now, but that’s something you need to understand.”
“I was delivering a message, not trying to join your group.”
Zeus shoved the gun and the phone in his sweatpants. “We gotta get out of here.” He stalked out through the pool area. I followed him. We went through a series of doors, and then out into the cool, starry night. I touched my neck. It wasn’t bleeding as much.
Pop-pop-pops like firecrackers sounded out in the distance.
“They breached the room,” he said as we hurried across the parking lot to the van. “Get in back.”
I jumped in and closed the door. He started up the van and drove. Slowly. Meanderingly, even. In this way, he made the van itself a disguise.
I marveled at the extreme discipline it would take to drive so listlessly instead of frantically racing across the lot. I mean, killers were after them. Thor and Odin, presumably, were waiting somewhere.
‘…that doesn’t make you part of the group.’ Zeus had said. His words stung, but they confirmed so much about these guys—particularly the idea that they had survived against dangerous enemies by a fierce, almost wolf pack like loyalty, sacrificing outsiders and even their own safety for each other.
A wolf pack thing—or a god pack thing. And he’d made it painfully clear that I was the outsider.
I wished I was inside.
It was the flowers that saved him from me hating him totally at that moment.
Zeus rounded the side of the hotel and slowed near a thicket of bushes that hugged the corner of the hotel. Thor and Odin burst out, piled in, and we were off.
“Denko,” Zeus said to Odin, who was riding up front as usual. “Had to be.”
Odin nodded. “Denko.”
Zeus pulled onto the main thoroughfare and drove at the speed limit.
Thor scooted over. “Are you okay?”
“Yes,” I whispered. A bit of a lie. I was still shaking.
He inspected my neck, palpating the skin around it. “What happened?”
Zeus said, “Down in the weights room one of the ops tried to hold Isis. But we convinced him she was nobody. Wouldn’t you say, Isis?”
“I think it was made clear, yes,” I said.
“He tried to hold you?” Thor said.
“So I threatened to shoot them both,” Zeus said, like it was nothing.
“Through my skull ,” I added. “A two-for-one.” I felt proud of myself for speaking of it so casually. I felt Odin’s eyes on me. “It was most delightful,” I added, not even looking at him.
“It was stupid. Mess with the bull, you get the horns.” Zeus was quoting some movie I couldn’t place at the moment. I wondered if he meant it for the guy he’d kicked in the face, like that guy was stupid to have messed with him, or if he meant that for me.
“Zeus, you need medical attention,” Thor said to him sternly.
“Let’s put down some distance first,” Zeus said.
Thor turned to me then, and he put out his hand, palm up. I rested my hand in his and he closed his fingers around mine, and just held my hand there in the back seat.
Such a simple gesture, but at that moment, it meant everything, and I felt linked to him. I knew I was an outsider—Zeus had made that clear, but Thor let me in a little, right then and there.
CHAPTER THREE
The guys drove through the night, taking turns, stopping once for burgers for Zeus, and once for medical supplies. We switched off seats after that. I was allowed to ride in front, and Thor got in back with Zeus and dug a bullet out his arm—right in the back seat. When I figured out what was happening back there, I was horrified. “Odin!” I said, tipping my head at the back seat. You could see the weariness in Odin’s eyes; he was too tired to be driving.
“Don’t worry, he’s a doctor.”
“A doctor?” I said.
“That’s right,” Odin said. “What’s so weird about that?”
“You just don’t see that many bank robber-doctors,” I mumbled. Plus, he seemed to be the least responsible of the three of them. The others were all into keeping him in line, it
“I was delivering a message, not trying to join your group.”
Zeus shoved the gun and the phone in his sweatpants. “We gotta get out of here.” He stalked out through the pool area. I followed him. We went through a series of doors, and then out into the cool, starry night. I touched my neck. It wasn’t bleeding as much.
Pop-pop-pops like firecrackers sounded out in the distance.
“They breached the room,” he said as we hurried across the parking lot to the van. “Get in back.”
I jumped in and closed the door. He started up the van and drove. Slowly. Meanderingly, even. In this way, he made the van itself a disguise.
I marveled at the extreme discipline it would take to drive so listlessly instead of frantically racing across the lot. I mean, killers were after them. Thor and Odin, presumably, were waiting somewhere.
‘…that doesn’t make you part of the group.’ Zeus had said. His words stung, but they confirmed so much about these guys—particularly the idea that they had survived against dangerous enemies by a fierce, almost wolf pack like loyalty, sacrificing outsiders and even their own safety for each other.
A wolf pack thing—or a god pack thing. And he’d made it painfully clear that I was the outsider.
I wished I was inside.
It was the flowers that saved him from me hating him totally at that moment.
Zeus rounded the side of the hotel and slowed near a thicket of bushes that hugged the corner of the hotel. Thor and Odin burst out, piled in, and we were off.
“Denko,” Zeus said to Odin, who was riding up front as usual. “Had to be.”
Odin nodded. “Denko.”
Zeus pulled onto the main thoroughfare and drove at the speed limit.
Thor scooted over. “Are you okay?”
“Yes,” I whispered. A bit of a lie. I was still shaking.
He inspected my neck, palpating the skin around it. “What happened?”
Zeus said, “Down in the weights room one of the ops tried to hold Isis. But we convinced him she was nobody. Wouldn’t you say, Isis?”
“I think it was made clear, yes,” I said.
“He tried to hold you?” Thor said.
“So I threatened to shoot them both,” Zeus said, like it was nothing.
“Through my skull ,” I added. “A two-for-one.” I felt proud of myself for speaking of it so casually. I felt Odin’s eyes on me. “It was most delightful,” I added, not even looking at him.
“It was stupid. Mess with the bull, you get the horns.” Zeus was quoting some movie I couldn’t place at the moment. I wondered if he meant it for the guy he’d kicked in the face, like that guy was stupid to have messed with him, or if he meant that for me.
“Zeus, you need medical attention,” Thor said to him sternly.
“Let’s put down some distance first,” Zeus said.
Thor turned to me then, and he put out his hand, palm up. I rested my hand in his and he closed his fingers around mine, and just held my hand there in the back seat.
Such a simple gesture, but at that moment, it meant everything, and I felt linked to him. I knew I was an outsider—Zeus had made that clear, but Thor let me in a little, right then and there.
CHAPTER THREE
The guys drove through the night, taking turns, stopping once for burgers for Zeus, and once for medical supplies. We switched off seats after that. I was allowed to ride in front, and Thor got in back with Zeus and dug a bullet out his arm—right in the back seat. When I figured out what was happening back there, I was horrified. “Odin!” I said, tipping my head at the back seat. You could see the weariness in Odin’s eyes; he was too tired to be driving.
“Don’t worry, he’s a doctor.”
“A doctor?” I said.
“That’s right,” Odin said. “What’s so weird about that?”
“You just don’t see that many bank robber-doctors,” I mumbled. Plus, he seemed to be the least responsible of the three of them. The others were all into keeping him in line, it
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