Bella sprinted to Demeter; the rest of the world forgotten. She knelt beside the Olympian, and her heart almost stopped when she saw the ichor leaking out of Demeter's mouth and nose. Bella had never seen her guardian bleed before. Unlike Bella, in everything she did, Demeter exercised strict control, so there'd never been an opportunity to injure herself.

"Demeter!" Bella cried and rocked Demeter.

No reaction.

"Demeter!"

Still nothing.

Bella pressed her ear to Demeter's chest and could barely make out her irregular, faint heartbeat. So, the Olympian was alive, but maybe not for long.

Panic wrapped Bella in its embrace, and her entire body shook. Her mind threatened to shut down. What if she lost Demeter? How could she continue? Where would she go? Demeter was the only one who'd loved her enough to raise her, to risk everything to ensure she reached godhood.

Tears poured down Bella's face. "Demeter, please get up."

But, of course, Demeter couldn't. She'd expended all her power to leave the vampire immobile. Her guardian may very well die in this field.

No!

The thought roared inside Bella and wrenched her from her terrified misery. Demeter had gone through so much and done more than she'd ever had to for Bella. Bella couldn't give up now.

Bella wiped her face clean and glanced around. No other vampires jumped out. It seemed no others laid in wait, which concerned Bella. In the past, there had always been at least two vampires that had come for her and Demeter. Why only one this time? Was it because Knotweed had been involved?

The issue didn't hold Bella's attention for long, though. She returned her attention to Demeter, and she bit her lip. How was she going to move the Olympian? They were both around the same height, but Demeter carried more noticeable weight than Bella. Bella was far from a weakling, but she couldn't drag deadweight, which Demeter was now.

Maybe she could run back to the house and get a sheet. It'd make it easier to transport her guardian. But what if Bella was wrong and another vampire was nearby? She couldn't leave Demeter to die like that.

What could Bella do then? How was she going to get them out of this—

"Bella?"

The tentative voice came from behind Bella. She spun around to see Cornflower, a flower nymph Knotweed had been dating for the past couple of months, standing near her and Demeter. On instinct, Bella crouched over Demeter.

"Back off or I'll kick your ass like I did Knotweed."

Cornflower's dainty lips mouthed "Knotweed", then her huge, pastel yellow eyes sought out her unconscious boyfriend. Her attention swiveled to the vampire. "Did he—Was Knotweed involved in this?"

"Like you don't know."

"What do you m—No, Bella, I didn't know about this." She shook her head; the white flower petals that acted as her hair swished around her head. "Why would I ever want to work with the vampires to harm you?"

"Why are you out here then?"

"Knotweed left unexpectedly, and I went looking for him. I dropped by your place, saw the state of things, and assumed the worst. I figured you guys would come to the river—It's the safest place."

The nymph's story sounded plausible, and Cornflower was the last being Bella would ever think would turn traitor. Yet Bella had had the same thought about Knotweed, and how had that turned out?

Bella couldn't take any risks. "Fine, okay. Now go."

"But you need help."

"No, I've got this."

Cornflower frowned and nodded at Demeter. "You don't, and if you don't let me help you, you're going to lose her."

"I-I can't—"

The nymph bent to Bella's level. "Please, let me fix what Knotweed's actions have caused."

Bella sighed. What other choice did she have?

Demeter groaned when Bella wiped her forehead with a damp, scented cloth. It was the first noise the Olympian had made in hours, and though Bella hated that Demeter experienced pain, it gladdened her to hear Demeter could still function. Maybe in a few days, she'd wake up.

Without Cornflower's aid, Bella knew Demeter would have died in that field. She could still perish since neither the nymph nor Bella had ambrosia on them (it wasn't allowed to leave Mount Olympus). The tonics and salves Cornflower had whipped up or traded for had stabilized Demeter, but she couldn't guarantee they'd work in the long run. The nymph had never had to care for a being like a god.

Bella still didn't trust Cornflower, but she couldn't stop thanking her whenever she ran into the nymph, or cease apologizing. Cornflower had taken Bella and Demeter to the small town her clan had made in the woods. While the nymphs had come to like the gods, they knew what had brought them to their home, and none of them were happy the threat the gods posed.

A few times, Cornflower had come into the room Bella had sat with Demeter in since they'd arrived, and tearstains had marred her cheeks. She never answered Bella when she asked what had made her so upset, but Bella knew. The other nymphs were pressuring Cornflower to rid the gods from their home. Maybe they threatened to kick Cornflower out if she didn't do it soon.

More than anything, Bella longed to leave. Remaining in Italy was a death sentence, and she didn't want to bring more trouble to the nymphs. But she didn't know where to go, or how to go about finding a new place. Demeter had handled all that. She was the one with the connections, and she knew how to contact them.

Bella had wanted to learn all that, but Demeter had always told her she'd teach her one day, that now she shouldn't bother with it. Her guardian stressed Bella act and experience life like a godling should, but Bella should have demanded the information anyway. Then they wouldn't be in this horrendous mess.

The room's thatch door opened, and Cornflower entered. She hadn't been crying, but she wouldn't meet Bella's eyes as she shuffled closer to Demeter's sick bed. In her hands, she held a packet of papers and the emergency bags the gods had had on them when they'd arrived.

Cornflower set the bags on Demeter's bed and handed the packet to Bella. "Here."

Bella took it. "What's this?"

The nymph swallowed. "You, um, have to leave in a few hours."

"Oh...kay." Bella shook the packet. "Is this—this the..."

"Yeah, I managed to secure you a place. In...Forks, Washington."

Bella's lips pursed. "That's in the U.S., right?"

Cornflower nodded.

Bella's stomach churned. They couldn't go to North America, especially not the United States. Vampires crawled over every inch there, even the tiny towns. The gods would be discovered in a matter of weeks, if not days.

"I'm sorry," Cornflower said. "I know it's dangerous, but it's the best I could do. Maybe if I had more time, but..."

Bella hated the idea, but she couldn't be too upset. Cornflower had done better than what Bella ever could.

"No, I understand." Bella flipped through the papers, not absorbing any of the details. Finished, she glanced at the nymph. "How are we supposed to get there?"

"I've arranged for some shifters to escort you."

Bella's eyes widened. "Anyone I know?"

Cornflower shrugged. "Maybe. I think one said he knows you." She bit her bottom lip. "Is that a problem?"

Bella shook her head. "No. It's fine," she lied.

As Cornflower described the rest of the details, Bella tried to calm her thundering heart. Maybe she had nothing to worry about. Bella and Demeter had met their fair share of shifters over the years, most of them male. Any of them could be on their way to help the gods flee Italy.

While she wished that to be the case, Bella knew the Fates never made life that easy, certainly not hers.


A/N: I'm adoring all the attention this story is getting. Thank you, everyone. Your support is one of the highlights of my week.