Epilogue
SATURDAY DAWNED brIGHT and sunny, and I arrived at SMHS half past seven, having decided that it was better to be extremely early rather than risk being a minute late and making our esteemed division director to wait for me.
Dike was a sight to behold when she arrived, with an intricately designed bronze helmet covering her hair and a resplendent centuries-old suit of armor worn over her tall, graceful figure.
One look at her, and I knew Mt. Olympus was strictly black-tie, Ancient Greece style – which also meant I had made the right choice.
Dike gave my outfit a cursory look, and I held my breath. I had donned a flowing white empire-cut dress with a belt of gold tassels that laid low on my hips and matched the woven pattern of my leather sandals.
“Good choice,” my superior said, and I silently breathed a sigh of relief. Thank Cronos for that.
Dike and I slid into the backseat of a black sedan, and as its engine roared into life, I looked about eagerly, wondering what it would shapeshift into. A winged stallion like Pegasus perhaps? Or maybe a sphinx or—-
The agent behind the wheel stepped on the gas, and the car sped out of the driveway.
Any minute now...
Any moment now...
Any time now...
“What are you looking like that for?” Dike asked blankly.
“I was, umm, trying to guess what this car would change into?”
“Aren’t you old enough to know that Transformers aren’t real?” The Daughter of Justice shook her head in disapproval. “You need to be more discerning between myth and fiction, Agent Vavrin.”
My mouth opened and closed. “I wasn’t – I never – so, this really is just a car?”
The older woman shot me an irritable look. “What else could it be?”
I tried to wrap my head around what she was saying. “Then...it’s possible to drive to Mt. Olympus?”
“In a manner of speaking, yes.”
And so it seemed as ten minutes later the car had sped past a wall of fog and onto a paved road that meandered through woods made breathtaking by its stunningly colorful foliage and drovepast a sparkling brook in which mermaids swam alongside frolicking water nymphs.
Finally, the car rolled to a stop in front of massive golden doors, and I knew with every excited beat of my heart that what I was staring at was none other than the doors of Mt. Olympus itself.
“Chin up, Agent Vavrin,” Dike commanded as we stepped out of the car.
“Yes, Director.”
“Also, stop shaking.”
“I’ll do my best.”
Dike glared at me.
“I meant, I’ll never shake again in my entire life.”
“That’s better.” The Daughter of Justice nodded at the guardsmen flanking the entrance, and they slowly pushed the doors open, their muscles straining with every inch that I could only imagine how heavy the doors were. Could it be made of real gold?
A young girl in braids introduced herself as a Muse’s apprentice with a deep curtsy. Dike gave her a nod, so I started to nod as well – until I saw my boss glaring at me.
Oops.
I curtsied back to the young girl, and only then did Dike stop looking murderous.
Mt. Olympus’ ballroom was amazing in its vastness, with towering marble pillars that went all the way up until it disappeared in a mass of fluffy clouds. It took me several moments to understand that I was literally looking at clouds, and that the sky actually served as the ballroom’s ceiling.
Very cool, I thought, but what if it rained?
The couple on the throne chuckled. Dike was glaring at me again. And I realized a second too late I had blurted my thought out loud.
I was so dead.
“Come forward, Blair Vavrin.” It was the man on the throne who spoke, tall and powerfully built, with a dramatically handsome face and a long dark beard.
Sad Keannu, I thought yet again, but of course he wasn’t just that. He was Zeus, the god who reigned in Mt. Olympus – and he knew my name.
Zeus! Knew! My! Name!
My knees knocked against each other as I moved forward, stopping only before the edge of the dais. Remembering Dike’s lesson earlier, I made sure to curtsy this time, so deep that I almost lost my balance and toppled over.
When I straightened, the couple on the throne was visibly amused, and Dike looked like she wanted to throttle me.
Okay, not only was I dead, but I was so going to be fired after this.
“We thank you for your aid.” It was the dark-haired woman on the throne who spoke this time, and cast it, but she looked so much like a dead ringer for Charlize Theron that I felt like I had stepped into a movie set, and that would be...what?
Sweet November? The Devil’s Advocate? Or John Wick meets Atomic Blonde?
Clearing my throat, I started to thank the Olympians when I realized one glaring hole in my vocabulary. How did one address Olympians?
“Thea,” I heard Dike cough from behind.
I nearly expired in relief, and smiling nervously at Zeus and Hera, I stammered, “It w-was my honor to serve, theo, thea.”
“How kind you are,” Hera murmured with a smile.
“Indeed,” Zeus agreed, “which is why my wife and I would like to offer you any reward you choose.”
I automatically started to refuse, but then I saw Dike’s scowl, and the look of deadly warning on her face was pretty easy to interpret. Refuse...and die.
“Don’t be shy, child,” Hera said soothingly.
“I...well...” Gaea help me, but what could I ask that would make me appear neither greedy nor sycophantic?
“Speak your desire,” Zeus urged, “and it will be granted.”
Unable to bear everyone’s scrutiny, I blurted out the first thing that came to my mind. “I would like...a photo with Apollo.”
Zeus and Hera stared at me in surprise.
This time, Dike looked like she wanted to kill herself.
I guess...that made me sound more like a teenage fangirl than a respectable agent of CSI?
“You are certain of this?” Zeus inquired finally.
“Yes, theo. Apollo is my favorite Olympian.” This, at least, was true.
Zeus’ dark brows shot up. “You favor him over me?”
Brooms and sticks!
“I...I...I...”
Hera threw her husband an exasperated glance. “Stop teasing the child. Do you not see she’s scared enough?”
Zeus grinned. “I was merely having fun.”
I wondered if he truly meant that. Five seconds ago, and I could’ve sworn he had considered having me beheaded.
Hera motioned for the Muse’s apprentice. “Look for Apollo and tell him I request his presence.”
“Immediately,” Zeus added.
“Yes, theo, thea.” The young girl curtsied before hurrying away.
While waiting for the God of Truth to make his appearance, Zeus and Hera spoke to Dike in hushed tones, and in a language far too ancient for me to even guess its origin. A moment later, I saw Zeus’ dark head lift, and a grin slashed over his lips.
“The heroine of Mt. Olympus is here, Apollo, and all she asks as a reward is a photo with you. Charming, is she not?”
“Very much so.” The voice from behind was deep, quiet, and strangely familiar, and I jerked in surprise. Surely...it couldn’t be who I thought it was?
“As you requested, my dear,” Hera said. “Apollo has come.”
A shadow fell over me.
I slowly lifted my gaze, and a pair of hazel eyes met mine.
Paul.
“Hello, Blair.”
The End