Told her. Yes. The moment Mnemosyne had spoken, the first image of Gideon and her aunt rolling around in bed, naked, had appeared in Scarlet's mind. That image had been fuzzy at first, but the more Scarlet had believed it possible, the clearer the image had become.
'T-tell me you desire my aunt,' Scarlet said, focusing on the man above her.
There was a hard glint in his eyes. 'I desire your aunt.'
Not a flicker of pain.
Not daring to hope, she said, 'Tell me you used me to win her.'
'I used you to win her.'
Again, no pain.
Her aunt had lied to her.
Scarlet closed her eyes. Anything to hide the burning relief most likely banked there. Gideon hadn't betrayed her. Gideon hadn't betrayed her! The knowledge was part soothing balm for her battered heart and part kindling for her sudden, raging guilt.
'I'm sorry for kicking you,' she said on a groan. 'And punching you. And screaming at you.'
At last, Nightmares calmed.
Slowly Gideon eased the rest of the way off her. 'You're not forgiven.' The words offered absolution, but there was no emotion in his tone.
Scarlet cracked open her eyelids, only to see that Gideon had already turned, presenting her his back. Still angry? Hiding his expression? 'She's powerful. To have made me believe in your cruelty, and so strongly, so quickly...' Scarlet shuddered. 'I can't believe the sweet woman I remember did that to me.'
'Yeah, she's a real sweetheart.' Gideon flicked her a glance over his shoulder as he stood. Nope, he hadn't been hiding his expression; it was as empty as his tone. 'And I'm sure all of your memories of her are correct.'
Correct equaled wrong. Every muscle in Scarlet's body tensed. He was right. The image she had of her aunt didn't fit with the woman she'd just encountered. Of course Mnemosyne had manipulated her perception at some point.
Mnemosyne had certainly had plenty of opportunities. For centuries, they had shared a cell. A simple touch, a spoken word, and boom. Scarlet's life was completely altered.
Dear gods. How many times had Mnemosyne screwed with her head? How many of her memories were fake?
Which memories were fake?
Air burned her nose, her lungs. Suddenly Scarlet didn't trust anything she believed. Even...her wild gaze landed on Gideon.
'We don't need to get out of here,' he said, extending a hand.
Don't think about this now. You can't afford the panic. Gulping, she twined their fingers and allowed him to tug her upright. As before, when he'd gripped her thigh, his skin was hot, hard and callused. Shiver-inducing. 'Enough time has passed that I doubt Mnemosyne went for help. She ran. Is probably hiding. Otherwise, guards would be in here, weapons pointed at us.'
Strong shoulders lifted in a shrug. 'Better sorry than safe.'
'We can't leave, though. We have to find her. I need to...talk with her, find out what other lies she's convinced me of.'
Gideon shook his head, resolute. 'What Zeus did is—'
'A lie, maybe.' The realization hit her and she gasped, her free hand flying to cover her mouth. Maybe Zeus hadn't truly murdered Steel. Maybe someone else had. Or maybe Steel had never been killed. Maybe Steel was alive. Maybe he was out there, waiting for her to find him.
Hope bloomed inside her chest, filling her with a joy she hadn't known since the last time she'd held Steel in her arms. 'We have to summon Cronus.' She fisted Gideon's shirt. 'We have to find out if he knows anything about Steel.'
His expression gentled, and he cupped her cheeks. 'Scar, devil...'
Devil. There was that endearment again. She rose on her tiptoes and pressed a quick kiss to his lips. Lips still swollen from meeting her fist. Lips that were bleeding and missing a ring. Had she tugged it loose? 'I'm sorry' wasn't enough.
'Please, Gideon. I think...I hope... What if he's still alive? What if our baby is out there?'
He opened his mouth. To protest? Then he shook his head violently, scales flashing underneath his skin. 'Oh, sweet sunshine and roses, I can absolutely believe I'm doing this,' he muttered, releasing her to jerk his necklace from around his neck and stuff the chain into his pocket.
Wow. That was the vilest curse she'd ever heard him utter.
'Cron!' he shouted, fist raised and pumping in the air. 'I don't want to talk to you.'
A moment passed in silence. Scarlet could barely contain herself; she felt ready to jump out of her skin. Knew she wouldn't last much longer. Soon she would start shouting threats. Dismemberment, the removal of the king's cock. 'Cron!'
'Manners, Lies. Manners. You're in my home. You do not bellow for me. You ask nicely.'
The voice came from behind them, and they swung around in unison. Cronus was perched at the edge of the bed, his lips pinched in displeasure.
Who cared about his displeasure? He was here! Scarlet's shoulders sagged with relief. Answers were within her grasp, hope a living entity inside her.
'No thanks for coming,' Gideon said, bowing his head in deference. He'd never done such a thing before, and she knew he did so now for her benefit. Because she was desperate, and he was taking no chances.
Ice...melting. Again.
'Well, well,' Cronus said, gaze roving over her warrior. 'We've regained our strength, I see. I didn't expect you to recover so quickly. But what are you doing in Leto's bedroom?'
Pleasantries? Now? 'I'll do the talking,' Scarlet told Gideon before facing off with the king. Knowing him as she did, she knew she couldn't just jump into her demands. 'We've learned something disturbing about Mnemosyne. She—'
'Why. Are you. In Leto's. Bedroom?' Cronus asked again. His attention never veered from Gideon.
Argh. 'Your mistress was here. We wanted to talk with her.'
One dark brow arched, but that was it. His only reaction to her words. Damn him! After the aging curse was cast, after failing to kill her over and over again, he'd decided to ignore her, to pretend she didn't exist. She was an embarrassment to him, after all. Proof his wife had cheated on him.
Like he could cast stones, though. His mistress was his wife's sister.
Gideon sighed, and there was an angry twinge to it. On her behalf? Her guilt returned. She never should have punched him. So many times. 'Your mistress wasn't here.'
'Which one?' the king asked smoothly.
Just how many did he have?
'Not Mnemosyne,' Gideon said.
A curtain fell over Cronus's features, obscuring his emotions. 'And?'
'And she didn't try to fuck with Scarlet's memory.'
'And?' the king asked again.
'And we don't want to talk to her,' Gideon snapped.
Cronus's head tilted to the side as he studied the warrior. 'She came to me. Told me you were in here. Tried to convince me you were here to kill me, but what she hasn't yet realized is that her tricks do not work on me. She's currently locked in my chambers while I figure out her game.'
'Let me help you with that,' Scarlet said, determined. She had a few ideas about how to extract information from her aunt. Needles were involved. So were hammers.
Again, Cronus ignored her. 'I want Secrets to interrogate her, but he's otherwise occupied at the moment.'
'And you don't expect me to fetch him for you?' Gideon asked through gritted teeth.
'I expect you to return to your fortress and summon me the moment he returns. That is the boon I require of you as payment for the time you've spent in my palace.'
