We obey immediately.
After we sink into the leather seats, Aidoneus takes a deep breath.
“First, Helena, I have something to say to you. You need to know that this isn’t your fault. Your father and I have been at odds with each other for longer than you have been alive. This feud... he was just looking for an excuse, and he found it in you. I fear I have relaxed far too much in the past hundred years. We cannot retaliate just yet.”
Erik remains silent but squeezes my hand.
The King of the Daemons leans back and addresses us both. “I see that the two of you are… together. We have had little time to speak, but I want that to change. I would like both of you to stay here until further notice. It is safe… and I believe you could provide me with useful information to… to…”
He hesitates in a way that I don’t understand.
Aidoneus sighs. The sound is long-suffering and speaks to depths of pain. “I know what it is to turn against parents, to want to overthrow them. I hate it. You will hate yourself for doing it. But I’m afraid I must ask you to help me fight against your father. It will be hard, but in doing so, we will make a better future for every court in Aranthium.”
I stare at him and nod.I understand.
“It won’t be easy, overthrowing Phelix. Nor will it be without costs. Are you prepared for this?”
A long moment passes, as I think. Am I prepared to deal with the lives that might be lost because of me? More lives? More death?
The short answer is yes.
The long answer is I wish that no one else would have to die, but my father is a horrible male and needs to be stopped.
I nod once more.
“Very well,” Aidoneus says. He turns his attention to Erik. “Gods have granted mortals boons for as long as mortals have walked the earth.”
Erik’s face is unreadable as he says, “They say that you are the father of humans.”
“I am no one’s father. But I have championed many a human in my day. It’s been a while, and I would like to start that again.”
Erik’s face is pure stone, and my heart is racing. “What exactly are you talking about?” Erik asks. “You weren’t at the docks, but Phelix’s message was clear. This attack was because of Helena and I. He needs to be stopped. Are you going to do that?”
My uncle stares at Erik. “If it is the last thing I do, I swear I will work to restore the balance in Aranthium. Phelix has gone too far. With Helena’s help, we will gather our forces and fight back against my brother.”
“And Raphael?”
“He is misguided. I will get him under my wing. He will work with us, I am certain of it. Now, human, let’s talk about you.”
Aidoneus shuffles around several towers of precariously stacked papers to find a brown folder. He opens it, and I note the thick stack of papers inside.
“You are trouble, Captain.” Aidoneus flips through the papers. “Arrested in Port City on one account of the assassination. Detained twice for public nudity. A standing warrant in the Summer Court… oh yes, this is my favorite. Three months community service for having demolished an entire factory while drunk.”
My head snaps to Erik, whose face is still a blank wall.
“You have quite a high body count. But then things start to get interesting… it appears you have spent quite a lot of time smuggling overpriced medication into the Spring Mer lands—and giving it out for free.”
“Hmmm,” Erik says noncommittally.
My uncle smiles. “You steal from the rich and give to the poor… how wonderfully interesting.”
Erik’s throat bobs.
“I can take care of all of this.” Aidoneus snaps the folder shut. “But you must promise to be more careful. Vigilante justice is not the future of this world… I will put you in touch with some very important people, and you will work together. But you put one toe out of line, and I will risk the wrath of my niece to banish you from my sight forever.”
Erik opens his mouth and then closes it. And then he says, “I don’t know if I can accept that. It has been a principle for me not to allow other species to rule over me for any reason.”
Aidoneus continues smiling. “Yes, I see that. In a previous life… you were Henry Erikson? Is that right? It says you were an activist for around five years. Before you vanished.”