Daughter of Zeus ✔

15.2

"I definitely don't regret that," Phennell said.

Ada worked to catch her breath. He was so athletic and so large. Very large.

"You don't feel weird about it, even a bit?" she asked.

She couldn't believe she was the one saying such things. The relationship with him had started at her insistence, and intensified at her stark insistence. They had been meeting regularly for weeks, but the last few times felt off. When he had dropped her, Ada had been relieved. Then, when he'd texted as he always had, as though they had never stopped meeting, she couldn't resist.

"It's not weird unless you make it weird," he said.

Ada dressed without speaking. Phennell didn't seem to mind. He also didn't mind when she left without saying goodbye or promising to return.

The time she was spending with Kressick, and—damnit, don't admit it, even internally—and with —don't do it—with her father—geez, you're disgusting-- was influencing her more and more. During subsequent purge rituals, they taught her about her origins, little by little, adding to the story day by day so she could absorb it all. In time, they promised Darcy would join in on the sessions when she began manifesting.

Ada enjoyed learning about her powers and new ways in which to use them. Inside one of the thick, ancient tomes, she found alterations of the lightning lore. For instance, there was a woman from the 1880's who used the power of nerve manipulation to read minds. Or the woman from the 1920's who could concentrate energy beams from her finger, similar to the power and strength of a laser pistol.

"Can I do any of those things?" Ada pointed out the laser-pistol woman to Kressick.

He fingered the page, tracing the black and white lines of the woman's face. "She was my mother, so it's quite possible you might learn her specialty." He closed the book gently. "However, some of the other specialties skip a generation here or there, so I doubt you'll be reading minds."

"Not like you," Ada said, half-kidding.

He laughed. "Like me?"

Ada stared, waiting for him to give her a real answer. Kressick pointed out another ancestor, changing the subject. Still, he hadn't denied or confirmed anything, and she let the issue drop.

The idea of Darcy joining the purge sessions stuck with Ada. Moretz still made her skin crawl, but she slowly got used to him. Kressick knew how to get her laughing, as no one else did. If she let herself forget about the baggage, which was nearly impossible, she could pretend they were a family.