The Struggle(80)

“I know, but—”

“Seriously. Aiden shouldn’t be doing this by himself and leave you here to worry about him because I can’t be alone for two seconds.” Trying to assuage my headache, I rubbed at my temples. It really didn’t help. “Where is Seth?”

Alex’s gaze flickered away as she shook her head. “I’m . . . not sure.”

My eyes narrowed. “Why do I have a feeling you do know where he is?”

Before she could answer, Basil returned. I dropped my hands when I saw that he held a jar of something that smelled minty. There was no aspirin. No water.

Basil smiled down at me. “This is peppermint oil. When applied to the temples, it works to reduce the pain from headaches. You will find that it is far better than a chemical. May I?”

“Okay,” I whispered, glancing at Alex. She’d picked up her mug and all I could see were her brows raised over the rim.

Basil tapped some of the oil onto the tips of his fingers before gently rubbing them against my temples. The oil was cool but heated quickly. The brief massage did feel good. If it didn’t work, I’d at least smell good. Like Christmas. That’s what it reminded me of.

“Thank you,” I said.

“Is there anything else you need, Kyría?”

I shook my head, a little uncomfortable with the idea of someone just waiting to go do things for me. Actually, I was a lot uncomfortable with it. Basil bowed neatly and then left the room. I had a feeling he was lingering out in the hallway.

“Back to Seth,” I said. “Where is he?”

“I’m right here,” Seth answered.

I jumped at the sound of his voice. He’d literally popped out of nowhere and was now standing in the center of the living room.

“Holy daimon nuts!” Alex shrieked as coffee sloshed out of her cup and onto the front of her shirt. “Jesus. That was not necessary.”

Seth’s grin grew to epic proportions.

“It really wasn’t,” I told him, placing my hand over my thumping heart. “Just because you can poof in and out of rooms does not mean you should.”

“But it’s so much fun.”

Alex was patting at the front of her shirt. “Gods, you’re going to be just as bad as freaking Apollo.”

“That’s actually kind of insulting.” Seth joined me on the couch. He tipped his head to the side. “Why do you smell like . . . Christmas?”

My lips twitched. Sometimes it felt like Seth and I were playing in two very different ballparks. Other times it was like we shared the same mind. “I had a headache and Basil gave me some peppermint oil.”

“I’m kind of surprised you know what Christmas smells like,” Alex muttered. She sighed as she looked down at herself. “I smell like a coffee shop now.”

Seth touched my arm. It was a gentle brush of his fingers, but it sent a tight shiver dancing over my skin. “How are you feeling?”

“Fine.” Since he’d almost given me a heart attack, I wasn’t really paying attention to my head any longer. “I’m glad you decided to pop yourself into the room. We need to talk.”

Seth glanced at Alex. She smiled broadly back. His eyes narrowed.

“You’re not letting Aiden go by himself to check out the shades,” I told him, and when he opened his mouth, I kept going. “It takes you how long to pop people back and forth? Seconds? I’ll be fine for a few seconds.” Even though I believed that, a icy trickle of fear climbed down my spine. I hated the feeling. “You’re going to take Alex.”

He stared at me a moment and then looked over at Alex again. “Did you talk her into this?”

She rolled her eyes. “Yes. Because she doesn’t have a mind of her own.”

I glared at him. “It was my call. And it’s the right call.”

Seth leaned back, popping a booted foot on the edge of the coffee table. “I’ll think about it, but I need to tell you—”

“Don’t try to distract me.” I twisted toward him. “Alex needs—”

“I just saw Apollo,” Seth cut in.

“What?” He’d officially distracted me.

Alex lurched forward in her chair. “Where?”

Seth’s eyes roamed over my face and then met and held my gaze. “I summoned him in the temple. Apparently, if you shed your blood over flame, you can’t hurt another god in a temple. So he showed up this time.”

I didn’t say anything, because I didn’t know what to say. My father had been here, on this island, and he hadn’t come to see me?

“I asked him about those bands,” Seth said, reaching over and picking up my hand. “He said only Hades can remove them.”