Mrs. Nettles pointed towards a door I guessed would lead to the garage if this were reality. In this version of things, my name was written on it, and I instinctively knew I wasn't going to find two cars behind it.

I didn't want to leave, but she waddled in the direction. I trailed, this time apprehensive about what lay behind the door.

She stopped before it and looked up at me.

"You want me to ... open it?" I asked.

A nod.

A sense I wanted to ignore was creeping up on me. It was more than familiarity this time. It was the idea that Adonis was right. I basically knew nothing about anything and had to acknowledge there was a piece of me that had been hidden from everyone for too long.

I didn't know me, either, and this scared me. Terrified to learn more about how Herakles wasn't the man I thought he was, I was likewise starting to tremble to think I was about to find out who I was. What if I were as bad as Herakles had been? What if my secrets were the worst?

Who or what am I?

Chapter Twelve: The High Priestess.

If all men were just, there would be no need for valor.

Agesilaus the Second "Failed miserably," I reported and tossed my weapons onto the table beside one of the Silent Queen's gardeners.

Sometimes success takes a different shape than one expects. This was supposed to be a sphinx and ended up a griffin. It's still beautiful, she replied through the telepathic link we shared. Mute since the age of six, she spoke to no one but me.

I glanced over at my mistress and the keeper of the Bloodline, the stunning Queen of Greece. She perched on a bench beneath a shade tree, her crystal clear blue eyes on the gardener shaping one of the many fantastical bushes in the gardens.

"Ran into Niko. We're not the only ones pressing Adonis. He has absolutely no concern for the Oracle discovery protocol."

You need to make a decision about Niko, she reminded me. With cool beauty, mild manners and the large eyes of a doll, the Silent Queen was often mistaken for being simple, naive, weak.

Such a person didn't request a High Priestess to a.s.sa.s.sinate an ex-lover, among others. The cunning teen was brilliant and ruthless in the way of a royal fighting for her t.i.tle. I had lost track of the people we'd seen to an early grave to protect our secrets from the other members of the Triumvirate.

"I know," I said. "He's been a pain lately. We have a son together. Makes things complicated. If he were anyone else ..."

He'd be gone. I know. The Silent Queen patted the seat beside her. How are preparations going?

"Perfect. Ready to take the next step when commanded."

And the Oracle? Do we strike or wait? What is your impression?

I dwelled on the question for a moment, trying to sort things out in my own head before responding. "She's tough. Smart. Adonis was in a hurry to start her on his master's trial."

Adonis has never been an easy man to understand.

"Not at all. But he was even harder than usual. He went out of his way not to hurt her when she tried to escape. The Adonis we know and loathe would've shot her in both legs to make it easier."

Perhaps he has orders from the Supreme Priest.

"Maybe." I wasn't convinced. "Anyway, I think if we can get her alone and present our side, we'll be able to sway her. She'd be an a.s.set to our plans, and your trial for her would only hasten our ability to act."

As long as the cost isn't too high. We also risk discovery once we reveal our trial to her.

"She seems honest if naive. I think an honest person would side with us when she hears the alternative."

True. Where do you go next?

I glanced at my watch. "Downstairs," I replied, referring to the secret city beneath DC. "The military intercepted a train of supplies coming from outside the wall. I'm going to see the damage and check in with our friend."

Ask him about the Oracle.

"That's a bit difficult without telling him the truth."

I trust your judgment.

Beautiful and powerful, the Queen was also the best boss in the world. "I'll be back for your dinner."

She bowed her head, and I stood. I was the only one who could hear her, which meant I was required to attend every official dinner, gala, and ceremony she did. I didn't bother changing clothes but whirled a hooded cloak around my shoulders and collected my weapons.

I entered her airy villa and trotted down to the wine cellar, past the thousands of bottles of wine, and to a secret pa.s.sageway behind a wall.

Moments later, I was descending in a small elevator into the secret city below DC. Always dark and drab, it teemed with activity and movement. Two story buildings and city blocks had been established in the central hub of the city located beneath her villa.

Leaping out of the elevator, I strode through several roads named after former Greek kings and queens. The scent of food and gun oil were in the musty air, and those I pa.s.sed bowed their heads or greeted me with a smile. The armies living here consisted of mostly men wearing run down clothing. Part of the duties for those present was to spy in DC, and vagrants made for the least noticeable spies. Each of them wore a patch with an M on it when visiting underground.

"Docia!" someone called as I entered the warehouse district where the supplies were kept. "You heard?" Gus, the man in charge of this district, was red-faced and fidgeting. He had a tick in one eye that was twitching faster than usual as a result of his agitation.

"Yeah," I said and approached him. My gaze was caught by a shock of red hair and the towering frame of Herakles. He'd found a small gang of Mama's men doing reconnaissance and beat them all until one finally agreed to take him to the leader of the underground world. The Queen and I alone knew his importance and instantly welcomed him. "What's he doing here?"

Herakles was walking with someone else among the weapons. Not touching, just looking.

"He knows his guns. He's helping with this week's inventory," said Gus.

"Hmmm." Someone so close to Alessandra didn't need to be in the middle of my weapons depot even if he didn't know yet what our plan with her was.

