Sirenz Back in Fashion (16 page)

Nah.

“What is this place?” I asked.

He smiled wistfully. “It's for my mother.”

“She likes swans.”

“You don't know the story?” Caz cocked his head. “Zeus fell in love with Leda, my mother, and came to her in the form of a swan.”

“How romantic!” I said. “Swans mate for life!”

“Uh-huh.” He raised an eyebrow at me. “Not this swan. But mom has nothing but fond memories, and he's looked out for us even though we aren't very close. He's not the ‘daddy' type.” He looked up and surveyed his surroundings. “But even as king of the pantheon, there's not much he can do to help us.”

“That's what I wanted to talk to you about,” I said.

“What's up?” he asked.

“Let's just say my partner is not getting me out of here anytime soon. She can't seem to do what she needs to. I think she's now friends with the person she's supposed to send here and doesn't want to admit it, much less get her to put on the fleece so I can go home. And your twin Pollux hiding up in my world? I think those two things are connected.” It had been in the back of my mind; Meg had to send someone to Tartarus, and Caz's twin was hunted on the mortal plane. Of course they had to be the same person. Hades wanted Caz's sister.

He looked away. “That's what I thought too.”

“So what are we going to do about it?” I demanded.

His head snapped up. “What can we do about it? I've been trying to find Eurydice, but no one knows anything, or if they do, they're not telling me.” He held his arms open, gesturing to the space. “We're stuck here, unless your friend does her job and you go home. But don't count on it. Even though Pollux can't free me or summon Zeus while he's alone, he knows all about the Golden Fleece. It's why your friend is having difficulty. There's no way a demi-god would put it on. Only humans can't resist the fleece. And from what you tell me, it sounds like she doesn't have the heart anyway.”

I held up a hand. “Wait. Did you just say
he
?”

Confusion crept across his face. “Yes, Pollux. My twin brother.”

I jumped up. “You never told me you had a brother!”

He rubbed the bridge of his nose. “I told you I had a twin.”

I slapped my hand on my forehead. “You never said a twin
brother
.
This Paulina has to be him. He's parading around as a girl? I have to warn Meg! Oh my God, I hope she hasn't been walking around in her panties!”

Caz grabbed my shoulders. “You can't! If she knows he's a guy, then as a Siren she could use her power to get him to put on the fleece. He'd have to do it—he's part human, and without me there, he's not strong enough to resist. He and I would be imprisoned here forever! Please, I'll beg—don't do this.”

If I didn't tell Meg, she would fail and we'd both be here forever. If I did, and she succeeded, then Caz and Pollux were doomed. I didn't know what to do. Even if I found Eurydice and escaped, it was only a temporary solution at best, because sooner or later Hades would be breathing down my neck, waving the contract and singing about non-fulfillment. Then it would be back to the Land of the Dead for all of us. And he probably wouldn't be as lenient and smoochy as he was now.

With a heaviness in my heart, I said, “Even if we escape, the contract has to be enforced if Meg fails. Hades will come for both of us. Unless I can appeal to Hera to hide me. She helped us out last time. Either way, you're asking me to choose you and Pollux over Meg and myself.”

Caz shook his head. “Let's not get Hera involved. We'll look for Eurydice. If we find her, we find the way out. Let's do it at the ball. It'll be chaos, and the perfect opportunity for us to sneak out of here. Once we escape I'll call my father. He'll be able to help us. But we have to get out of Tartarus first.”

Glancing around the temple, I realized that Caz must be lonely. Even though there were a lot of people in the Underworld and he had relatives and friends here, he couldn't be with Pollux. Twin bonds were strong. Being an only child, I envied him that. Yet I knew what it was like to be separated from someone I cared for—I missed Meg. And now I understood how this whole situation had her confused.

But what about Caz's warning about not trusting any of the gods? Did that include his father? Or him? No matter what, I had to trust someone. Reaching for his hand, I marveled at the smooth strength in his fingers. There were calluses on his fingertips, no doubt from playing his lyre. He wasn't bad, although I wasn't going to rush out and order the CD.

