Chapter 76

One second I was on the boat and throwing out a life preserver to Heph and the next I was underwater.

Freezing water stung against my flesh. My limbs floundered like I forgot how to swim, or I was too tired to be sufficient. And it was pitch dark like someone had snuffed out all the light in the world.

My throat constricted, craving oxygen. I had to breathe. Had to get out of here.

I swore laughter sounded with the crashing waves overhead. Dion, Heph! I never should have brought them here. What would Zeus do to them?

Panic thrummed with every beat of my heart, increasing the tempo until I thought it would burst through my ribcage.

I swallowed hard and closed my eyes briefly. All that mattered was saving Hermes and Poseidon, then we could leave. Regroup until I learned how to conquer the element of water and then kick Zeus’ ass.

Opening my eyes, I wasn’t helpless. I had mastered three elements. My lungs spasmed, but I fought against the urge to inhale. My throat itched like my lungs were trying to force their way up and out of my mouth. I strained, concentrating.

I imagined a bubble of air around me. The magic snapped against my palms and the sensation snaked up my arms. Air fought me. I blew out a fragment of air. But too soon, I’d have to breathe.

Hermes needed me and I clung to that thought.

The air magic inside me rippled inward against me, demanding I inhale. Not now. It bucked against me. The pressure tore through me. I fought not to give in.

Water was hydrogen and oxygen. All I had to do was separate the molecules. Use the water around me to make the air bubble.

Easier said than done as the air twisted inside of me like a tornado, beckoning my lungs to work, to give up fighting.

If I did, I’d never see Dion or Heph or Hermes or even Poseidon ever again. The pain of that struck me so hard and fast that I nearly gasped a scream. Air bubbles popped from my lips.

Instead of providing relief, the urge to breathe throbbed.

Time was running out. I twisted against the magic, forcing it out of me. My body shuddered. Gold stars punched along the edge of my vision.

This wasn’t working.

I was going to drown. My body would be eaten by sharks and other sea life. Images of my bloated, rotting body flashed in my mind like someone else forced me to watch the macabre show.

No. I swam back as though I could get away from the horror.

The images shifted to my men. Each was broken and lying on rocks as waves rolled over them and pulled them back bloody.

“Give this up and they will live,” Poseidon’s voice filled my mind.

I hadn’t heard his voice not full of disgust in so long that a cry scrapped out my throat.

“Surrender.”

The urge to do as he said filled me like I was an empty shell. All I wanted was to save them—for us to live in peace. Like the Pandora’s before me who fell in love with one of them each lifetime until me. And I knew I would be the last if I screwed this up. There wouldn’t be another chance to get all four elements—all four gods who had so thoroughly taken my heart, my soul. I didn’t want to be without them in my life.

“You have the power,” Poseidon appeared before me. His gold hair waved around him like a watery halo. He had a dark turquoise and gold tail that glowed in the ocean depths and his chest was bare, showing each groove of muscle. His sea-blue eyes pierced me, and it took everything I had not to dive the distance between us and hug him until he remembered me.

I shook my head, tapping at my throat.

“Just let go. Breathe.” He held out his hands to me. “And we can be together forever.”

It would be so easy.

I squeezed my eyes shut; my body drifted closer to Poseidon like I was being towed to him no matter what I did.

My magic wasn’t working. Wasn’t separating the air from the water. If I gave in, I’d die. And I had no trust that Poseidon or Zeus wouldn’t kill my men anyway. I had to do this. I had to try. My vision blurred along the edges.

With my strength waning, I blew out the last of my breath and snatched one of the bubbles with the element of air. Come on, come on. Now that I had zero air in my lungs the urge to gasp convulsed from the bottom of my lungs up through my throat.

I grasped the air inside the bubble, careful of the delicate membrane holding it together. Little bit by little, I expanded the air inside and prayed that I wouldn’t pass out before I finished. This was the only way I could save myself and save Hermes.

My heartbeat thumped like a drum in my head. I clenched my teeth to keep the involuntary impulse to breathe at bay.

The bubble grew to the size of a helmet, but I couldn’t wait anymore. As careful as I could, I pushed my head inside, forcing the magic to hold the shape around me.

I gulped air and the bubble contracted around me. Don’t break, please don’t break.

“Very good.” Poseidon wafted closer to me. “But time is up.”

“No.” Did he mean for Hermes? I still had another few hours left, didn’t I? My chest hurt and I pressed my hand to my breastbone. “You lie.”

His chuckle didn’t sound like him. It sounded like Zeus. “You should know I never lie, and I always keep my promise. I told you I will kill you and I am.”

“Wait.” I held up my hand. “I know you’re using Poseidon as a puppet, Zeus.”

“Of course, I’m not, except to speak with you now.”

“Let him go.” I lifted my head, hoping my gamble was going to pay off. Without Zeus controlling Poseidon directly, his mind-control spell would be weakened—or at least I hoped so.

Poseidon’s eyes narrowed, but he didn’t respond.

“If he wants to kill me without you making him, then so be it.” I held out my arms. “Not like I can do anything to stop him right now.”

The instant Zeus withdrew from Poseidon’s mind, his shoulders rolled back a bit. His face softened a touch. If I hadn’t been looking, I wouldn’t have noticed the minute changes.

“You,” he growled, a trident appearing in his hand, aimed straight for my throat. “You will die by my hand and even your soul won’t return to this world ever.”

I went to clamp a hand over my mouth and remembered the bubble at the last second and stopped. Neither Poseidon nor Zeus would have to murder me because I nearly killed myself. “Please, don’t do this. We’re on the same team. Zeus did something to you.” I held out my hands. “Together we can get through this. We can beat him.”