"The men love him. He's been sparring with them. Tough."

"Herakles!"

I watched my son race out of the neighboring building towards the red-haired giant with the scarred features. Herakles whirled and pretended to fight with him before feigning injury and dropping to the ground. Tomas laughed.

"Tommy loves him too," Gus added. "Here's a list of what was seized."

My gaze lingered on Tommy, who lived below ground with the armies of Mama. I pursed my lips and took the iPad, skimming through the missing supplies. "Figures it was the shipment with the missiles we need to penetrate the wall."

"Those cost a fortune to pilfer from the military."

I studied the numbers. "They're in their supply depo or seized a.s.sets warehouses?"

"Seized a.s.sets."

"d.a.m.n. We haven't cracked entering that area yet." I handed back the report, gaze falling to Tommy again. Gripping my phone tightly, I debated not going down the road I was about to before I punched the number for Niko.

"Whatever it is, no," he said bluntly when he answered.

"All right. Then I won't bring Tommy by," I snapped.

Silence and then, "You always demand something in return for me seeing my son. What is it?" he snapped tersely.

"Ten minutes alone with your computer."

I knew he was cursing the day he met me. I was, too. We'd had something once, long ago, when I was too naive to see Niko for the selfish person he was. I rarely thought of those days anymore, but I did wish he was a better person for my son's sake.

"Okay. After hours."

I checked the time. It'd be a squeeze to attend the dinner with the queen.

"And I get him for the weekend," Niko added.

"One day."

Niko grumbled. "Fine. Friday." He hung up.

I lowered the phone, feeling dirty for being willing to use my son to manipulate someone else. But only one place in North America manufactured the wall-buster missiles, and it had recently been smashed to pieces by angry G.o.ds. Even without this complication, the Silent Queen was running close to broke. She had spent the fortune her family built up over millennia to create the underground world and the armies it contained. The weapons were irreplaceable and a vital part of our plan.

"I'll get them back," I said to Gus. "Keep an extraction team ready."

"Will do."

I moved away from him to Tommy. Herakles was back on his feet, talking Tommy through the parts of a machine gun he held.

"Hey, kid," I said and ruffled Tommy's hair. "Give your mama a minute with the greatest Olympian alive."

Tommy smiled and raced away.

"Good kid," Herakles said. His scarred face held me in quiet curiosity for a moment before I realized I was staring. It wasn't like me to be distracted by a man.

"You have time to talk?" I asked.

He nodded. "Any word on Alessandra?"

"I saw her today. She's doing great."

We began walking, leaving the warehouse area for the streets of the underground city.

"All this ... you control the criminal underworld, too?" Herakles asked.

"Most of it. There are parts we haven't been able to wrangle into order or we've purposely not touched. The arena is one. Too popular. It's sudden disappearance or change of leadership would draw the attention of too many high level politicians who like to gamble."

"Would be a good place for money laundering."

"That's what we use it for."

"Lyssa would like you. Smart and strong."

I felt his gaze on me and wasn't certain what to say in response. "About Lyssa," I started. "What do you think she'll think when she sees what we've built? What we plan?"

"I'm not really sure what you plan, except a rebellion against the G.o.ds."

"Good place to start."

Herakles was quiet briefly. "She was raised to fight and to believe in the Old Ways. a.s.suming the Old Ways are part of what you're doing here, I imagine she'd be eager to join you once she discovers what her fate will be otherwise."

There were moments when I recalled the scarred man was more than he seemed. He'd been chosen by someone to take care of the next Oracle. All I knew about him was that he vanished twelve years ago after winning three annual Olympic games. To partic.i.p.ate, he had to have had an incredibly wealthy benefactor, possibly a politician or G.o.d whose honor and pride depended upon Herakles winning.

How much he knew, his connections with the elite and who he might be working for, were not mysteries I could guess. They also weren't questions one simply asked. I didn't want him offended or driven off or otherwise outside our reach and control. Adonis had the right idea to trap him as a way of a.s.suring the Oracle cooperated. I wasn't going to cage the man, but I was going to give him as many reasons as possible to stay under our influence.

"You designed all this?" He swept a hand out towards the city.

"A good chunk."

"It's impressive."

From him, the compliment was unexpected. "It's a privilege to know you think so."

The silence between us was charged. We continued walking, each in thought, and at least me overly aware of the two inches between our forearms. He was close to my age with the body of someone who hadn't lost any part of the edge he held in the Olympics. The only thing I didn't understand about him: the scarring covering his face and neck. A combination of fire and knife, if I had to guess, and he'd never bothered to obtain surgery to fix it.

"Docia, I want to see Lyssa, " he said quietly.

"I understand." And I did. For all intents and purposes, she was his daughter. "Adonis has started the trial the Supreme Priest dictated."

"Which is ..."

"G.o.ds know," I replied. "None of the Triumvirate members are willing to share."

Herakles stopped and faced me. "She's not prepared."

"She's very well prepared," I countered. "I've seen her fight and spoken to her. She can take care of herself."

His jaw ticked, his dark eyes on mine. "I would've liked to have spoken to her first. To warn her not to trust anyone."

"I think she's figured that out."