Medusa's Desire (The Fate of Eros #1) (The Fate of Eros Series) (24 page)

Medusa slapped her forehead. "You don't understand. There's a reason people die when they look into my eyes. It's because my scales, my disfigured face, and my eyes are so terrifying to look at that their bodies literally transform because of it."

"Nonsense." Perseus waved his hand dismissively. "Have you ever seen yourself in a mirror?"

Medusa crossed her arms. "You know that's impossible. I can't see my true self in a mirror."

"Then my point stands." He poked her in the chest. "Besides, it's what is in your heart that makes you glorious, not what's on the outside."

She melted at his sappy line and the two of them brushed lips. Heat quivered through her body until she felt as if she was on fire. They would have been lost in their passions if someone hadn't entered the room and asked for Perseus' help to settle an argument between the farmer and one of the blacksmiths over who would get to live closer to the lake.

Perseus had said he never wanted to be king and he was never officially pronounced as such, but people knew he was the leader anyway. They came to him with their problems. They listened to his judgments.

Perseus' castle was erected quickly, using brick made from clay and wood. It wasn't as huge as other palaces they had traveled to, but it did have a dining hall and separate rooms for Perseus, Danae, and Andromeda. He invited the whole town to live inside until their own houses were built. Fortus liked this because it meant he could work on his art inside the castle, to find where his masterpieces would rest and how the light would reflect on them.

He carved grapes on vines over the entryways. He made statues of Zeus and Athena–the ones who had appointed Perseus to his holy task. Athena wore full-length armor covered in scales. Medusa had never seen a statue like it.

Perseus' mouth tightened as he analyzed the final products. "What is that Athena is wearing?"

Fortus' mouth fell open. "You mean you haven't heard?"

Perseus shook his head.

"Varicia told me about them."

Varicia was the farmer's teenage daughter. Her large black eyes made her look like an owl. Her pale skin and frail form were sickly. She had become the town's priestess. She prayed to the gods, went into trances, and performed animal sacrifices in the woods outside.

"Varicia had a vision about it," Fortus said. "She saw Athena wearing armor made from the skin of Medusa."

Medusa hoped this was true. That meant the gods had believed their lie, but it also meant her sisters probably bought it, too. Medusa frowned.

"I didn't know," Perseus replied. "I haven't seen Athena since this whole thing happened."

Thank Hades because Medusa was pretty sure she would have seen through the ruse somehow if she'd been around. The body of Medusa's "corpse" was enough to keep her pacified for now.

Struggling to get food at first, they were forced to hunt in the woods. Medusa helped by pointing out edible plants to Perseus.

It got better when they explored enough to find a nearby village. They came in once a week with pelts from the animals they killed that they traded for seeds and goats. It would be a long time before the farmers' harvest was ready to eat, though.

Some villagers in the town saw what they were doing and agreed to pledge themselves to Perseus. They were either mercenaries looking for work-Perseus was happy to provide them shelter and food in exchange for protection of the town-or people searching for a new start. They brought their wealth with them.

Silky sheets, homemade furniture, and silver dishes went up in the castle. It was simple, but gorgeous.

Danae and Andromeda got close very quickly. It made Medusa miserable to watch them gossip to each other and giggle as Danae taught Andromeda to sew. Andromeda poked herself so much with the needle that she bled all over the material. Danae laughed and enjoyed her company, talking about how she had once wished to have a daughter of her own to talk to. Perseus wasn't the best conversationalist.

They might as well have been jamming the needles into Medusa's heart. She missed her mother. Before her dad had gambled all their money away, they had enjoyed going shopping for clothes and the day's food in the marketplace. They took their servants as escorts and asked each other's opinions on each item.

Her mother wasn't just dead. It was worse than that–she didn't exist anymore. Medusa would someday be in Tartarus, but the worst part about it wouldn't be the torment. It would be the knowledge that she got to live on in the afterlife, while her mother didn't. She was just a memory now. Medusa knew it was her eyes that had done it, but she blamed the gods. None of this would have happened without their interference.

