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CHAPTER THREE

Swearing like a horse (as my dad used to say, I never really understood it), I popped up, successfully staying upright on my third try. I went to go change into publically acceptable clothes. Meaning something other than a baggy pair of sweatpants and an old T-shirt of my father's.

Not only did I have to deal with passing out for over three hours and somehow waking up downstairs...

But to make it worse, I was now late for work.

For me, it wasn't exactly uncommon an occurrence, and the boss was a total pushover, but still. I usually wasn't almost a half hour late.

I threw on jeans, a black tank top, and a white hoodie. I also grabbed my heavy-duty combat boots. In them I slipped my mothers dagger. I also double checked for my father's pen and wristwatch. Feeling even more paranoid than usual (and that's saying something). I slipped my mother's old cap in my back pocket. Lastly I grabbed a heavy jacket and burst through the front door.

The restaurant was just over a mile away. I could run there in seven minutes, slowed down by the snow clinging to my feet. I was about half way there when I felt someone grab my arm.

My eyes widened and without an ounce of rational thought or planning, I was on top of the attacker. My knee digging into it's stomach, my arm pressed forcefully against it's throat.

It coughed. "God, Si. What the hell was that?"

I pulled back. "Matt?" I stood and helped him up. "What are you doing?"

He rubbed his throat when he stood. "Same as you, I guess. Rushing to get to work. Late, as usual." Matt was the only one with a worse attendance record than I. Though, his grandfather was the owner so it didn't really matter. He looked me up and down. "Damn. How'd you do that?"

"Do what?" I asked, feigning innocence.

"Freaking tackle me to the ground!" He said, laughing in disbelief. "I thought I'd be able to hold my own in a fight, but apparently not against you, Si."

The teens in our town called me Si, while the older folks tended to call me Silena. Only Zack called me Lena.

I shrugged. It wasn't his fault, really. I'd had more than my share of combat skills. Skills I'd been able to keep under wraps until now. Inwardly, I sighed. Everything was just not going my way today.

"Yeah, well. My parents were kind of into self defense when I was a kid." I managed to say this with a straight face somehow.

He rolled his eyes. "No kidding. Damn, girl."

"Don't we both have a job to be getting to?" I snapped.

"Debatable." He said with a sly smile.

I rolled my eyes. "Well, I'm not related to the boss, so I could still get fired." I then began to trudge through the snow once more.

He jogged to keep up. It seemed to take more effort on his part. "They wouldn't fire you. Besides, why you late this time?"

I paused. "Fell asleep during school work."

He laughed. "I feel ya. That stuff is more boring than shit."

"Why're you late this time, Matt?" I asked, disinterested.

He smiled wide. "Didn't feel like getting up."

"You are the most lazy person I've ever met."

"Like you've never been lazy." He scoffed.

I didn't respond. Until recently, I haven't been able to afford to be lazy since I was little. And now, restlessness was too far ingrained into me for me to be lazy. "I'm not really a lazy person, you could say." That was an understatement. Adjusting to living in one place was a slow process. I still had that deep feeling that I shouldn't be staying in one place so long. That I should be packing and moving on to a different state. I'm not sure I would ever stop looking behind my shoulder.

He laughed. "Whatever. You don't know how great it feels. To not have a care in the world." He nudged me playfully and I threw him a weak smile.

He didn't know how right he was.

I walked the rest of the way in silence while Matt talked to, or rather at, me. I honestly lost track of the conversation. I kept glancing around nervously, trying to decide if the chill down my back was the cold Alaskan air or something else.

'We will have penance...' it/they said. 'What once was ours will be ours again.'

What did it mean? Penance for what? What was once theirs? And...what will be theirs once more?

Work went by in a haze. Matt enjoyed regaling everyone with the tale of how I took him down out in the snow. Even though it was outlandishly exaggerated, it made me bite the tip of my thumb in thought and worry. If this tale spreads like I expect, then it could mean trouble.

I ended up snapping at three different customers, but they were used to it. They all knew I had a temper. Everyone knew everything about everyone around here. Or so they thought.

'Hey guys! Guess what? Greek gods are real! I'm a descendant of two really powerful gods. My parents were modern day Greek heroes. Just six months ago I was on the run from half the most powerful gods and just about every monster out there. Oh yeah, I also was involved in illegal money scams.'

My mouth almost quirked upwards at the thought of their reaction.

My shift moved at the speed of a glacier, which apparently move extremely slow. People 'round here are all about their glaciers. It made me want to vomit.

Consider me a little sick of ancient history.

I was way over eager for work to end, so when it did, I practically ran home. When I got there I stormed in, slamming the door behind me.

"Len's. That you?"

'Who else would it be?' I had to keep the biting retort from slipping past my pressed lips. "Yeah." I forced out.

"How was work?" He asked as he came to greet me.

I plastered on a smile. "Just...awesome," I emphasized.

"How bad was it?"

"Well, Matt may or may not have spent the entire time telling everyone about..." I looked sheepishly up at him. "HowIknockedhimdownflatontheg roundwhenIwenttowork," I said quietly and quickly as I walked past him.

He shook his head. "What?"

I went to the kitchen and started drinking our orange juice straight from the carton. When I finished I gasped for air. "I may or may not have inadvertently attacked Matt today on the way to work."

"What do you mean 'inadvertently'?"

"I didn't know it was him!" I shouted.

"Who else would it be?"

I had to keep from laughing bitterly upon recalling that I had been an inch away from saying that exact same thing to him moments before. I threw my hands up. "How would I know?"

"We're in Alaska, Lena. When are you going to realize we're safe?"

"When are you going to realize I'm never going to feel safe?" I saw hurt flash in Zack's eyes and I immediately felt guilty. "Zack...I'm sorry. It's just...listen. Being with you, it's the closest I have ever felt to being safe or normal since I was a little girl. But I'm not a little girl anymore. I grew up way too fast and I'll always be paranoid. Always be looking behind my shoulder."

He shook his head. "That's not it. Something else has been going on with you and you won't tell me about it." I looked away. "You think you're protecting me, Lena? I'm worried like crazy!" He took a step forward. "Please, Len's. What's going on with you?"

"I'm fine, Zack."

"How come that sounds like you're avoiding the question?" I squinted my eyes shut to stop the tears. I hated, hated, lying to Zack, but I didn't want him to know...know how unstable I really was. He thought I was getting better. He didn't realize that I was just sinking farther down, and I didn't know where the bottom was.

"What are you trying to protect me from?" He asked quietly, gently.

"I don't know," I said meekly.

"Why won't you let me help you?"

Because I don't know how to help myself.

That's what I wanted to say. "I'm fine, Zack." I repeated, my voice cracking.

Zack looked at me coolly. I hated that look. It's a look I wore for so long.

Still wore.

"Tell me that again when you believe it." He stormed out.

I pulled at my hair. I was just so sick of everything good in my life being ruined. Doing a mixture of a scream and a grunt, I pulled my knife out of my boot and hurled it at the far wall.

For a moment I felt dizzy again and I stumbled into the near wall as I felt the chill on the back of my neck. For a moment I worried I was going to pass out again. But I managed to stay upright. Instead, all I heard was the ominous voice. This time with a new message. One twelve times creepier.

You will be ours...

*Gasp!* DA DA DAAAAA (creepy music) OMINOUS! ;)

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