Persephone's Orchard (The Chrysomelia Stories) (44 page)

“Do. Not. Disturb,” Adrian warned, spreading his hand possessively over Sophie’s hips. He settled down on his elbow, phone between their heads, allowing her to listen in.

“Oo-ooh.” Niko’s answer was a lascivious sound of appreciation, dropping from high pitch to low. “Well done, Ade. Fine, I won’t show up, even though you
said
I could watch. But listen, did you get my email a few minutes ago?”

“No, I’ve been
busy
.”

“Haven’t you, though. Well, I thought you might be interested to know what popped up in Wilkes’ messages.”

Sophie and Adrian exchanged a troubled glance. Nikolaos had swiped Bill Wilkes’ email password along with the copy of his hard drive, and had shared the password with Adrian. But Adrian told her he’d checked it this morning and hadn’t found anything new to worry about.

“What was it?” Adrian asked.

“From Quentin to Wilkes: ‘The plan to fetch K.A. sounds good.’ Let’s assume that’s Kiwi Ade. Then, ‘We’ll have one less to worry about if we can find our woman friend at her meeting.’”

Sophie pulled up her knees, cuddling close to Adrian. He shifted his arm to wrap it around her body in a comforting hold. “So you reckon they’ll try to catch me when Sophie goes to meet me one of these days?”

“I’d count on that, yes.”

“Did they say when?”

“No, but likely soon. They’re probably looking for the next good opportunity. I’d also count on them having the kind of weapons required to take you out.” While fear congealed into a ball in Sophie’s stomach, Nikolaos went on, “I haven’t been able to get in touch with Rhea yet.”

“She feels far off. Maybe Greece or around there.”

“Yes, but rather than leave to fetch her, I’m going to stay close for the next few days, just in case, and so’s Freya. She’s coming to stay with me.”

“Okay.” Adrian drew in his breath, and stroked Sophie’s side in reassurance. “Cheers.”

“
You
could always fetch Rhea, you know,” said Niko. “No harm getting you out of the way and making them wait.”

Adrian nudged Sophie’s forehead, very gently, with his own. “No, I’d rather stay.”

“Yes, I thought you would, you stubborn arse.”

“But it’ll be good to have Freya near.”

“Good in lots of ways.” The lechery had returned to Niko’s tone. “You’re not the only one who can hang out a ‘Do not disturb’ sign, laddie.”

“Too much information, bro,” Adrian said, but a smile lifted the corners of his lips.

“Keep me posted.” Niko raised his voice. “Bye, Sophie.”

“Bye, Niko,” she answered.

Adrian hung up, and set the phone on the floor. He cradled Sophie in both arms. She lay listening to his steady heart, her body cold with dread.

“I might as well stay tonight,” she murmured. “We’re safe here.”

“Sure.”

But what about tomorrow?
she thought.
Or the day after, or the week after that, or some day next year when they least expected it…?

Chapter Thirty-Nine

I
F IT SOUNDS LIKE THEY
were hoping to attack today, or at least soon,” Sophie said the next morning, “then I shouldn’t meet you. I’ll only go to classes, and normal public places like that, and stay in the dorm the rest of the time.” She sat across from Adrian at the Airstream’s table, coffee and cereal between them.

He looked sober and stressed. “I hate it, but yeah, a couple days apart might be wise. We have to assume you’ll be followed. Watched. They’ll be looking for any time you meet one of us and disappear. So you mustn’t do that. Still—” He leaned forward, pointing at her in lawyerly fashion. “Do what a normal person would do if she saw someone stalking her. Call the police. Tell someone. Confront these people, make a scene. And if they lay hands on you, zap them and scream and all that. Although…I don’t know, be careful. They’ll probably be armed.”

She nodded and turned her gaze away, watching a long-tailed bird swoop from one treetop to another. She did want to fight them, as bitterly and viciously as she could, but what if fighting got her hurt, or killed? What if she and Adrian dodged the assassins this time, but next week Thanatos sprang a new plan on them, catching Adrian off guard and killing him?