Medusa shook her head, trying to get all the negative thoughts she was having out of it. She needed to be as positive as possible to get through the night. Perseus was throwing his first party-a housewarming party-inside the palace ever since construction had finished.

Events like this wound up making her feel more lonely than normal. She wasn't able to interact with Perseus, as talking to and touching the air would make him look crazy, and she couldn't interact with anyone else either. They all thought she was dead, so she was forced to watch on in silence, regardless of what happened. Even when Andromeda would link arms with Perseus or ask him to dance with her.

Danae wasn't making things any easier because she kept elbowing Perseus in the side and winking at him whenever Andromeda made advances towards him. She thought that the two of them would make a lovely match.

Medusa rubbed her belly. She had begun to feel the baby moving. Would Danae really push Perseus like this if he knew another woman-even though she was a monster-was pregnant with his child? She wanted to tell Perseus about it, but froze every time she tried to bring the subject up. She was afraid if she told him the truth that he would abandon her. Isn't that what most men do when they find out the woman they are sleeping with was pregnant? It brought so many complications with it that they weren't ready for.

Could they reveal the child to the kingdom once it was born? How would they explain its existence? Who would they say was the mother? Would it turn everyone into stone that stared at it? How would they hide a crying child if this was the case? All those were great reasons to get rid of her.

Andromeda wore a bright red gown to the party. Her ringlets framed her dark face. Her full lips had been dyed red with berries and her brown eyes were large and seductive. The men of the party openly admired her, even the ones with wives. Why couldn't Andromeda like one of them instead?

A few men played the flute, the lyre, and the harp in the corner. Everyone danced and laughed until they were exhausted before sitting and being served dinner at the table that had been set on one side of the room.

Perseus smiled at Andromeda and the two of them exchanged a knowing look as everyone dove into their venison and pork. The wonderful feast even included some butter for the sweet rolls that had been baked.

Medusa stood in the corner, glaring at the two of them. Her arms were crossed. What did that look mean? The two of them knew something she didn't know and it made her feel nauseous contemplating what it was.

Perseus tapped his fork against one of the glasses to get everyone's attention. The smiling guests all turned to him.

"I must admit," Perseus said. "I didn't tell any of you the whole story of why I have invited you here. We have more to celebrate than just the completed construction of this castle."

Andromeda giggled and squeezed Perseus' shoulder. Danae looked on with pride, her eyes tearing up. Medusa's heart pounded. He couldn't be about to say what it sounded like he was going to announce, could he?

Perseus looked into Andromeda's eyes and smiled. "Andromeda and I have decided that we will be getting married. The ceremony will take place in a few weeks."

The world beneath Medusa disappeared as her body numbed. She was so shocked by this news that she couldn't process what was happening at first. Was he really breaking up with her like this? She had thought the two of them were happy.

She ran from the room, barely containing her sobs with deep breaths. People were already standing to congratulate the two of them and it was difficult to weave between their bodies. She didn't stop running until she was in the vast courtyard, alone enough that she could cry without being discovered.

Roses grew in front of her. Once, she had found them to be romantic. She plucked one of them and devoured it, thorns and all. She enjoyed the way it cut apart her throat.

She stared at the trees. She knew this day would come; now she had to plan her escape. Where would she go now?

After a short time had passed, strong arms wrapped around her body. She would have screamed, but a hand pressed itself against her mouth. She turned around and saw Perseus standing there.

"Get off me!" She shoved him and he fell over easily. She might have cracked one of his ribs or bruised him from that push. Usually she held back her super strength, but she couldn't control it when she felt this emotional.

He crawled over on both knees and grasped her by the hands. "I need you to listen to me, please. What happened in there wasn't what it looked like."

Medusa laughed. "So then you're not marrying Andromeda and you lied to all those people?"

Perseus was quiet for a moment. "The engagement is real."

Medusa slapped him in the face. He grabbed his jaw and flexed it. A part of her hoped she'd broken a bone.

