She was emotionally exhausted.

She listened to their retreating footsteps before she pulled off her helmet. She didn't belong in a room this beautiful. Decorated in red and gold, the room featured statues too fancy to touch. It had a fireplace and a large closet for the wealthy to put all their clothes into.

The castle had taken the least damage of any of the buildings in the area–only parts of the outside were crumbling. Medusa wondered why the king and queen didn't allow some people to stay inside while they rebuilt their houses.

Medusa walked in front of the full-length golden mirror and stared at herself. Her eyes were red and her face was swollen. Even crying, she looked beautiful.

She could have been so much happier if she had never been cursed. Her mother would still be alive and proud of the fact that she had found such a wonderful and handsome man to marry. He'd be worthy of her, and she'd feel good enough for him.

Medusa's face twisted and her blonde hair grew wild. Her scales and wings flashed in her reflection. She recoiled and almost punched the glass in front of her.

Her heart pounded. Her true self had manifested in the mirror for a split second, but luckily she hadn't gazed into her own eyes or she would have died. What did this mean? Was her condition getting worse? Eventually, would she be unable to see anything besides her true form when she glanced at herself?

Her stomach twisted and she realized that hate had been brewing in her heart. She despised Andromeda and wished for her to go away. Were the negative emotions affecting her physically?

She wanted to share this concern with Perseus, but her heart squeezed at the thought. That woman in the mirror was the one he had fallen in love with and she was disappearing. If she told him the truth, she could lose him forever, but if she kept it a secret, he could look at her at the wrong time and be transformed into stone.

She wished he had just killed her when they first met as he was supposed to. They had dragged this whole thing out, making her fall in love with him and unable to let him go.

Medusa's ears picked up on the noise of footsteps nearing the door. She had been so distracted with her worries that she hadn't been paying attention. She threw the helmet back on seconds before Perseus burst into the room.

Andromeda stood close behind him. She'd taken off her crown and changed her dress. The maroon, low-cut dress accented her soft skin and full curves. Medusa struggled to swallow her jealousy as Perseus turned around.

"Are you following me into my room?" Perseus frowned. "It's inappropriate for a lady to be alone with a man."

Andromeda grabbed Perseus by his chiton and threw him on the bed, jumping on top of him. "I don't care about my reputation. Phineas is a coward who didn't save me like he was supposed to. I want to be with a real man."