No. I can’t let that happen. Apollo and Donatello have always been our natural leaders, but with them out of the game,I have to step up. There’s no way I’m letting Kayn hurt them anymore. There’s no way I’m letting him touch my sister.
I have to come up with an escape plan. One way or another, we are not staying here. I am not bowing to Kayn.
CHAPTER4
CASSANDRA
“Amyth, Nancy?” my father asks, and I don’t need to wonder what he thinks about it. From the way he says it, it’s clear he despises the idea of believing in myths. “Don’t give her hopes of doing the impossible. I’m not sending my daughter after a myth, only to find her coming back with her heart broken.”
My heart grows so big it gets hard to breathe for a moment. Since when have I become this soft?
“No, I’d like to hear,” I say because I expect this quest is going to be hard,and I’ll need every possible bit of help.
Nancy clears her throat and shoots a glance at my parents. She pulls her gaze away from my father. He’s glaring at her. But my mom? Mom gives a sharp nod, then looks at me. There’s a fierce determination on her face when she reaches out to hold my hand.
“The women in this family have suffered through a lot, but we’re all made of the same hard stuff,” Mom says, opening a smile. “You beat the Collector, Cassie. If there’s anyone out there who can do this, it’s you.”
Again, onion-cutting ninjas take over,and I have to blink like hell as I look away. When I look up again, Nancy is waiting with a sweet smile on her face.
Helen elbows her. It breaks the spell. “Go on, woman. Tell her.”
Nancy draws in a breath, ignoring Helen. “It’s the story of a siren who fell in love with a man. They passed many hardships to be together because the siren was a princess,and her father wouldn’t accept a lowly mortal forcing her out of the waters.”
“Nancy,” my father interrupts, narrowing his eyes. “I’m sorry, but a siren? How would that even work?”
Helen nods. “Fish lay eggs, right? Maybe she laid eggs, and the man ejaculated all over them?”
I snort. Dad rolls his eyes so far I’m sure he glimpses his brain. “Mom, I was not talking about that part.”
“Some sirens change in and out of their tails at will,” Mom points out. I widen my eyes at her. Are sirens a thing too? Wow, this world never stops amazingme. “They’re not shifters, though. They’re older. Different biology, too.”
“But they’re close enough to humans that hybrids exist,” Nancy completes. “It’s rare, but it happens. And this siren loved her human, but her father wouldn’t allow their relationship. She threatened to run. He threatened to lock her up. When the king saw how much she suffered for it, he allowed the relationship, on the condition the human passed a series of trials.”
This sounded like a myth alright. Like a story out of the classics. Nancy takes a sip from her coffee, then Mom tops the cup up.
“Did he give up?” I ask, already knowing the answer. It’s not a good myth if the hero gives up.
Nancy shakes her head. “And that surprised the king. Every new trial, the human would take it on. He faced everything. That’s how much he loved the siren. Love wasn’t enough, though. On the last trial, his human body succumbed. He passed away.”
“Before completing it?” My brows shoot up. “Before they could be together?”
Nancy nods. “And it’s said the siren’s heartbreak was so excruciating, she passed away, too.”
Her words sting. Can that happen in real life? All of my men are connected to me through a sort of mating bond. With my death, would the bond break? Would my death hurt them more than emotionally? I can’t fathom the idea of them getting so sad they die because of me.
Silence drapes over us. Mom tops up my cup of coffee. It’s amazing how real it smells. I bring the cup up to my lips and breathe the scent in.
“What happenedthen?” I ask Nancy, her eyes glittering.
“The Underworld is divided. There’s a special place for every species out there. A place for wolf shifters, another for Shadow Mages...” She smiles. “Once upon a time, the spirits couldn’t mingle. It didn’t matter if a Shadow Mage,” and she points to my father, “marries a witch.” She points to my mother. “In the afterlife, they would forever be separated.”
I frown. “That’s awful.” I would be alone for eternity, each of my mates sent to a different spot.
Nancy nods her agreement. “The siren and the man had different afterlives. They were supposed to spend eternity separated, even after so much toil. So the siren made her way to the palace, and she sang to the Devil himself. It’s said her song was so heartbreaking, so beautifully honest, that the Devil took pity on her. He not only opened the barriers so people from different species could spend eternity together, but he also allowed them to go back. He allowed herto live with her man,the life they deserved.”
My mother hums in response. “And that’s why families can stick together. A person can choose where she goes now. To her ancestors, or her loved one. Ones, in your case.” Mom chuckles. “We’ll need a big house for when you and your mates come here.”
Let’s hope it’s not anytime soon. “Okay, so,” I say, looking at Nancy. “Sing to the Devil. There’s only oneminor problem. He would flayme alive if he heard me singing.”