17. The Shadows Return #2
Every single person in the Olympian world now seemed aware of Andie’s condition. First Orion Maris, now Damon. How the fuck was I supposed to protect her from this threat, too?
“Why are you here?” I asked, testing the waters.
“I heard there was a discussion about Omega welfare happening in House Zeus territory. Given my recent experiences, I thought I should contribute.” He glanced at Loren Swift. “You were about to take this to a higher level, weren’t you? Perhaps to the Council?”
Loren’s expression had gone carefully blank. “That was being discussed.”
“I don’t think that will be necessary.” Damon’s shadows rippled around him like dark water. “Lord Stormwright has always been so concerned about doing the right thing for Omegas. I’m sure he’ll agree to do the same thing now.”
His smile widened, and his eyes flashed with a knowing light. “Especially when I have the solution.”
After Damon delivered his announcement, no one moved.
He just stood in my office like he belonged there, darkness pooling slowly and patiently around his feet. Beside him, Elara waited with the quiet stillness of someone who had already worked out every possible outcome of this conversation. No doubt she found none of them threatening.
Robert broke the silence first. “Who the hell are you?”
“Damon Blackwood. House Hades.” Damon’s attention passed over Robert once, assessing. “You must be Andromeda’s fathers.”
“We are. The only parents who matter.” Robert kept his eyes on Damon’s face without flinching. “What does House Hades want with my daughter? And what kind of solution are you offering?”
Elias narrowed his eyes at Damon. “You’re the one who kidnapped the Demeter Omega. Cora Ellis. Why should we trust you?”
The darkness around Damon deepened, creeping further across the floor. “My relationship with Cora is none of your business, Mr. Swift. I’d advise you to tread lightly. As for why you should trust us… Why not? You don’t have another plan.”
Elara cleared her throat, interrupting the conversation before it could devolve further. “I understand your suspicion, Mr. Swift. Given what you’ve witnessed from House Zeus, I’d be suspicious of other Alphas, too.” Her gaze cut to me. “But we truly are here to help.”
“Help?” my father repeated in disbelief. “When has House Hades done anything that benefits anyone other than itself?”
Damon shrugged. “Maybe I’m just feeling generous. My motives are irrelevant. The only thing you need to know is this. Recent developments have given House Hades new capabilities. Capabilities that are directly relevant to Miss Cross’s condition.”
Nikos straightened from the wall where he’d been watching. “What kind of capabilities?”
“The kind I have no intention of explaining to House Zeus.”
Elara took a step forward and focused on Andie’s parents.
“Three weeks ago, Mr. Swift began making inquiries through House Hermes channels.” She smiled, almost as if she appreciated Elias’s approach.
“Careful inquiries. Coded language. But when a former House member starts asking about Olympian legal precedents for Omega custody disputes, it generates noise.”
Elias pulled air slowly through his nose. “You’ve been watching us.”
“I’ve been watching the situation. There’s a difference.” She clasped her hands behind her back. “Miss Cross’s condition has been deteriorating for months. So far, nothing you’ve done has helped her. And even if you do claim her back from her mother, you’ll only be bringing her home to die.”
Robert twitched but didn’t argue with her. Perhaps he understood the risks to his daughter, after all. “Get to the point.”
“The point, Dr. Cross, is that House Hades can suppress the curse entirely.” Elara glanced at Damon. “Not by treating the bond. By treating your daughter.”
The room went quiet.
“The curse operates on a simple mechanism,” Damon said.
“It triggers when a House Hera Omega connects with a House Zeus Alpha. The bond between them becomes toxic. Every attempt to fix it has focused on the bond itself. Which makes sense, of course. But breaking a curse crafted by the gods is insanity. We have to go around it.”
“Go around it how?” I asked.
In response, Damon raised one hand, and the darkness moved.
The sensation hit me like a wave of ice water.
My instincts went silent. All of a sudden, the constant Alpha awareness that hummed beneath my skin vanished into thin air.
Someone seemed to have reached into my chest and switched off a light I had never known was burning.
I felt hollow in a way that was both terrifying and peaceful.
My absolute desire to assert dominance over the situation completely shut down.
“What—” I shook my head, reaching for the part of me that had disappeared. “What is this?”
“This is what your mate could feel like if her Omega nature was suppressed.” Damon lowered his hand.
The shadows receded. Everything flooded back, and I barely managed to suppress a gasp. After that moment of silence, it all seemed so overwhelming.
“You dampened my—” I couldn’t find the word.
“Your Alpha nature. Yes.” His expression gave nothing away. “It’s a new ability. One I acquired during my recent travels. The same thing can be done to an Omega. Suppress her biological nature, and the curse has nothing to latch onto.”
His recent travels. He meant… when he’d disappeared into the Shadow Realm. Because of me. Because of what Helena and I had done.
Elias went very still, his hand tightening around the grip of his cane. “You’re saying you could make Andie… not an Omega?”
“Not permanently.” Damon turned to face him directly. “Not yet. But for extended periods. Long enough to break the curse’s hold. Long enough for her to live without the constant biological warfare.”
Robert’s fists loosened at his sides, something shifting in his face. It wasn’t trust, not yet, but a cautious loosening of the vigilance he had been holding since they walked through my door.
“Andie has always hated it.” He rubbed the back of his neck with one hand, looking at the floor.
“Being an Omega. The heats, the instincts, the way Alphas look at her like she’s something to be claimed.
She built her whole career around helping Omegas find a different future.
And now you’re telling me you could give her what she’s wanted her whole life? ”
“I’m telling you I could give her peace.” Damon held Robert’s gaze for a moment before letting him go. “Whether that’s what she wants is her decision to make.”
“How would this work?” Elias shifted his weight forward, the old House Hermes instincts surfacing through the grief, his eyes moving between Damon and Elara. “You can’t simply appear at the Heraion and begin using powers on Helena’s daughter. You’d need legal standing.”
“Which is where I come in.” Elara stepped forward again. “I’ll file a formal guardian claim on Andromeda Cross. Political, not romantic. It gives House Hades legitimate standing to be involved in her care.”
Robert turned his face toward Elias for half a second. “You want to claim our daughter?”
“I want to create a legal framework that allows my cousin to help her.” Elara met his eyes without blinking. “The bond wouldn’t be real, Dr. Cross. I have no interest in your daughter as a mate. This is paperwork. Nothing more than the authority House Hades needs to act.”