“Mais, anytime today would be fucking great,” Cronus shot out.
I wanted to tell Cronus he was next on my neuter list, but let’s be honest: I liked that dick too much to cause it any harm.
Jealousy caught my eye as I walked closer, the Sin not as translucent as he had been last time. He looked almost human—but also not at the same time: eyes too large, and the color akin to olive green; face tinted in shades of green too, with shadows covering him in low light.
“You look like a swamp monster,” I said, tilting my head as I stepped up beside Cronus. “An ugly as fuck monster.”
Yeah, I was kind of a bit salty about what he did to me back in New York. Fucker.
“I did you a favor,” he sneered. “Gave you your heart’s desire.”
Ignoring the sliver of truth in that, I sucked in a deep breath, ready to do what had to be done.
“Drop the barrier,” I said to Cronus, my hands ready.
The necklace at my throat hummed in anticipation, and I knew it was the sins inside of me. No idea what they were so excited about, but a smarter person would probably be worried.
#AFutureMaiseyProblem
Cronus’ eyes met mine, just a brief connection, before he lifted his magical hold on Jealousy. Lurching forward, I knew I couldn’t waste a second. This sin could disappear like a blast of energy, and I would not let that happen again. If he affected me and the Titans the way he had, then humans would be in huge trouble.
He was fast, I’d give him that, but I was a split second faster. The moment my hand connected to him, there was a literal earthquake, the building shaking plaster down over us; the windows that weren’t already broken cracked.
A scream built in my chest as I fought the pain. This wasn’t the first Sin I’d absorbed, but without having the bond to Cronus, that meant this time I was all on my own.
A huge hand wrapped around mine, anchoring me when I felt like I was about to drift away, a slithering pain racking my body as the sin sucked into me through the necklace, an inky black mass protruding out of my chest. Cronus pulled me closer, his other hand rubbing circles across my back.
“Breathe, Maisey. Breathe through it. You’re almost there.”
Jealousy took his sweet-ass time settling into my … wherever the fuck they were in my body. I could barely focus because Cronus was rubbing circles on my back. The other sins started spinning and turning inside of me, making room for Jealousy, and I gritted my teeth against the pain. Hunching forward in a ball, I cried out as the last of the Sin disappeared inside of me.
When I got myself under control well enough to straighten, I rubbed a hand over my face, pausing at the loud gasp.
I turned to Hyperion, who was staring at me, unblinking, and he wasn’t the only one. Okeanos, down from the ceiling, was shaking his head as he examined me. Finally, I turned to Cronus and he was furious—eyes glacial blue, jaw that could break down a wall, and visible energy streaking across his skin. For a second, as he fought for control, everything in the room froze. Everything but Cronus and me. I knew this because Hyperion was reaching for me, a concerned expression replacing his previous gasp.
What the hell was going on?
Cronus seemed to realize what he’d done, and with a shake of his head everything moved again. Time. Fuck me. He’d just manipulated time. His powers were seriously coming back full steam. Every day he was on Earth he grew stronger and stronger.
I was happy about that, but mostly I was wondering why the fuck they were all gawking at me.
Glancing down, I blinked at my hair, which was swirling in arcs around me. I could just catch glimpses of it as it wrapped around my waist. My white-blond, ten-thousand-likes hair was now streaked with black. My fingertips were black again too, but I’d expected that. This was the previous impact the sins had had on me, and it was my new normal.
But the black hair … that was … worrying. What did it mean?
“I told you that she couldn’t take on any more sins,” Cronus bit out. His fury was palpable; I could taste the bitter tang on my tongue. “It’s changing her. This is only four—and the lesser powerful of the nine. We have to figure out another solution!”
Well, well, look who was back to caring about me, the hot and cold bastard.
Hyperion placed a hand on my arm, his face concerned and kind. “Maybe there’s something about Maisey we don’t understand. Something that’s reacting to the power of the sins. Maybe we don’t have all the information we should. I think we need to speak to someone who might have a clue…”
#IWishIHadAClue
I pulled my floating hair back into the top knot, which had come loose.
“Selene,” Cronus said.
#DeadBonusMom?
“It’s going to take some real sweet talking for Thanatos to allow the living to visit the dead,” Okeanos said from where he stood, stoic. “The last I heard, it has only happened once or twice before.”
“End of the fucking world,” I reminded him. “Surely that’s going to qualify.”
He held his hands up like he didn’t want to fight about it, and I took that gesture literally.
#IWin.
Okeanos’ lips twitched and I wondered if he could read my mind.
“Well, let’s do this, then,” I said.
Hyperion cleared his throat. “Maisey, are you forgetting that thing we need
