"Artemis, Athena, tell me what in the hell is going on now."

I took a trip back to Mount Olympus and managed to find my cousins in Athena's room. They stared and were rooted to the ground, startled.

"Tell me what the fuck is happening now or I will cut off all my communications with the whole of Olympus." I threatened.

I threw my Christian Dior bag on the floor and they jumped.

Athena spoke up. "We can't tell you or else your mother will curse us!"

"To hell with my mother! I'll talk to her about it, but tell me now." I growled.

"Your mother... Aphrodite... she made a deal with a vampire while she was pregnant with you." Artemis said quickly. "She said... she said that once you have come of age, you shall be married off."

"We don't know the full details. Aphrodite didn't tell us everything about the deal. She just made sure that the baby she has — you — was a girl and I could see that she was also very determined to make something work." Athena told me. "I'm sorry, Bella. We can't provide you with all the details you need."

"I'm really sorry too for threatening you guys like this. I need to go now." I said and bowed, them snatched up my bag and went to find my mother.

It has been a while since I talked to her, and we certainly were not on good terms. I asked around for her room and could not find her in there. I stumbled upon a woman with short brown hair and brown eyes. She radiated loyalty and I felt like I should've bowed down all the way at her.

"Excuse me, but do you happen to know where Aphrodite is?" I asked.

She looked at me and her eyes flashed with curiosity. "Why do you ask, my dear? What is the lady of love to you?"

"She's my mother." I replied. "I need to talk to her urgently."

"And who is your father?" She asked, as if she was so close to solving a puzzle.

"Hades. Lord of the Underworld."

She gasped and smiled. "Isabella Marie!"

I frowned. "Do I know you?"

"I am so sorry for not introducing myself. I am Queen Hera of Olympus. Goddess of marriage, fertility and women." She told me. "I helped your mother give birth to you. Your mother may be in her office outside the castle. She works as the chief editor of the Olympian Fashion magazine."

"Thank you so much, Queen Hera." I bowed towards her with gratitude and walked towards a random direction, closing my eyes and thinking of where I wanted to go next.

I opened my eyes and found myself sitting in a velvet armchair in a silver-grey room. I finally looked right in front of me and found my mother staring at me, biting the end of a fountain pen.

"Yes, Isabella?" She finally said.

"The... the marriage." I replied. "You're marrying me off to a vampire!"

"Isabella, you do not understand why I did it." She told me, putting down her pen and placing her arms on the black wooden desk as she leaned a little towards me.

"Then please do enlighten me, Mother. Enlighten me on what I do not understand."

"I was pregnant with you when I took a trip to Alaska many years ago. I was there for the Alaska fashion week. It was the third day over there that I met a lonely vampire from a coven. I went into an empty alley and I thought I was alone. I sort of... accidentally lead a group of sick-minded men.

"They didn't care whether I was pregnant. They had such disgusting thoughts that I had to make them go away. I... I didn't want to hurt them, but I didn't have a choice. I turned into my true divine form. As you can see, gods look like they are mortal, but their mortal form isn't our true form. We turn into light. If a mortal sees us in our divine form, they will turn into ashes.

"I turned into my divine form and they depleted into ashes. The vampire I was talking about was wandering around. He followed those men since he could read their thoughts. When he saw what I did, he... he followed me. He tried to figure out what I am. I still remember feeling what he could feel. Loneliness.

"I went up to him and the first question he asked was obviously what I am. I told him I'd tell him if he could keep what I am a secret and I would gve him something in return. He hesitated before agreeing to that deal and I told him what I was. I told him that I could feel how he felt. His loneliness made me feel so... sad. I told him that he wouldn't need to be lonely anymore if he waited for a few years. I told him that I would give him the perfect life partner." Aphrodite explained.

"And so I would be the perfect life partner." I said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

She nodded silently.

"What's his name?"

She sighed. "Edward."

"Why me?" I asked.

"Because... I know something good will happen out of it for both of you." She smiled. "I'm really sorry if you didn't want this."

I tried not to show how pissed I was and took a deep breath. "So when am I meeting him?"

"Anytime you want, but I prefer if you can meet him as soon as possible." She said. "Or maybe... maybe you'd like to meet him now."

I froze. "Now?"

She shrugged. "Yes. Now."