"was Elaina Sumter."
"Sumter as in the cannibalistic butcher Sumter?" I ask.
"His daughter," Jonas informs me.
I nod. "I see."
We walk on.
After a time, Apollon says, "What?"
"What what?" I ask.
"What what do you think?" he retorts.
I laugh, but say, "Do you really think it's a good idea to be
hitting on a cannibalistic butcher's daughter?" In the back of my
mind I'm wondering how it is she gets to wander around by herself, and I figure
somebody's probably paying Matthew for that privilege. Either that or
Sumter's scarier than I realize. Cannibalistic butcher. Hmm.
Apollon just shrugs as though he doesn't really care if he ends up
as a plate of sausages. "It's my personal mission in life to
deflower as many virgins as possible before I die."
I glance at him.
He glances at me, just from the corner of his eye.
"Interested?"
I'm turning red again, but of all the things I could say in
reply to that, I find myself saying, "What makes you think I'm a
virgin?"
Again, he shrugs. "Well," he says, "do you remember having sex?"
"No," I say flatly.
He grins. "Close enough for me."
"You'll find Apollon's standards of virginity to be quite
flexible," Jonas adds dryly.
"Convenient," I say.
We keep walking. All the while, Apollon throws me sly grins
even though I narrow my eyes at him more than once. We're just
approaching the market place, when I hear them. The flower
peddlers. The muscles in my shoulders tighten.
Apollon beams at me, leaning down to say something, but I don't
catch it. One of them is right in front of us. An older woman,
crying "Roses and lilies, roses and lilies." I slam on the
brakes as she accosts us, stuffing a bouquet of lilies in my face.
"Flowers for your lady?" she asks, looking up at
Apollon.
"She's not..." I hear Jonas mumbling, but I'm too busy
feeling all the blood drain from my face to catch the rest.
I can't breathe, until suddenly, almost miraculously, I spit out,
"Lilies are the flower of death! Go find a corpse!" I
smack the woman's wrist and the flowers flutter away out of my face, a few
petals spilling onto the ground.
The flower peddler doesn't like this, of course. She clucks
and raises a clatter like a chicken about to be eaten.
Apollon soothes her by buying two lilies. I watch
incredulously, my mouth hanging open. My fingernails dig into my
palms.
"Actually," says Jonas in a level voice, "they're a
symbol of resurrection."
I glance at him, and my eyes stick on his olive-skinned face, on
his green eyes looking out over the marketplace.
"Eve's tears," Apollon says as the woman moves away,
taking up her horrible song.
"Hunh?" I say.
"When Eve got kicked out of the garden, they sprang up from
her tears," Apollon says. "They're just right for you," he
says. "Eden."
"Or just exactly wrong." I eye the lily he holds
out to me. Just one of them. Is he keeping the other for Elaina?
"Here," he says, making a movement like a shrug while
holding the flower out. "Take it."
Reluctantly, I pinch the stem between my thumb and forefinger, and
take ownership of the lily.
"It won't hurt you," Apollon mumbles. His eyes
fall on Jonas.
There's a split second where Jonas' face changes, though I still
can't read his expression. He starts shaking his head slowly.
Apollon holds out the other lily to him.
Jonas' jaw clenches. He looks like he's going to say
something. Then his head tips back just the slightest touch-- defiance--
but he takes the lily. He looks decidedly uncomfortable doing so.
And pissed, too.
Apollon beams.
I'm still trying to figure out what all this means when Apollon
takes both of us by the arm and starts us walking again. As we get going,
his hands drop to his side. There's an easiness to his stroll that says
he's quite pleased with himself. I glance at his face. He looks
happy. As if things couldn't get any weirder, he suddenly starts spouting
poetry.
"’ The modest rose puts
"Sumter as in the cannibalistic butcher Sumter?" I ask.
"His daughter," Jonas informs me.
I nod. "I see."
We walk on.
After a time, Apollon says, "What?"
"What what?" I ask.
"What what do you think?" he retorts.
I laugh, but say, "Do you really think it's a good idea to be
hitting on a cannibalistic butcher's daughter?" In the back of my
mind I'm wondering how it is she gets to wander around by herself, and I figure
somebody's probably paying Matthew for that privilege. Either that or
Sumter's scarier than I realize. Cannibalistic butcher. Hmm.
Apollon just shrugs as though he doesn't really care if he ends up
as a plate of sausages. "It's my personal mission in life to
deflower as many virgins as possible before I die."
I glance at him.
He glances at me, just from the corner of his eye.
"Interested?"
I'm turning red again, but of all the things I could say in
reply to that, I find myself saying, "What makes you think I'm a
virgin?"
Again, he shrugs. "Well," he says, "do you remember having sex?"
"No," I say flatly.
He grins. "Close enough for me."
"You'll find Apollon's standards of virginity to be quite
flexible," Jonas adds dryly.
"Convenient," I say.
We keep walking. All the while, Apollon throws me sly grins
even though I narrow my eyes at him more than once. We're just
approaching the market place, when I hear them. The flower
peddlers. The muscles in my shoulders tighten.
Apollon beams at me, leaning down to say something, but I don't
catch it. One of them is right in front of us. An older woman,
crying "Roses and lilies, roses and lilies." I slam on the
brakes as she accosts us, stuffing a bouquet of lilies in my face.
"Flowers for your lady?" she asks, looking up at
Apollon.
"She's not..." I hear Jonas mumbling, but I'm too busy
feeling all the blood drain from my face to catch the rest.
I can't breathe, until suddenly, almost miraculously, I spit out,
"Lilies are the flower of death! Go find a corpse!" I
smack the woman's wrist and the flowers flutter away out of my face, a few
petals spilling onto the ground.
The flower peddler doesn't like this, of course. She clucks
and raises a clatter like a chicken about to be eaten.
Apollon soothes her by buying two lilies. I watch
incredulously, my mouth hanging open. My fingernails dig into my
palms.
"Actually," says Jonas in a level voice, "they're a
symbol of resurrection."
I glance at him, and my eyes stick on his olive-skinned face, on
his green eyes looking out over the marketplace.
"Eve's tears," Apollon says as the woman moves away,
taking up her horrible song.
"Hunh?" I say.
"When Eve got kicked out of the garden, they sprang up from
her tears," Apollon says. "They're just right for you," he
says. "Eden."
"Or just exactly wrong." I eye the lily he holds
out to me. Just one of them. Is he keeping the other for Elaina?
"Here," he says, making a movement like a shrug while
holding the flower out. "Take it."
Reluctantly, I pinch the stem between my thumb and forefinger, and
take ownership of the lily.
"It won't hurt you," Apollon mumbles. His eyes
fall on Jonas.
There's a split second where Jonas' face changes, though I still
can't read his expression. He starts shaking his head slowly.
Apollon holds out the other lily to him.
Jonas' jaw clenches. He looks like he's going to say
something. Then his head tips back just the slightest touch-- defiance--
but he takes the lily. He looks decidedly uncomfortable doing so.
And pissed, too.
Apollon beams.
I'm still trying to figure out what all this means when Apollon
takes both of us by the arm and starts us walking again. As we get going,
his hands drop to his side. There's an easiness to his stroll that says
he's quite pleased with himself. I glance at his face. He looks
happy. As if things couldn't get any weirder, he suddenly starts spouting
poetry.
"’ The modest rose puts
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