“Everything that comes out of your mouth is lies.” He hurled the trident at me, and I jerked backward.

The blades chugged through the water like it wasn’t even there and sliced the edge of my shoulder. I screamed, tears clouding my eyes. Then the trident reappeared in his hand.

All right, that was going to be difficult.

Shadows darted through the water and circled us. Sharks. I winced, holding my injured shoulder. Okay, so this was going to be super difficult. I couldn’t just stand here being target practice. I had to do something.

Poseidon slung his weapon.

I threw up my hands, moving the earth from the bottom of the ocean floor. It rose a tower-like form around me.

“Your tricks won’t work,” Poseidon shouted.

He must be talking in my mind. How else could we hear each other underwater?

At least with this earth’s protection, Poseidon couldn’t hurt me, and neither could the sharks. I needed to give myself a minute to collect my thoughts and figure out a way to get out of this and save Hermes. I still hadn’t given up on Poseidon either. There had to be a way to get through to him. Some trigger.

I thought about trying to kiss him, but the way he was acting he’d probably skewer me with his trident before I even got within an arm’s length. Or it could be broken through fighting. Like if I threw all three elements at him at once that might be strong enough to snap him out of Zeus’ control.

A chunk of dirt fell at my feet.

What the hell?

Another piece crumbled and another.

Oh shit. Poseidon’s water magic was chewing through my defense like a killer whale on a fat seal.

I threw up my hands, piling on more dirt, but he carved through it like butter. And the hole he’d made had me looking like a fish in a bucket with him able to shoot his weapon inside my barrier.

Fire wouldn’t help me down here. Air. I channeled a whirlwind at Poseidon, and he backed away.

Yes, yes, I could do this. Just keep him from killing me until me—

A wave of water barreled down on top of me. It crushed the tower and knocked me off my feet. The bubble around my head warbled like it was going to pop. I held my breath, willing it to stay intact.

When the bubble helmet stayed, I sighed in relief. But I couldn’t keep doing this. I threw my air magic against him and hoped to disarm him of the trident.

As though surprised by my attack, the weapon sailed out of his hand.

I rushed forward to the center of the storm or where I hoped it was since however deep I was didn’t have the same storm surge as when I was on the boat.

In the distance, I caught a glimpse of something moving and really, really prayed it wasn’t a shark. I wasn’t even sure if I was still bleeding since it was dark as night around me. But I couldn’t light a torch or anything down here or I’d be a spotlight for Poseidon to find me. Not that he couldn’t without me broadcasting it, I just felt safer not. Kinda like not looking under the bed in the dark for fear of monsters. If I didn’t look, I couldn’t see them, and they couldn’t see me. Stupid, I knew, but I was better off not seeing the sharks darting around me.

And I was pretty sure Poseidon wasn’t done trying to kill me. Maybe he was toying with me. Letting me think I’d won temporarily. Baiting me like a worm on a hook with Hermes being the prize he’d snatch away from me at the last minute.

I shook my head as I swam, feeling the currents of the water give slightly when I pushed forward. Please let me be in the right area and not that I’d swam completely out of bounds. The back of my neck prickled like something was chasing me, but I kept moving forward.

Now the shadow I had seen grew larger.

“Paige,” Hermes yelled.

I’d done it. I’d found him and now I had to get him out of here.

The joy and love on his face made my heart ache. I missed him and was so close, I could almost reach out and touch him.

Then his face contorted at something behind me. “Look out!”

I spun, the element of fire danced across my fingertips, and I shoved it at Poseidon.

His power tore through my magic like it wasn’t even there. Poseidon was going to rip me into pieces and feed me to his sharks.

I didn’t want to die this way.

“Use your power, get me out of here,” Hermes shouted.

I thrust my hand up to send rocks to break Hermes’ bubble, but Poseidon’s trident slammed into my arm, pinning me to a group of coral that cut into me.

Before I could raise my other hand to do anything, Poseidon loomed over me. His hands clamped around my throat, and he squeezed.

“Paige, Paige,” Hermes’ voice sounded further and further away. “Fight him, you can do this.”

He was wrong. I clawed at his hand and kicked. Nothing worked. I wasn’t strong enough to stop him. I’d failed.

“Paige,” Hermes’ sounded like he was in a tunnel, and darkness feathered along the edges of my vision.

Poseidon flinched but didn’t loosen his hold. Something about this tickled at the back of my mind. If Poseidon wanted to kill me then I wanted him not to be tied to Zeus when he did it.

I pulled at his fingers pressing into my windpipe as hard as I could. “Say my name—”

An odd look came over Poseidon’s face almost like he wasn’t sure if he heard me right or didn’t want to.

“Before you kill me,” I wheezed out, “say my name.”

The crease in his brow intensified like he was trying to solve an impossible puzzle.

“What the hell are you doing?” Hermes asked in a harsh tone. “Don’t give up. Fight him.”

Except there was no fighting the god of the sea while submerged way out here. I had no idea where Dion or Heph was or if they were fighting their own battle with Zeus. All I knew was that I had to somehow free Poseidon from this spell and hopefully save Hermes too before I died.

“Your name?” Poseidon scoffed, yet he still didn’t say it. His turquoise eyes darkened as he warred with himself inside. I just hoped his side and not Zeus’ won before I stopped breathing.

But with his fingers squeezing harder on my throat and my helmet bubble bursting, I couldn’t speak. Couldn’t breathe. I could do nothing except stare at him while he choked the life out of me. All the dreams I had about living with him and my other three gods faded away with me.