I opened my eyes as I felt his grasp begin to release. I watched in horror as he slowly seemed to be pulled away. “My lady,” he called in an almost inaudible tone. I reached for him, but to no avail. “My lady,” he murmured once again before disappearing into a white mist.
As we began our ascent, I felt a euphoria envelop me. The feeling of being drawn upward, being uplifted, being free. I allowed my mind to wander as I embraced my trance-like state. The roar of the engines became a soft hum in my ears, like the sound of the waves lapping the shores of Crete.
“No time for that,” I quipped as I jumped up out of my seat. “Get on the phone and have one of the Complex jets fueled up and ready to go. I have to go back to the cabin.”
“What have I done?” I whispered to myself. “It’s ruined. I’ve destroyed the archives. What the hell is wrong with me?” I stared down at the sickle in my hand, that feeling of insanity crawling back into my mind.
I touched it with the tip of my finger and knew it wasn’t right. Mekon had a soft, silky feel about it. This was grittier. I took just a taste and knew what it was. “Colchicum,” I whispered. Someone had added a powdered form of autumn crocus to my blend. It wouldn’t kill me, but it could cause me to spin out of control in the right doses.
“I’ve got to find Thanatos,” I whispered, a tear running down my cheek. “He’s the key. I just know it. But how do I find a Primordial who may not want to be found? Where do I even start?”
Lana gave me all the details she’d been given over the phone, most of which only made me more curious as to Thanatos’s whereabouts. As I listened, I got the feeling that I was about to head off on a journey that I might not return from.
I could only shake my head in disbelief. “No, I’m not going to sue my family. I’m going to save my family, or at least I’m going to try. I need to find out what’s come over the complex. Something dark is around us, and now is not the time of year for this to be happening. We need to find some answers.”
I made my way to my office, feeling a stiff drink might help calm my nerves. I turned on a small lamp that sat on my desk and noticed something lying on the carpet. It was an envelope that had been slipped under the door.
She shoved the letter opener into the cork and ripped it out in one motion, taking a long drink from the bottle before handing it to me. “Come on, Sister. Let’s find your balls.”
I rushed to Hera, wrapping my arms around her in a heartfelt embrace. She stood stiff, never one to show outward emotion. I felt the pain and hurt coursing through her veins and tightened my embrace until she finally fell into my arms and let her emotions flow free. I hadn’t seen my sister this distraught since we’d emerged from our father’s prison.
“Good!” I screamed. “Call security. And when you do, you tell that little rat bastard nephew of mine that his Aunt Dem is back, and she’s pissed off.”
I held my arms out wide and yelled toward the sky, “I am Demeter, Goddess of Sacred Law! My family needs me, and I will be there to protect them. I AM GOING HOME!”