Rage deepened her voice. "Maybe you should leave me alone then. How did you find me back here, anyway?"

"I could hear your crying." Perseus searched her invisible eyes. How did he know where to look? "I'm always aware of you and where you are standing, even though you're physically invisible to me. I don't know how everyone else can't hear your breathing or your movements. Maybe they choose to block it out or shrug the noises off as belonging to other things."

"Don't try to talk your way out of this with poetic words," Medusa said. "I'm leaving by tomorrow morning."

"Please don't," Perseus said. "I don't blame you for being mad. There were so many times I wanted to tell you the truth, but I knew it was going to hurt you so I couldn't."

Medusa rubbed her belly. She hated to admit it, but she had secrets she was keeping from him, too. "How long have you been having an affair with Andromeda?"

"I haven't." Perseus' expression was sincere. "You've got to believe me. This whole marriage is going to be a sham, a cover-up for the truth. The one I still love is you, but ever since I've been made king, it means that there's a lot of pressure on me to take a wife. They want a queen beside me."

Medusa pulled away from him and clenched her fists. "Weren't you the one who told me you hated kings? We had this discussion when we first met. Power corrupts and I think this power has gone to your head. Remember how those other men in power hurt your mother without a second thought to her well-being? Now you're hurting me. Do you really want to be like them?" Tears were pouring down her cheeks.

Perseus flinched and then sighed. "I never wanted to be king, you're right. I still don't. If my ambitions were for power, then I could have been king of Seriphos, rather than appointing Dictys to the position.

"I didn't ask any of these people to follow me-they just did and now they are counting on me. I must come through for them. Besides, wealth is kind of nice for a change."

Medusa scoffed. "You really have changed, haven't you? The old Perseus wouldn't care for any of that stuff. All that he would care about is being with the people he loves."

He shook the hand he grasped. "I'm doing this for you, though, too! Being in this position helps me fight the gods. I can build an army to stand against them.

"I can provide for you and my mother now. I want to make sure nothing happens to you two.

"People will pester me until I find a wife. Even if I reject Andromeda, it will have to be someone else. Her reputation is already ruined because of the time she's spent with me. No one believes she's a virgin anymore. This will allow her to live a good life and no one will bother us so we can be together. I'll have a queen for the people and the woman I love beside me. Everyone will gain something from this."

Medusa knew she was going to regret asking her next question. "Why can't you just marry me, then? Why does it have to be her? I'll be your queen, if you'll have me."

Perseus stood and pulled her close. He stroked her cheek as sadness filled his eyes. "You know I would do that if I could, but I can't. I love you. I'm proud of your strength and your beauty, but you're not the type of woman who could be a queen to humans. Andromeda is. She was born into the role. And you, you were-"

"Made into a monster," Medusa finished for him.

Perseus shook. He kissed her all over her face and she shuddered as he caressed her body. She didn't want to desire him still, but she did. Every fiber of her body screamed at her to stay and let him make love to her over and over again.

"No," Perseus said. "That wasn't what I was going to say at all. You're a secret that I have to keep. If the gods knew you were still alive, I and potentially everyone in this village could be killed. The gods will think they conspired with me. Before, it was just you and me facing the consequences, but all these people are depending on me now.

"They need a queen that they can see-someone who can be approached without turning them into stone."

Medusa sobbed. The noise humiliated her. She was trying to hold in the full extent of how much she was upset, even though he probably tasted her salty tears when he had kissed her. "You're ashamed of me and want to keep me your dirty little secret! I'm a monster and you know other people won't understand. How do you think that makes me feel? It's already bad enough being invisible all the time. You're the only person I can speak to and now you're betraying me."

Perseus grabbed her by the face. He kissed her so hard that her knees grew weak. Their tongues tackled each other as waves of emotions thickened the air between them. Tears streamed down Perseus' cheeks and mingled with her own. "I wish I wasn't hurting you so much. More than anything, I desire to take you as my wife and shout to the world that I love you, but you knew before you came with me that this situation is way too complicated for that.