Denver hadn't changed much since the last time I was here.
I couldn't help shuddering in distaste as Nicholas drove over the city's border. On instinct, my figure slouched into my seat and I fixed my gaze determinedly on the glove compartment in a vain attempt to keep my attention from wandering outside of the car.
Nicholas must have noticed because he kept shooting me strange looks as he drove one handed down the highway. "Are you alright?"
"Fine," I answered curtly.
He snorted. "You're a terrible liar."
"And you're a terrible driver, could you watch where you're going please?" I scowled at him.
He sighed wryly, taking the steering wheel with both hands pointedly. "Look, it's probably none of my business-"
"Then best to stop talking."
"-why are you helping Apollo and Artemis?" he finished curiously. I felt my jaw lock. "You obviously don't want to be here, and since you get that uncomfortable look every time you look at me, I'm guessing it has something to do with the twins, right?" I frowned at him, opening and closing my mouth several times. He just shrugged. "I've met my father before, Acacia. I know how much we look alike."
I rolled my eyes. "You're very different," I replied honestly.
He managed a small grimace. "Olympia got the irresponsibility, I'm afraid."
"Great, another irresponsible prophet. Just what we all needed."
"She's not that bad," he dismissed. "She's just … well, it's kind of difficult to explain. I guess that all the stuff she sees takes it toll and to deal with it, she's latched onto this belief that whatever happens, its fate and its for a reason."
My lips twisted, but I said nothing. I couldn't help thinking about all the prophecies I'd heard – the one about Zeus' lightning bolt, this summer's quest to save Artemis, the Great Prophecy, and the one about the Daughter of Lightning. Maybe things did happen for a reason, but what was that reason? What if that reason was bad? What if fate's plan was to restore the Titans to power?
My fingertips drummed on top of my thigh anxiously. "I might be the reason the gods fall," I blurted.
Nicholas shrugged. "You might not be."
"I've just told you I might destroy Olympus, and you shrug?" I gawped. He glanced across at me, and for a split second, it looked like he was going to explain himself. Then he shook himself, snapping his jaw shut and turning his attention back to the road.
Conversation drifted for a while after that, and I eventually forced myself to take in our surroundings. It was growing dark again now, and we'd been driving for just short of a day. I had no idea how Nicholas was still awake, let alone driving, but he didn't seem too uncomfortable, draining another cup of coffee. Outside, the streets were filled with people from their early twenties to their mid-forties dressed up for a night out on the busy high street, moving from bar to bar. For a moment, I was struck by how normal everything seemed. Didn't these people realise how much danger we were all in these days?
Of course not, Acacia, don't be stupid, I scolded myself.
I believe it is a sign of distress to talk to yourself in such a way, daughter of Zeus, a disinterested voice came in the back of my mind.
Pursing my lips, I leant toward the window and looked up. Zeus' eagle was still gliding overhead, scanning the streets below. What are you still doing here?
Watching over you, Ms Grace, he said simply.
Do you have a name?
Talon, Ms Grace.
"Imaginative," I grumbled.
"What?" Nicholas frowned.
"We're being watched," I told him plainly. He lifted an eyebrow. "An eagle named Talon."
He snorted with a slight smile. "Talon?"
"That's what I said. He didn't take it very well."
He laughed. "Well, we're here anyway."
I blinked in surprise, straightening out to stare outside. Nicholas had pulled the car up in a parking lot beside a low built bar with spotlights over a iron-wrought sign over double walnut doors that read 'The Concert Hall'.
"She's in a bar?" I frowned.
"She's twenty-two, she's in bars frequently," Nicholas snorted, turning off the engine and climbing out of the car. I pulled a face again, following his example. I guessed I'd never really thought about it much, but I hated the very idea of bars. Just looking at them, dotted down the street, reminded me of my mother stumbling through the front door at six in the morning, still drunk and yelling nonsensically about my school work and how I should be up doing my chores before I left.
"I'm fourteen," I pointed out to him as we walked toward The Concert Hall. "They aren't going to let me in."
"Sure they are," he shrugged. "Haven't you ever used the Mist before?"
"Yeah, just not to break into a bar seven years before I'm allowed."
"Not much of a rebel for someone who might destroy Olympus, are you?"
I glowered at him angrily. "I don't like alcohol. I don't like what it does to people, so no, I've never tried to get into a bar before."
He hesitated and shot me a look. "Sorry."
"Save your breath," I mumbled, rolling my eyes and stomping toward the entrance.
The closer I got, the louder the music became. I could hear drums beating loudly, and an electric guitars being played so aggressively I thought the guitarist's fingers might be bleeding. But that's when the singer's voice cut through my thoughts, and I found myself stood stock still, listening in awe.
Someone snapped their fingers in front of my face. "Kid? Hello!" I blinked in surprise, shaking myself to look sideways at the doorman stood in a black suit and tie with a stern expression.
"She's not a kid," Nicholas' voice came behind me. He made a gesture with his hand and the doorman's eyes shifted slightly.
"The concert's just started," he told us, reaching for the door handle and letting us through.
The moment the door opened, the music got louder. We walked through a short, dimly lit corridor that opened out into a huge, open plan room. On the left hand side, large groups of people were sat around low and high tables, whilst on the left, a bar ran almost the entire length of the room. Directly in front of us, a couple of steps led down to a wooden dance floor which lay in front of a long stage. Lights flashed behind the band, consisting of a drummer, three guitarists and a singer.
