The Unclaimed (University of the Gods Trilogy Book 1) (33 page)

“You failed”, the woman in the mirror said sharply. “Miserably.”

The girl with the now all-white hair bared her perfect teeth and stuck her finger at the mirror.

“No, mother”, she hissed. “We failed.”

“Your failing to control Scylla cost us one of our own and Mia is lost as well”, Hera hissed back. “It looks to me like you are too weak to see this through.”

Arissa, who a few days back might have felt insulted, didn’t even listen. A lot had changed since that day on the beach. She had discovered a power in herself she hadn’t known existed. She knew she was much stronger than everyone thought and she would show them. And sooner or later she would get rid of them all. Especially her brother, who refused to die no matter what she did, wouldn’t survive the second year here at the university, she would make sure of that.

“I will do everything it takes”, Arissa said and Hera’s face softened into a grimace of mock understanding.

“I know you will, dear”, she said with no trace of warmth in her voice. “And that is why you will continue to listen to me and do as I say. Otherwise, I might just tell my husband about your little plot to kill his favorite son and then you will spend the rest of your days in the deepest corners of Hades. If you are lucky.”

“I thought Zeus couldn’t know about your involvement in our little scheme”, Arissa answered and it was hard to control the hatred in her voice.

She and Hera weren’t allies because they trusted each other, they were in on it together because they had the same ultimate goal. Well, almost. Hera wanted to get rid of all divine descendants because they were an abomination, something that shouldn’t exist, just like she believed that humans were no more than vermin populating the earth who would eventually destroy themselves once there was no divine protection for them anymore. Arissa was fine with destroying the other demigods and especially getting rid of her brother but she would like to have something left to rule over once she became Achilles’ successor here on earth.

She had never understood why it should be Alexander instead of her. The prophecy said that their mother, the nymph Thetis, would give birth to a child greater than its father but she was Zeus’s child as well. Still, her father hadn’t even considered her. And she would make him pay dearly for it.

“Whom do you think he would believe?” Hera said acidly. “His loving wife or the daughter who tried to kill her brother even during birth?”

Arissa’s umbilical cord had wrapped around Alexander’s throat and almost strangled him. Arissa had wished a million times that she would have gotten rid of him there and then.

And now there was this girl, Cassandra, who kept getting into her way. It wasn’t enough that it had become harder to control Ben lately, now she also had to reckon with that stupid bitch who saved her brother over and over again. She would have to go as well. Unfortunately, she had lost Mia whose magic had allowed her to control the creatures she had called even though neither the small hydra, nor Medusa nor Scylla had come through for her.

“Fine”, Arissa replied and took a deep breath. “We’ll return home tomorrow and we’ll find a way.”

“Not on Mount Olympus”, Hera said sharply. “If you try anything up here, I will personally see to it that you will be punished. Do you understand?”

Arissa sighed.

“Of course, mother”, Arissa said and turned around. “I have to go pack now. See you soon.”

With that she simply walked out of the room. She needed to say good-bye to one more person who had been very helpful these past few months. She walked across campus with a hood drawn over her head, careful not to be seen by anyone. When she arrived at the round stone building, it took her a while to find the spot where she needed to press to open the hidden door.

When she entered the room, the woman she had been looking for, lay sprawling on some cushions like she had been waiting for her and was lazily playing with a necklace in her hand.

“I hope no one saw you”, she said languidly.

Arissa didn’t answer. Of course no one had seen her.

“Give it back to me”, Arissa said and stretched out her hand. “Bear shouldn’t have taken it. It was a stupid thing to do.”

“Almost as stupid as letting Mia live”, the woman said. “We should have cut her throat properly.”

Arissa remembered with a shudder how her body had been taken over by that foreign force because it had been the only way to give enough power to Mia without revealing who was helping them. Now Mia had become a loose end and Arissa still felt like she wasn’t entirely back to her old self.

“Ready to go home?” the woman said, sensing Arissa’s discomfort and enjoying it.

“As ready as ever”, Arissa replied and snatched the necklace dangling from the woman’s hand. “See you next semester, Circe.”

And with that she went away.

Circe, who was known to most other people as Madame Margot, arched her back like a cat. She had enjoyed the rush of power when she had been in Arissa’s body. The dominance of a demigod such as Arissa combined with her own substantial abilities had been… intoxicating. It would be hard to control herself now that she had tasted that kind of power again. She heard a noise, wrinkled her nose and sighed. Then she turned herself into Madame Margot. Of course Heracles only knew that version of herself. It was softer, prettier and more sensual than her true self. But most of all it was easier to control herself that way. For today. But who knew what tomorrow might bring.

Writing a book is fun. It is also a lot of work and takes up time and space that is not always easy to come by. During the writing of this book, my husband and two children were very patient with me, putting up with a frequently empty fridge, heaps of clothes lying around and an absent-minded Mummy that forgot to pack the right shoes for practice (or in one case forgot to bring them at all); I love them all the more for it.

My thanks go to my really good friend Kate who not only proofread the book but also inspired me to even think of trying because she simply went ahead and changed her life and dared to dream – thank you for your courage and for being my inspiration! Thanks also to your family who also helped a lot with the book!

My bright and beautiful sister Hanna was the driving force behind writing this book. From the start, she listened to my ideas, read through every version and always encouraged me to write more and for that I’ll be eternally grateful. My thanks also go to my parents who are always there for us and are the best parents you could wish for and to all my friends who told me to go ahead.

I also want to thank Miri Gebert who made the cover look perfect; she is a delight to work with and I am looking forward to working with her again for
The Dark Ones, University of the Gods Trilogy, Part 2
. I also want to thank Mary Hood for creating the beautiful, serene cover art; your art is an inspiration. For more info on her work, take a look at her website: www.whimsicalmuse.com. It’s magical!

Music is the soundtrack of our lives and there were two songs that could frequently be heard in our house when I was writing the book: David Guetta’s
Lovers on the sun
gave me the rhythm and Nickelback’s
What are you waiting for
additional courage.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Alexandra Stephens lives in the Southwestern part of Germany with her husband and two children. She loves reading and some of her favorite authors include Suzanne Collins, Rick Riordan, Jasper Fforde, Eoin Colfer, George R.R. Martin, J.K. Rowling and her all-time favorite, Sir Terry Pratchett.

Whenever she has time, she sits down to write. She has published a novel in German; this is her first book in English.