“Let's try to find Eurydice again.” I stood up and smoothed the hated dress. “Where do you think she could be?”

He looked up at me. “You really look beautiful in that. Better than most of the goddesses.”

Well, maybe the dress wasn't that bad.

“Thank you.” I preened demurely.

He reached a hand around the back of my neck and pulled me close. As we leaned together, our lips met and his mouth gently explored mine. I wrapped my arms around him and pressed against him, losing myself in the kiss and forgetting everything for a few moments except how hard my heart was beating.

“I wish we could stay like this forever,” he said, reluctantly withdrawing his arms and stepping back.

“Just not here,” I whispered. There was that adorable cocksure grin. Holding hands, we stepped out of the temple.

“I've searched all the ancient worlds,” Caz said with a sigh. “Greek, even Roman. I still don't know where she is.” He wiped the sweat from his brow, his hair clinging to his head in soft, loose waves. What I wouldn't give to have a few of those curls, I thought as I flipped back my straight tresses. I really liked Caz—a lot. He was funny and cute and sweet and tortured and I couldn't stay with him. A romantic myth in the flesh.

“Maybe she wanted a change of scenery. Wouldn't you be bored spending eternity in the same old place, seeing the same people? Especially when there are so many other places you could visit?” I suggested.

Running a hand through his glorious hair, he said, “That makes sense. But there are too many worlds; it would take us forever to search them all. Not that we don't have eternity.”

“But Meg and Pollux don't.”

“I do have something that will speed things up.” Putting two fingers in his mouth, Caz gave a piercing whistle. Almost immediately, the most beautiful stallion I ever could imagine came galloping toward us, creating a cloud of dust. He snorted, shaking his head. Sleek yet heavily muscled, he was magnificent. His white coat practically glowed in the light.

“Hop on.” Before I could protest, Caz jumped onto the horse's back and reached down a hand.

I winced.
City girl here!
“I've never been on a horse.”

His beguiling smile and the chance to cuddle up intimately close with him was almost all the encouragement I needed. A helmet and seat belt would have been nice, though.

“Don't worry, I'm an expert.” He pulled me up with a graceful ease. “Where to?”

Time to play Sherlock Holmes. “What interested her, besides Orpheus?”

Caz frowned. “His music and his poetry, but mostly his music. Whenever he created something new, he played it for her first.”

“So we have to figure out where she'd go to enjoy music. Personally speaking, I wouldn't want to hear the same thing year after year. Heck, I get tired of it after a few weeks. So, what would she like and where would she go?”

Turning his head sideways, Caz said, “I've been here long enough to have heard it all—Italian opera, experimental grunge, New Orleans jazz. She could be in a thousand places.”

I smiled broadly and wrapped my arms around his hard sculpted middle. I bet if he lay down, I could bounce a quarter off it. “I know where we should try,” I purred in his ears.

He leaned back, his body against mine. A delicious warmth spread through me at the contact. I was glad he couldn't see my face because it had to be flaming red at that moment.

“Where?” he said, his voice huskier than usual. The closeness was having an effect on him as well.

“Someplace where she could get lost, and where musicians aspire to go. Eurydice's probably in a club, something small, intimate, with not too many people. Let's start out in New York. I know my way around the music venues, thanks to hanging out with Meg. If she's not there, then we'll check Los Angeles, London, and go from there. Hades has to have his own versions here. Do you know what Eurydice looks like?”

Caz pursed his lips. “There aren't too many depictions of her. She and Orpheus are the only two people who almost got out. That kind of information is valuable.”

“And dangerous,” I agreed.

Caz nodded, and nudged the horse into a trot to a deserted and dirty little alley. He pointed to a little plaque on a crumbling wall. Three figures stood out in carved relief, and they were painted to look lifelike. I recognized one of them immediately from his crazy helmet.

“Hermes!”

“Yep. That's him on the left. The one with the lyre on the right is Orpheus, and the girl in the middle is Eurydice.”