Then at least Niko or Rhea or someone could take her to the Underworld to see him. But to be unable to touch him, to know he was confined to that cave with his emotions diminished until he felt like becoming reincarnated, and began life again as an infant somewhere…no, that was unbearable.

She turned her face farther away, as if following the bird’s flight, in order to hide the tears welling into her eyes. But the sharp catch in her next breath gave them away.

Adrian came around the table, sliding onto the bench seat beside her and enfolding her in his arms. “Don’t worry. Please don’t. Their plan’s not very good, you know. Think of the strength we have on our side. How easily we can escape into this realm. I don’t think Wilkes even knows we’re reading his email. And Niko’s going to shadow him and see what he can find out. If he sees Wilkes about to attack me or you, he’ll stop him. He wouldn’t let anything happen to us.”

She steadied her voice with another deep breath. “Do they know about Niko?”

“We don’t think so. Even if they suspect he exists, he’s so good at aliases that they’d never recognize him, or know where to look for him.”

“But how is shadowing them going to be enough?”

“Ideally, he’ll get them caught with weapons they shouldn’t have, or trespassing somewhere they shouldn’t, and they’ll get arrested. That’s why it’s important you call the police if they touch you or threaten you. Then you could get restraining orders, even if they don’t get locked up. They’d never be able to explain to a judge why they were lurking around you and behaving like that.”

Sophie sighed, resting in his embrace. “They’ll find another way. Other assassins. They always do.”

“Listen.” Adrian swayed her back and forth in his arms. “We’re the smart ones here. We’re going to win, nearly every time. All they have on their side is surprise and violence—and they’re not even very good at those. We’ve eaten the pomegranate. We have the knowledge of thousands of years.”

“Great, so I know how to milk a goat. And make my own barley bread.”

“Those could come in handy. You never know.”

Finally she smiled, and he chuckled, kissing her on the ear.

“I’m going to miss you tonight, though,” he said, voice husky. “Right now, that’s what I hate them for the most.”

She had a class in half an hour. It was time to leave. He walked her to the newest switchover spot, and kissed her on the lips, his hands framing her face. A tear spilled from her closed eyes, and he wiped it away with his thumb. “We always get back together,” he told her. “Always.”

She opened her eyes. The beauty and familiarity of his face pierced her heart. “I’d rather it was in this life, though.” Her voice quivered.

“It will be. I’ll be careful. So will you. Lie, lie, lie, just like the trickster says.”

“Lie?” She cleared her throat. “In that case, I don’t love you.”

He smiled. “I don’t love you either.” He hugged her and switched realms. With a puff of cold air that smelled of grass and car exhaust, the living world hummed to life around them. They stood under a huge rhododendron, near the edge of campus.

Sophie straightened up with a deep breath. “Do not let them get you. Whatever happens.”

“I promise. You stay safe too.”

She nodded. “I promise.”

Adrian glanced aside as a bicyclist zoomed past on the nearest street. “Better go.” Looking miserable, he kissed her once more. “Bye.”

“Bye.” She kept her eyes locked on his until he vanished.

It’ll be okay
, she repeated as she walked to class, wrestling down the tears.
Knowledge of centuries. We always get back together. It’ll be okay.

Then why didn’t it feel okay?

A
DRIAN LEANED AGAINST
a tree in the spirit realm and closed his eyes, feeling her walk away from him, the strength of her signal fading from a vibrant nearness to a modest gleam.

He heard a rustle of trotting feet and a canine grumble. Opening his eyes, he held out his hand to let Kiri lick it. Appeased, she sat at his feet and gazed at him, as if asking what they should do now.

What he should do. Good question.

Simple. Stay in this realm, smash his mobile and get a new one Sophie didn’t know about, and never approach her again. Not so much as a comment on her blog. Then she’d be safe. Thanatos would sniff around her a while, but they’d eventually realize she didn’t know where he was, and they’d leave her alone.

