Lexi's Fate

~52~

Night had fallen by the time Lexi was excused from the reception room, and Poseidon waited to lead her away from the palace. Kade caught up before she had a chance to get nervous, although she had her doubts whether he could protect her from the god casting his enormous shadow over her. With any luck, she wouldn't need to rely on Kade's superior hunting skills. They walked through the city under the glow of flame-lit lanterns, causing the gold adornments to flicker in the light. Lexi used this as a distraction from Poseidon, who seemed determined to unnerve her with the incessant brushing of his robe against her arm.

"So, how did it go with the goddesses, Lexi?" Kade asked. His voice had the inflection of someone trying to make a situation less awkward, although he did it by bringing up an awkward subject.

"I think they like me. It was tricky to tell with Hera. She's so rosy-cheeked and friendly, I can't imagine her uttering a single insult, but her comments didn't always match up with the expression on her face."

Both Kade and Poseidon chuckled but offered nothing in the way of comments.

"Demeter seems nice," Lexi continued, although she didn't know why. "We spent a long time talking about Persephone and her life here in Olympus. It was quite...enlightening."

Lexi intentionally stopped her narrative there. She wasn't going to repeat Demeter's sermon about Persephone's gifts better serving the gods if she lived full-time in Olympus. Apparently, it was something Demeter and Persephone had been contemplating for a while, but Persephone held immense guilt about leaving Hades. Lexi couldn't help feeling bolstered by the thought of having Hades all to herself, but Demeter's disclosure had triggered something, a worry that got comfortable inside Lexi's head.

What if Hades chose Lexi because he knew Persephone was trying to sever ties? Had he rehearsed the weekend they spent falling in love? Was he searching for a goddess who possessed the right kind of gullible to follow him home? Lexi believed Hades loved her, but had his love come of its own accord or was it contrived? With a resolute shake of her head, she stuffed those thoughts into a box and shelved them. If she wanted to keep her wits around Poseidon, she shouldn't be wasting time doubting Hades' devotion to her or vice versa.

After a long walk, which ended in an endless flight of stairs carved into the mountainside, the trio landed on a beach facing the ocean. Taking up residence among the crashing waves, just off the shoreline, stood Poseidon's palace. The castle was constructed primarily of windows, glowing from the inside out and sparkling with gold. Lamps flickered over a plethora of balconies, and at the topmost point, a lighthouse lantern illuminated the silhouette of the surrounding spires. The palace was damn impressive, not unlike its owner.

"It's a shame your first glimpse of my home is hindered by nightfall," Poseidon said, his chest rising as if it were filled with helium. "Many hours were toiled to erect such an awesome structure, and it takes just as many dedicated servants to maintain it. I would truly be lost without the assistance of the nymphs and satyrs."

Lexi remembered the satyrs working in the gardens at the palace of the gods, but that was the only time she saw them. "What do the satyrs do for you? I haven't seen too many around."

"They handle the details behind the scenes; in the kitchen, in the stables, in the laundry. Apart from the centaurs, a more loyal species is impossible to find." Poseidon waved his arm toward a wide stone walkway that bridged the gap between the shore and the grand entrance to his home. "Shall we?"

Lexi followed Poseidon, repeating the speech she gave herself before she left the palace of the gods. Show no weakness in front of Poseidon no matter how charming he is, how compassionate he appears to be, or how mesmerizing his eyes are. She had already found a man with those endearing qualities. Correction, a god.

At the palace doors, they were greeted by a beautiful nymph standing several inches taller than any nymph Lexi had met. She had long waves of indigo hair, and the shiny, black strands flowed over ivory skin that bordered on transparent. Probably a different breed. A water nymph, maybe.

"Good evening, Lord Poseidon," she said as she lowered into a bow. "I see you have procured some guests. Should I prepare food, or possibly a room for an overnight stay?"

"That won't be necessary, Gwyn. My guests are simply here for a tour, but you can have Remi bring a pitcher of water to the southern overlook. We will begin our tour there."

Gwyn bowed again and held the door open, letting them pass. Lexi had to squint against the brilliant light as they walked into a sprawling foyer. The walls and floors sparkled with iridescence, as if they were made of opal, and flickering lanterns casted shadows like dancers moving to a silent melody. Lexi's mouth quickly lost every ounce of moisture as it hung open, and Kade appeared as taken with the spectacle as she was. She leaned into his ear to satisfy her curiosity.

"Have you ever been invited to Poseidon's palace?"

"Many times, but it never ceases to overwhelm me."

Poseidon seemed adequately pleased by Lexi's reaction, and proceeded to lead them up a curving staircase. As she climbed, she became distracted by the breathtaking view of the ocean compliments of a glass wall that stretched a full three stories. Although the grand expanse held the stillness of an abandoned cave, the dancing lanterns made Lexi feel like she was at a rave. They entered another room surrounded almost entirely by glass, and Poseidon slid open one of the panes, gesturing Lexi and Kade onto a balcony.

"This is the southern overlook," he said. "If you direct your attention to the right, you will see the lights of the grand palace of the titans just below the moon. After they were released from Tartarus, the titans built a residence away from the rest of us. In case you're wondering, Lexi, there are no hard feelings from that little disagreement. The spires do add a nice backdrop to the starry horizon, don't you think? Not an evening goes by that I don't spend time taking in the view from a balcony. They are quite astounding - the stars."

As Poseidon spoke, Lexi felt a wave of anxiety, and she gripped the railing a little tighter. She was standing on the palace balcony belonging to the Greek god Poseidon overlooking the sea that he commanded. And the stars were astounding, at least twice the number she had ever seen in one place, and she grew up enjoying an unpolluted view of the sky from her Nova Scotia home. She had to admit, the stars were something she missed in the underworld, along with the sun and the moon.

"I never get tired of looking at the stars," Kade offered. He leaned over the railing, stretching far enough that Lexi thought he might leap off. A drop from that height would render most mortals dead as a doornail, but they were gods, and Kade had the benefit of wings.

"They are a true miracle of the universe, a mystery that may never be completely solved," Poseidon mused.

"Do we really want to solve that mystery?" Lexi said. "I understand the need to pursue knowledge, but if we solved every riddle that puzzled us, we would have nothing left to engage our minds."

Both gods stared at her as if she had claimed to be almighty Gaia herself, and their flummoxed expressions had her hackles up. "What? Did that statement somehow offend you?"

"Not at all," said Poseidon. "You merely made an observation I had not considered."

"And this surprises you? Is it because you didn't think your great mind could have overlooked it, or is it because you didn't believe a female could make such an observation?"

Lexi heard Kade suck in a breath, and he held perfectly still next to her as she matched the stare Poseidon relished on her. After a few tense moments, in which Lexi started doubting the propriety of her comment, Poseidon busted out laughing, his voice booming as if it came from inside her head.

"Clever," he said, as he gave in to his inner child, snorting and smacking his leg. When he found himself again, he looked into Lexi's eyes with the fierceness of a god who enjoyed his position of immortal royalty. "You, my lady, have just earned yourself an ardent admirer."

Lexi counted the incident as a small victory. She had made an impact on Poseidon that had nothing to do with her beauty or ability to satisfy his lust. This she could surely use to her advantage at the council meeting tomorrow. On the other hand, she may have earned herself a problem.