It was the singer who caught the most attention. Crowds were screaming in front of her as the twenty-something strode back and forth across the stage, singing at the top of her lungs. She was tall, with dark brunette hair and bright hazel eyes, dressed in a plain vest top and jeans that clung to her tanned skin.
"She's good!" I commented over the music.
Nicholas scoffed. "Of course she is, she's the daughter of Apollo! That's Olympia!" My face dropped in surprise, but he only indicating toward the bar with a jerk of his head and stuffed his hands into his pockets. Reluctantly, I followed.
The girl behind the bar beamed in delight when she saw Nicholas. "Hey, I had no idea you were in town!" she squealed, hurriedly skirting around the bar and drawing him into a tight hug. He pulled a face in disgust, but patted her back awkwardly and smiled when she drew back.
Shaking her head at him, the girl glanced back toward me. "Little young to be in a bar, isn't she?" she asked Nicholas in disapproval.
"She's a friend of the family," he shrugged. "I couldn't exactly leave her outside."
"I'm not a dog," I scowled at him.
He just waved a hand at me. "See?" I clenched my jaw, folding my arms over my chest. "I'm just here to speak to my sister, Cas, that's all. Promise."
"Um." The girl, Cas, didn't look impressed. "I'm starting to think asking you to keep Oly in line was a bad idea. Maybe someone should be watching you." Her eyes flicked sideways.
"I'm just a kid," I grimaced, holding up my hands with a shrug.
"Um, and he shouldn't be getting you involved in whatever stunt the two of them are pulling this time," she scowled, wagging a finger in Nicholas' face. "I want to see this girl back here in one piece, you understand?"
He smiled wryly. "We're not up to anything."
"Liar. What's your name, honey?"
I blinked at being addressed like that. "Acacia."
"Oh, that's a beautiful name! Well, Ace – you don't mind me calling you that, do you?" I opened my mouth to tell her that yes, actually, I did mind, but she wasn't paying any attention. "You make sure you come back here so that I can see you're okay. I love my cousins to bits, but I don't trust them very much."
My lips twitched before I could help it. "I have cousins like that." Cas laughed. "How are you guys related again?"
"On my Mom's side," Nicholas interrupted quickly, and for some reason, that didn't make me feel better. He was obviously trying to assure me that Cas wasn't anything to do with this, just another mortal caught up in family politics, but all it really did was make me think about their mother. For the first time, I felt an irrational surge of jealousy that made my stomach twist.
He's got loads of children, Acacia, get a grip!
"Oh," was all I could say.
"Look, Oly isn't due to finish for another half hour, do you guys want something to eat? A drink? Non-alcoholic of course."
"Hey, I'm not a kid," Nicholas smiled.
"You're driving. Coke it is!" Cas beamed at him, then twisted away to make the drinks.
I moved closer to the bar and took a seat on one of the stools, still trying to shake the thought of Nicholas' mother out of my head. Somehow I couldn't. My eyes drifted back toward the dark haired Olympia. She didn't look much like Nicholas or Apollo, but she was still remarkably beautiful. Did she look like her mother? If she did, the woman was obviously much better looking than me.
The jealousy suddenly tasted like acid, and I found myself wondering vaguely if this was how Hera felt about my mother.
"Gods," I cursed, wiping my hands over my face.
"Are you alright?" Nicholas asked in concern.
"No, you're all driving me mad." The very idea that I could even remotely compare myself to my nutcase stepmother made me queasy. I took a deep breath and took my hands away from my face, to see Nicholas frowning at me strangely. I grimaced tightly. "Forget it."
"You're a strange kid."
"Probably a good thing," I sighed with a shrug. "Any normal kid would have legged it a long time ago." He pulled a face, but nodded slowly all the same.
"Here we go!" Cas exclaimed, setting down two glasses of Coke and ice in front of us. "I'll get you something to eat. On the house, of course. Oly's killing it out there, as usual."
"Thank you," I smiled at her. She grinned and winked, spinning back around. "Your family seem nice."
Nicholas watched me for a moment. "Cas' parents died when she was young, so my Mom took her in not long after Oly and I were born."
"I'm sorry."
"Not your fault," he shrugged. "Cancer. Seems to run in the family. Mom passed a few years back."
My chest clenched and suddenly I felt the size of an ant. "Nick, I…"
"Again, not your fault. Besides, my family is probably the last topic you want to talk about."
I snorted. "Actually, that would probably be my family." I smiled at best as I could at him. "Your Mum sounds like she was a good person."
"She was."
I took a swig of my Coke, wondering what to say next, when a familiar shape moved across the room. I froze, twisting back toward the bar and glancing over my shoulder. My eyes took a moment to adjust, but it was definitely him – sandy hair, smart clothes, arrogant stride.
I turned back to face the bar, my heart hammering and my stomach sinking. Cas came back, setting two plates in front of us with another smile. She said something – I watched her lips move – but I didn't hear a word. She didn't seem to notice, twisting back away to serve other customers.
When I didn't move to eat, Nick nudged me. "We haven't ate for hours, you should really get your strength up. This journey isn't going to be easy, you know."
I didn't answer, staring with my heart pounding at the water running down the outside of the Coke glass.
"Acacia?"
"Shut up," I warned, fists clenching. Blood was pumping in my ears in fury. "We've got a problem."
Nick hesitated, shifting. "How bad?"
"His name is Luke Castellan. He's the reason we're about to go to war."