But it was much too late for that. She’d eaten the pomegranate. It would be psychological torture to leave her now, when she could remember it all but was physically unable to break through into this realm.

Besides, he lacked the strength to stay away from her. Existence without her—especially now that she loved him and wanted to see him—wouldn’t be worth enduring. Far better to risk his life to be with her whenever he could.

But risking hers as well?

Bloody hell, why wouldn’t she just eat the orange and join him over here?

That was a sore point. A few days ago, after he and Sophie had returned from the Underworld, Niko had texted him,
Felt like you two went overseas. Orange cocktail for your girl, then?

Adrian had gritted his teeth, and had been forced to answer,
Not yet. She’s thinking about it a while.

Pity
, was all Niko had said, and then presumably returned to larking about the world, free as a jailbreaking bird.

Adrian knew he shouldn’t resent her for hesitating. He couldn’t expect Sophie to give up her entire earthly life just for him, a mere few weeks after they’d officially met. Besides, her eating the orange wouldn’t solve all their problems. It would only swap one set of problems for another.

As he considered ripping a few limbs off the nearest tree in frustration, another familiar signal strengthened in his mind. Nikolaos was near—and so was Freya.

He turned in the direction the signals streamed from, and within seconds, a white spirit horse streaked down from the sky and skidded to a stop, plowing up a spray of wet grass and dirt. The two riders, sharing a saddle, slid off and called hello to him.

It wouldn’t surprise anyone, Adrian thought, that Aphrodite had been reborn as a curvy Swedish blonde. Though Aphrodite’s hair had been black and her skin olive-toned, somehow he recognized her easily as the same soul. The eyes gave her away—the same shape and expressiveness they’d displayed in every life. She now wore jeans and hiking boots and a blue parka instead of clingy robes and jewels, but she still moved like Aphrodite too, all swaying hips and graceful arms.

She strolled up to Adrian and kissed him on each cheek. She smelled like woodsy, smoky vanilla, a scent he supposed was meant to allure (and usually did, surely), but which only went as far as calming him a bit right now.

“Oh, my dear.” Her Swedish accent rounded her words. With her warm fingers she smoothed back his hair. “It looks quite serious for you.”

He felt a second’s flash of alarm before glimpsing her smile and realizing she only meant he was quite seriously in love.

Niko, having tied up the horse, walked over too. “Told you. They’re right back in the thick of it. Full marital bliss. Quick work, Adrian.”

“It’s not a conquest,” he snapped. “It’s—” Adrian exhaled and looked at their spirit horse. “Why are you here? I thought you were tracking Wilkes and Quentin.”

“Still can’t find Quentin,” Niko said. “I have a hunch on some rental houses; we’ll be checking those out. Wilkes is still in Salem, with nothing exciting showing up in his email yet. So we came to say hello. To the world’s grouchiest person. Because that’s such fun.”

Adrian knew he ought to apologize, but stress and worry delayed the words. “Thanks for coming,” he finally muttered. “I wish I were freer to move around over there, so I could just handle it myself.”

“If it means protecting Sophie, I’m happy to help,” Freya assured. “I can’t wait to meet her. I do hope she joins us.”

“Yeah, hasn’t she shown any interest in that orange?” Niko asked.

Adrian folded his arms, staring past the horse. “She wanted to see it. But not eat it yet.”

When they murmured in pity, or possibly disapproval, he burst out, “You two wouldn’t get it. You got to live decades first, have a career, have kids if you wanted, see them grow up and leave the house. She’s
eighteen
. If she joins us now, that’s it for a normal life. No big events in the real world, no Christmas with the family, no watching her brother graduate high school, no going to her best friend’s wedding, no sitting at her parents’ bedside when they’re dying. Because Thanatos would expect her to be at all those things, and they’d target her, and possibly blow up everyone she loves along with her. Can you blame her for wanting to think it over a bit before joining her weird brand-new boyfriend in his wasteland of ghosts and freakshow animals?”