Chapter 54
Chapter fifty-four
ILIANA
Hermes smiled as he turned to Hypnos, his earlier unease forgotten. “Where’s Anubis?”
“He went to see Osiris,” Iliana answered before Hypnos could. “He said he wouldn’t be gone long.”
She was anxious. She wanted all of them there. The comfort of their presence had become a strange kind of anchor.
Hermes’ smirk softened. He wasn’t avoiding her after their tense conversation, which was a good sign. But there was something different in the way he looked at her now. Less cocky. More…searching.
“How is your hunt going for my…ancestors?” She’d almost said ‘family.’ After opening up to Thanatos about her father, she wasn’t ready to say the word out loud to anyone else.
Hermes stared into her eyes. “I’ve got some humans looking into it.”
“What have they found? Anything that explains why we were targeted?” She leaned forward, hungry for any information.
Hypnos rubbed his temple. “I don’t like this. Especially not with the Kabeiroi watching.”
Iliana stiffened, questions about her family’s history vanishing. They told her about the spirits last night. The Kabeiroi weren’t a threat—but they weren’t protecting her either. They were just watching and waiting, for something only she and the Fates knew.
She shook her head and focused back on the gods.
Hermes lounged against the coffee table, his casual arrogance firmly in place. “The Kabeiroi aren’t our enemies.”
Hypnos shot him an incredulous look. “You’re sure?”
“If they wanted her dead, they wouldn’t be hiding.” His tone was light, but his eyes were distant. He tapped the table as if impatient to get moving again. “They aren’t an immediate danger.”
“Or they’re waiting for something,” Hypnos warned.
Were they waiting to witness her success—or her failure?
Hermes shrugged, seemingly bored, but Iliana could see his mind working. “That’s what I’m trying to figure out. The curse, the prophecy, everything.”
She knew he’d inevitably discover the answers. The prophecy.
Iliana shivered and exchanged an uneasy look with Hypnos.
“And while you’re off on your scavenger hunt, I’m supposed to protect her on my own?” Hypnos asked. He wasn’t a warrior like Anubis. He wasn’t reckless like Hermes. His strength was more subtle—keeping her alive as she slept. But was he capable of fighting? Facing unknown threats?
Despite those doubts, she knew better than to discount him. He was a god, after all.
Hermes rolled his eyes. “Relax. If I thought she were in immediate danger, I wouldn’t leave.”
“You wouldn’t?” Iliana asked.
He gave her a teasing smile. “Don’t look so surprised, sweet girl. I prefer you alive.”
Hypnos snorted.
Hermes ignored him. “They’ll be back in a few hours. You’re not defenseless. Neither is Hypnos. And I’m always listening. If anything happens, I’ll know.”
After a lazy stretch, he disappeared.
Iliana looked at Hypnos. “Well, that was reassuring.”
He dismissed Hermes’ exit and asked, “Do you want to keep watching the show?”
“I—sure,” she replied, distracted.
“Are you sure?”
She turned to him, surprised by the tender edge in his tone. Was that…teasing? “I don’t know if I could watch anything right now. There’s too much on my mind.”
The show had stirred up more than she’d expected. Memories of her father. Everything she’d lost. Everything that’d brought her there.
“There’s too much on my mind,” she said again.
Hypnos grabbed the remote and shut off the TV, then turned to face her. “Do you want to talk about it?”
Iliana stared, then looked at him suspiciously. “Did you just ask if I wanted to talk about my feelings?”
His smile turned wicked. “I know it’s shocking, but you’ve been chewing on something for a while. I figured if I offered, maybe your head wouldn’t explode.”
She sensed he was being genuine, despite his biting humor. Not knowing how long his good temper would last, she turned and got comfortable on the couch. “I’ve got enough worries to write a novel.”
He gave a small laugh. “Lucky for you, I’m immortal. I’ve got time.”
She stared. His laugh caught her off guard. It was friendly and genuine. For a second, she saw who he might’ve been before life made him bitter.
Her stomach growled, and Hypnos’ eyes lowered. “You’re hungry. What do you want to eat?”
She placed a hand over her stomach. “Pizza?”
A box of steaming pizza appeared on the coffee table after he let her choose the type. Iliana eagerly grabbed a slice. She took a bite and let out a satisfied moan. “Food of the gods.”
Hypnos stiffened. “What? Ambrosia?” Concern laced his words.
She giggled. “No; it’s an expression.”
His shoulders relaxed. Then his eyes narrowed at the pizza.
“What’s wrong?” she asked through another bite. “Have you had pizza before?”
Scowling, he said, “Of course, I’ve had pizza before.” He pointed accusingly at the box. “That is not pizza.”
“It’s Hawaiian.”
He eyed her. “It’s fruit.”
Her lips twitched. “…and Canadian bacon.”
His lip curled in disgust as he picked up a slice, holding it as if the pizza might bite him. She held back laughter at his genuine concern. “Try it before you judge!”