I stared at the carving. Eurydice had long dark hair, large doe-like eyes, and a button nose. Like all the other gods and mythical people I'd met, she was gorgeous. No wonder Orpheus was smitten.

“I've seen enough,” I said. “Let's go.”

We galloped into downtown New York, Tartarus style. No one blinked at the incongruity of it. It was almost like the real place, but I suspect that in the real place, a girl and a hunky guy dressed in ancient Greek attire, atop a horse of Herculean proportions, would be remarked upon. We dismounted, and Caz whispered into the horse's ear. It took off, back the way we had come.

Bustling city streets, traffic. Now I was in familiar territory. I led Caz through the city maze. We searched the smaller clubs one by one; the Black Door, the Psychedelic Garden, the Golden Goose, and others, asking people if they knew Eurydice. We came up empty, but I wasn't about to give up.

The inside of the Liar Lyre club was dark and loud and smoky. I scanned the faces I could see, but no one resembled the girl on the plaque. Near the stage, a guy with long hair and sandals sat on one of the tables, swaying in time to the music. Under the low lights, a wraithlike man in dirty ripped jeans clutched a microphone close to his mouth, singing with a raspy voice. His messy blond hair shook as he moved his head.

“Yeah! Kurt! Wooooooo!” Rocker Dude on the table clapped his hands over his head when the song was over. I made my move.

“Excuse me,” I said, tapping him on the shoulder and flashing a winning smile. “I just got here. I'm looking for my friend—maybe you know her? Eurydice?”

“Yeah,” he said, still swaying although no music was playing. He peered at me through the smoke and jerked a thumb toward the backstage area. “She's hanging with the band.”

Score! Let's hear it for the blonde.
I snagged an obviously untouched burger off the table and took a huge bite. I'd forgotten to eat and it wasn't the first time. My stomach was protesting. I really needed some type of routine or I was going to starve to death and then I
would
be stuck here.

The burger polished off, I filched a Coke from a waitress to wash it down. No one exchanged money for anything as far as I'd seen, so technically it wasn't stealing. I turned to go, but Rocker Dude grabbed my arm.

“Wait, pretty lady! You don't want to miss the next act! Hendrix is up!”

Nodding and smiling, I pulled away without difficulty and grabbed Caz's hand. We were about to cash in. Then the watch started chiming.

Meg!
Now that we knew where Eurydice was, the rest should be easy. I could tell Meg what was going on and that we'd be out of here soon. Once informed, she could work with Pollux to figure out what to do as soon as Caz and I were on the other side. I turned to go.

“You can't leave now,” said Caz, his voice urgent and his grip strong on my arm.

“We know where Eurydice is. I have to talk to Meg,” I said.

“She could be gone by the time you get back and then we'd have to search for her all over again. Unless … ” He paused. “Unless you want me to try and get the information. But if she recognizes me, she may disappear. I don't know how she'll react.”

I was torn. Could I miss my talk with Meg? After what I said to Hermes, what would she think? I bowed my head in frustration.

Caz squeezed my hand. “We have to talk to Eurydice now. The ball will be our best—and maybe only—chance to use it.”

His earnest appeal and his logic convinced me. I was going to have to believe that this would work out and that Meg wouldn't abandon me.

We worked our way around back and there she was, a girl around my age, dressed all in black but with an ancient gold armband. I tried hard not to stare at Elvis and Jim Morrison chatting it up. Meg would just die if she saw this.

Remembering that the tragic heroine was trying to keep a low profile, I inched my way over.

“Eurydice?”

She started, probably not used to being recognized, and eyed me warily.

“Sorry. Don't know who you're talking about.”

It was her, and I didn't need Rocker Dude to confirm it. She looked exactly like the girl on the plaque.

“A guy in the audience told us you were here,” I pressed.

She closed her eyes and let out a long sigh. “I can't believe he let it spill again—” She stopped and gasped as Caz stepped up.

“Castor!” She jumped up off the speaker. Several heads turned our way and some people began easing away from us.