For The Love Of A God by Rosanna Leo (ebook reader for comics .txt) 📕

asleep. I was tempted, you know, to make you sleep through this."

"Sleep through what? Eryx?” She tried to sit up, but he was hugging her too tightly. And why was he staring so wistfully at her, as if he were somehow saying good-bye?

"I love you, Maia. Don't ever forget."

She stared up at him, petrified. Too scared to move or talk or say “I love you” back. All she could do was cry, damn her tears, and look at his beautiful face. And something horrible tugged at her heart, telling her she had to remember his face. Had to remember each exquisite detail.

A velvety woman's voice cut through the tension in the hall. “Eeny, meeny, miny, moe. Who shall I kill first?” Her voice erupted with tinkly laughter. “Sorry, folks. I've never been one for rhymes."

From her place on the floor, Maia looked past the broad expanse of Eryx's chest. The other gods were standing in front of them, weapons drawn. But beyond them, taking up much of the space in the dark hallway, was a strange figure.

It had to be almost twenty feet tall, so tall it just about grazed the ceiling. It had the body of a man, but every part was elongated, exaggerated. Hideous. Its fingernails were claws. Its hair was bristly and long. Every wrinkle, every fold was caked in some sort of otherworld grime, and it smelled moldy. It had great black eyes which blinked incessantly at Maia. But its mouth scared her most of all. Rather than having two rows of teeth, it had four, and each razor-sharp tooth looked sharper than the last.

And the worst part of all was the two people the creature held in its gnarled hands, its fingers closed around two very human necks.

Those of Dino and Sheila.

Their eyes were glazed, and their faces were white, as if they'd witnessed great horror. But they already looked as dead as her father had in his hospice bed.

"No,” Maia whispered, pushing past Eryx and standing with the others.

The woman's voice rang out again, although Nemesis was nowhere to be seen. “Do you like my pet, Maia Douglas? He'll do anything I say. If I tell him to, he'll gobble your friends in one gulp."

She turned to Eryx, desperate. “If they die, can you bring them back?"

Nemesis laughed from her hiding place in the darkness. “Didn't he tell you? We Greek gods don't do resurrection. It's a big no-no. You never know what you'll get. If I kill your friends, they're dead. Plain and simple."

Eryx gazed at her, pained. “It's true, Maia. We can heal people, but we can't bring someone back from death."

A low growl issued from the creature's massive mouth, and it sniffed Sheila. And then it licked her face.

"Oh my God,” Maia murmured.

The voice of Nemesis rang out again. “When I first decided I needed to keep an eye on you, Maia Douglas, I knew I couldn't show myself at the museum. My Eryx would have recognized me. So I had to pick a body. It's fun. Sort of like role playing."

Eryx put himself in front of Maia, holding her behind him. “Show yourself, Nemesis!"

She laughed again. “Oh, how sweet. He can't wait to see me."

"So I can send you back to hell."

"Now, now, Eryx. You know that's not how this works. I've never been overly fond of Hades anyway.” From far down the hallway, there was a noise. The sound of high heels on the marble floor. Walking toward them. “And you may think you can protect your little whore with your gang of Olympian rejects, but you all know I can kill her friends and father with a mere thought. We all know that would make our little Maia so very sad."

"What do you want, Nemesis? Enough with your games,” Eryx shouted toward the sound of the high heels.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves, dearest. First tell me what you think of my borrowed body!"

The heels advanced. Maia watched as the body wearing them strolled toward them. Long legs. Killer bod. Angel's face.

Sarah.

"Shit,” Dionysus muttered. “I slept with her."

"Oh, admit it, cousin,” Nemesis growled out of Sarah's glossy mouth. “You loved it.” She turned to Eryx. “Stroke of genius, don't you think? Your own assistant? It's how I knew you loved Maia. I place the perfect woman, the perfect body, in front of you. Young, sexy, willing. And you wanted nothing to do with her. Barely even looked in my direction.” For a moment, Nemesis/Sarah actually looked sad. “Of course, I'm used to it."

"Is she...?” Maia began.

"Oh, Sarah's dead, all right,” Nemesis said. “You see, that's the tricky thing. When I borrow someone's body, they sorta have to die. And now I'm tired of carrying this corpse, pretty as she is."

Maia felt her stomach pitch in disgust as she watched Sarah's form quiver and crumple in front of her. From the fleshy rubble, Nemesis materialized as her true self. The gorgeous dark-haired woman who'd watched Eryx make love to her in her apartment. The villainess she'd seen in her nightmare. The one who'd butchered Chloe and so many others.

Nemesis, clad in a brilliant golden robe and sandals like the others, strolled over to where Dino's and Sheila's bodies were suspended from the creature's hands. “What's it going to be, Maia? You, or them?"

"Aren't you tired of this?” Artemis huffed.

"Oh, hi, Artemis. I didn't notice you there,” the goddess of vengeance drawled in her mean-spirited way. “How's your eye? Sorry about the whole fury thing. My quarrel's not with you or your brother, or even Dionysus."

Apollo grabbed his sister's hand, restraining her. “Don't. It won't help."

"You're right. It won't,” Nemesis said, turning to Eryx again. “Give her to me. You can see it in her face. Maia's just dying to sacrifice herself for her friends. And I love a martyr."

"Let me go,” Maia cried against Eryx's chest. “Let her have me. Then she'll leave you alone."

"She'll never leave me alone, love. And I refuse to watch her hurt you."

"Maia,” Nemesis