With that in mind, I take a quick detour to the closest of Athena’s safe houses. We have them scattered about the city, designed to be a perfect hiding place if we need to disappear for a short while or the perfect, fully-stocked location to duck into if we need something for a job. Weapons and medical gear and a few bedrooms to crash in.
This one is blessedly empty. Thank the gods. I’m not sure what my face is doing, and I can’t keep my doubt from surfacing. From the truth from surfacing. This woman doesn’t deserve to die for sleeping with a married man. As best I can tell, it’s practically a sport in the city among the upper crust. They play political games in and out of the bedroom and no one raises any brows as long as they keep things pure and wholesome on the surface. Hypocrites, all of them. If Odysseus hadn’t been so stubborn about taking her out in public, it wouldn’t have come to this, and now she will pay the price instead of the person who rightly should.
She’s not married. He is.
“Not my call to make,” I mutter as I dig through the medical supplies until I come up with the proper pill bottle. I check and double check to ensure it’s the right medication. She won’t suffer. I’ll ensure that much.
Funny how that doesn’t make me feel even a little bit better.
I take the time to crush up enough pills to finish the job and then scrape all the powder back into the bottle. I slip it into the pocket of my pants and go dig through a closet until I come up with a mask. I already knew it wasn’t a social call when Athena summoned me, so I’m dressed for work in black tactical pants, boots, and a long-sleeved black fitted shirt. I pick up the black mask and pause. The mistress dies tonight. Wearing a mask hardly matters, nor does whether the woman sees me, because it’s not like she’ll live to talk about the fact that one of Athena’s people showed up to murder her.
Still…
I shove the mask into my pocket and survey the space. I’m forgetting something… “The cameras!” I’m sure Athena will squash whatever investigation Ares wants to form, and I bet there will be pressure from both families to keep things quiet, but there’s no reason to tempt fate.
I take a breath and dial Bellerophon. They don’t make me wait long before their low voice answers, “Bellerophon here.”
“I need a favor and it’s work related, but I can’t give details.”
They barely pause. “Of course, Medusa. What can I do for you?”
I rattle off the address of the mistress’s building. “I need the cameras in the parking garage, stairs, and thirtieth floor on a loop for a few hours tonight.” It shouldn’t take long to deal with this, but better safe than sorry.
“Give me a moment.” Movement on their end and then the soft sound of typing. “That security system is one we have a back door into, so that’s not a problem. Do you want a loop or simply want the footage erased?”
I worry my bottom lip. That’s a good question. Missing footage is convenient in that there’s no worry that it’ll be recovered and it’s unlikely the in-house security will realize there’s a problem until they go to search it up and find it gone. A loop is slightly riskier because there’s a small chance someone might notice, but it covers my tracks more effectively. “A loop, please.”
“Got it.” They hesitate. “I’m off through the weekend. I’m more than happy to play backup to whatever Athena has you doing.”
It’s tempting to say yes. So incredibly tempting. I like Bellerophon quite a bit. They’re quiet and competent and they never make me feel like the monster I’m certain I am most of the time. They also don’t treat my scars as either something horrific to stare at, or something to pretend doesn’t exist. The scars are just part of me, and they don’t see a reason to comment on them. I don’t know that I’d call us friends, but I’m closer with them than most of my coworkers, if you can call the other people who follow Athena’s darker orders coworkers. “I appreciate the offer, but this is a lone wolf kind of situation.”
“Got it.” Some more typing. “If you change your mind, let me know. The loop begins in fifteen minutes.”
“Thanks, Bell.”
“Anytime.”
I hang up, unable to decide if I feel better or worse. It doesn’t matter. I know how I’ll feel after the night’s events come to a conclusion.
Like the monster I am.
CHAPTER 2
MEDUSA
It’s child’s play to get into the building. Even if the cameras weren’t on loops thanks to Bellerophon, they have blind spots a mile wide. I slip through them without issue and take the long journey up the stairs to the thirtieth floor. I’m strong and I train daily, but thirty flights of stairs are enough to wind even me and have my thighs shaking a bit as I finally reach the proper landing.