Hypnos bit into the crust, avoiding the toppings altogether. When she cleared her throat and gave him a pointed look, he grimaced. Then took a proper bite. Pineapple and all.
A dozen emotions crossed his face before he muttered, “Not bad.”
She smirked. “Told you.”
“I will eat all this pizza if you don’t hurry.”
Iliana saluted. “Yes, sir!” Hypnos, mid-bite, arched an eyebrow at her. She winked, stuffing her face with another slice.
They ate without any awkwardness hovering over them. Just quiet. When she finally leaned back, her stomach full and limbs heavy, she sighed. Nothing was better than a well-earned food baby.
She snorted, resting her hands on her extended belly.
“What’s funny?”
“Just laughing at my miserable state,” she replied.
His brows furrowed. “Do you need a healer?”
“No, I’m fine. I just ate too much.”
Hypnos looked between his final slice and her stomach. Then he put his partially eaten pizza back in the box before it disappeared.
“Where does it go?”
Amusement shone in his eyes. “Back to the restaurant. Or sometimes competitors’ kitchens, just to mess with them.”
“You didn’t…”
He shrugged innocently. “It keeps life interesting.”
Hypnos studied her, his usual guarded expression returning. “Iliana…I can’t.”
Her brows pulled together. “Can’t what?”
“I can’t be like Thanatos.”
She sat up straighter.
“He’s the good one,” Hypnos said quietly. “The one who can give you what you need.”
“I don’t—”
“He’s not broken,” he interrupted. “I am.”
Iliana kept her tone gentle, not wanting him to close off. “Did I ever ask you to be like him? Why would you assume I wouldn’t enjoy being with you as you are?”
“Your smiles from earlier…” He shook his head. “You don’t smile at me like that.”
“I smile when I want to. You were an ass, and I was wary of you at first. Can you blame me?”
He shook his head. “No.”
“I don’t need you to joke or to smile. I want you to be who you are, to feel what you feel. That’s all.”
“How can you say you’re okay with how I am?” He broke eye contact.
“Because you’re you.” She wanted to let the conversation end there, but a gut feeling told her to continue.
“I can tell something from your past hurt you. Everyone experiences different things that influence their behavior. I’ve been through my own kind of hell.
I’m not always rational, and I’m still…”
The word caught the way ‘family’ had earlier.
“Grieving. Still afraid. Some days I wake up and forget they’re gone, then remember, and it’s like losing them all over again.”
She looked down at her hands. “Watching that show with Thanatos, sharing a memory of my dad, it hurt. But it also felt good. Like I was keeping him alive by remembering. Like maybe grief doesn’t have to mean forgetting how to be happy.”
Iliana tried to smile to show him there was a way forward. The pain of her parents’ deaths was still there, catching her off guard when everything was quiet. But each day she spent with the gods made her feel as if it were possible to survive that pain.
“You and your brother didn’t sign up for this. I’m sorry if I’ve made things harder.”
“Don’t apologize,” he said roughly. “I don’t blame you for disliking me. I was an ass.”
She reached out and placed a hand on his arm. “I don’t dislike you. Just your assholery.”
A startled laugh left him before he quieted, studying her. He was silent for a long moment. Then, in a rough voice, he said, “I’ll try to be better in the future.” When she started to interrupt, he held up his hand. “I’ll still be a grumpy Malákas often, so don’t expect much.”
The shift in tone, from heavy to light, made her blink. Then she realized what he was doing. He was giving her a way to step back from grief before it pulled her under.
She took it gratefully. “What does Mal-a-kas mean?”
“The tamer meaning is a jerk, asshole, or stupid,” he said, his lips twitching.
Biting her lip, she asked, “And the not-so-tame definition?”
He blushed. “Um, someone who enjoys himself too much. Alone.”
Iliana burst out laughing despite Hypnos narrowing his eyes at her. “That was way more information than I ever wanted to know about you.”
Hypnos grumbled and crossed his arms like a petulant child. She grinned, leaning against his side, fluttering her eyes up at him. Poking at him came naturally.
He glanced down, his lips pinching suspiciously. It was almost like he was trying hard not to smile. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and tucked her against his side. “Don’t make me have to put you to sleep so you’ll shut up.”
It endeared him to her even more to know she could get the grumpy man to joke with her. “Uh-huh, empty threats.”
They stayed like that, silent and relaxed. His scent—lavender and chamomile—calmed her. It eased her worry about the others’ absence. She considered asking about his past, about why he lived in his cave, but decided against it. She knew how easily terrible memories ruined moods.
“Do you want to keep watching the show?” he asked.
She shook her head. “Let’s watch a movie instead.” She wanted to watch her show with both twins.
“As long as it isn’t a sappy romance.”
She laughed, grabbed the remote, and settled back against him. “No promises, grumpy Malákas.”