Skata. Orpheus’s lineage was one secret she’d kept for many years. And had hoped to forever keep from the Argonauts.
Isadora caught Casey’s surprised look before she turned back toward the Sirens, careful to keep her face as neutral as possible. “So you want us to find the warlock before this Argolean hybrid does.”
“Yes.”
“And what of the hybrid?”
“We’ll take care of him.”
Isadora didn’t like the sound of that at all. She glanced toward Theron and read his no way in hell look. He wasn’t Orpheus’s biggest fan—not by a long shot—but even he knew Orpheus had helped the Argonauts on several occasions.
She refocused on Khloe. “I’ll speak with my Argonauts and see what we can do. Unfortunately we’re stretched thin as it is. We recently lost a guardian, as I’m sure you’re aware, and with the increase in daemon-hybrid activity, in addition to Atalanta’s daemons still roaming the human realm, my guardians have their hands full.”
“Of course,” Khloe said, though her olive green eyes screamed her skepticism. “If they could keep a lookout and report back anything they hear to us, though, Athena would be most appreciative.”
“I’m sure that won’t be a problem,” Isadora lied. “And if you happen to come across this Argolean hybrid, I would appreciate the same.”
“Of course,” Khloe replied in what was very clearly the biggest lie of all.
Loud footfalls echoed from the hallway. Isadora looked toward the door just as Titus stepped into the room and froze, his hazel eyes shifting to Isadora, the Sirens, over to Theron, and back to Isadora again.
Isadora moved toward the Sirens and held out her hand. “Please send my best to Athena.”
“Thank you, Your Highness.”
They each grasped her hand in turn, bowed slightly, then turned for the door. Titus moved back to let them pass.
When they were finally alone, Theron said, “Titus, close those doors.”
A lock of wavy hair fell free of the leather tie at the nape of Titus’s neck as he shut the double doors and turned to face the room once more with no way that was real eyes. “Was that what I think it was?”
“Yeah,” Theron muttered. “Skata.” He pinned Isadora with a hard look. “You don’t seem surprised by the announcement good ol’ O is a hybrid.”
Isadora caught Demetrius’s gaze at Theron’s side and drew from his strength. He knew the truth about Orpheus too. He’d been in Atalanta’s lair. He’d seen Orpheus’s glowing eyes. Though Orpheus hadn’t shifted then—at least when she’d been there—it had been more than clear what he really was.
She looked back at Theron. “I’m not.”
“Holy Hades,” Zander said. “Orpheus is a hybrid? All this time? How the hell is that even possible?”
Isadora raked a hand through her short hair as shock rippled across the room. Even she had no explanation for that one. Orpheus was Argolean, Medean, and daemon. It made no sense, and yet there he was.
“He’s an Argonaut now, too,” Theron pointed out with a dark look that said this was not at all what he’d expected or wanted. “Don’t forget that. As the last remaining descendant of Perseus’s line, he’s got Gryphon’s guardian markings. Man, this is a clusterfuck. An Argonaut-daemon hybrid. Wait until the Council catches wind of this.”
“Don’t forget Orpheus is also Lucian’s nephew,” Isadora said. “And even before we lost Gryphon, he was next in line to take Lucian’s place when the Council leader retires.”
Titus snorted near the door. “Now that’s something I’d like to see.”
“No way a daemon hybrid will ever serve on the Council of Elders,” Theron said. “Skata. When did you find out?”
Isadora dropped her arm and stepped into the middle of the room. “When I discovered his lineage is irrelevant. What remains is that this is Orpheus we’re talking about. Before we even found Casey, I had a vision that Orpheus would somehow be important to our cause, and he’s proven that time and again.”
She knew her foresight wouldn’t be enough to convince them, so she turned to Zander and Callia, both of whom looked as shell-shocked as Theron. “And let’s not forget, without Orpheus’s help you wouldn’t have your son Max now either.”
Zander put his arm on Callia’s shoulder, pulled her back against his chest protectively.
Isadora turned from face to face, pleading a case she’d known from the first day she’d assumed the crown she’d one day have to make. “Orpheus is of no more threat to us than Nick is.”
She knew the reference to Nick Blades, the leader of the half-breed colony in the human realm—a colony made up of Argolean-humans—would resonate with the group. Aside from being their biggest ally in the human realm, Nick was also Demetrius’s half brother, and he wanted to see Atalanta and her daemons destroyed as much as they did.
“We would be remiss if we aided Athena and her Sirens in their quest to persecute him,” she added.
“Orpheus has always had a hard-on for power,” Titus pointed out. “He kept that damn Orb after Max brought it to us. Shit, he practically gave it to that warlock and started this whole damn mess.”
Before she said the words, she knew Titus read them in her mind, but she said them anyway, for the benefit of the others. “We know he did that in an attempt to save Gryphon’s life. He had no idea that warlock’s energy had destroyed Gryphon’s soul or that the warlock would harness the Orb’s power to take possession of Gryphon’s body.”
Titus crossed his arms over his massive chest. “Doesn’t change the fact Gryph’s in Tartarus right now because O fucked things up.”
No, it didn’t. Just as it didn’t change the fact the Argonauts stuck together. They were all still mourning the loss of their brother in battle. And even though Orpheus now had Gryphon’s guardian markings, he would forever be an outcast as far as they were concerned. The one responsible for Gryphon’s death.
Theron pinched the bridge of his nose as if he had the mother of all headaches. “We’re not saying Orpheus is the enemy, Your Highness. We’re just pointing out his track record isn’t so great. And now that we know he’s a hybrid on top of it all…”
Theron let the words linger, and Isadora’s protective wall where Orpheus was concerned sprang up. She owed him her life. More than her life. She owed him for saving Demetrius in Atalanta’s lair and for helping her stop the Council from executing him. She also owed him for protecting the life of her unborn child, a child who she was every day more and more convinced would play an important role in this world. She wasn’t about to let Zeus or Athena or any Siren “take him down.”
“His intentions are not at all what you think.”
“How does anyone know what he thinks?” Theron asked. “He’s a hybrid, for shit’s sake.”
Footsteps echoed in the hall again, followed by the crack of the door opening. Before Isadora could answer, Cerek peeked in the room, his short brown hair mussed as if he’d just run through a wind tunnel. “Um, guys. Sorry to interrupt, but we just got a message from Nick at the colony. There’s trouble.”
“What kind of trouble?” Isadora asked.
“Hellhound trouble. Nick’s sentries killed two earlier tonight while out on patrol.”
“Skata,” Theron mumbled. “Why the hell would Hades be sending hounds to Montana?”
“He wasn’t,” Casey said, stepping over and touching her mate’s arm. “He was sending them for Orpheus.” She glanced from Theron to Isadora. “Where would Orpheus go in the human realm if he was in trouble?”