Aphrodite 04 - Aphrodite's Flame by Julie Kenner

Author:Julie Kenner
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Published: 2011-07-12T16:41:24+00:00

Chapter Twenty-one

Jason’s holographic image stood on Mordi’s holo-pager, his hands spread wide with agitation. “It was the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard,” he said. “Why would Dionys be excited about our father’s return to the fold? And what’s this B.S. about sitting at Zephron’s right hand? It’s a total cro—”

“One thing at a time,” Mordi said. He was in a small service hallway off the lobby. At the moment, the hall was completely deserted. “Did you talk to Romulus?”

“Out on bail.”

At that, Mordi took a step back. Apparently, his surprise showed on his face, because Jason’s image nodded.

“I know. Another oddity in a truly odd day.”

“But it makes some sense,” Mordi said. “Maybe he was the one planning something here tonight. But then he saw me and figured he shouldn’t press his luck, and that’s why nothing’s gone down yet.”

Jason nodded slowly. “Could be. Or maybe Isole Frost was the one planning something there tonight ... and you sidled in as her date and blew all her hard-made plans.”

Mordi scowled, not wanting to acknowledge the possibility, but knowing that he had to at least keep an open mind.

“Is anything happening there?” Jason asked.

Mordi had to assume that his half brother meant something other than the way his blood raced and his body stiffened when he was around Izzy. “Nothing,” he said. “Although I do have something I want you to check out.”

“Shoot.”

Mordi took a breath, thinking about his earlier suspicion that Hieronymous had invented some sort of control device. He couldn’t do it with the current Protector technology—at least, not using his powers directly—but maybe someone else could. “It’s probably nothing, but with Hieronymous being such an invention junkie, I thought it was worth checking out. During his speech, Harold Frost said that he—”

“Mordi!”

Izzy’s scream reverberated down the hall, and Mordi dove left just as a burly man smelling vaguely of cabbage plowed into him, sending him crashing to the ground. What the hell?

Mordi didn’t bother trying to analyze the situation, he was too intent on getting the gorilla off him. He reared back with his fist and landed a powerful punch right in the man’s face.

Nothing.

Just... squish.

A Henchman.

Henchmen. The vile creatures vaguely resembled squid in their natural form, but they could assume other shapes at will. Unlike Mordi, though, the shapeshift was essentially an illusion, so that when you actually fought a Henchman, it was like fighting a tub of slime. Score one for this Henchman.

The beasts were preternaturally strong, too, even stronger than most Protectors. Score another point for the hellish creatures.

They were not, however, very bright. And it was there that a Protector’s advantage really lay. At the moment, though, Mordi wasn’t thinking. He was reacting. He whipped his leg out, prepared for it to hit a wall of Jello rather than flesh, and was absurdly satisfied with the thick slurp as his leg impacted his attacker.

The creature tumbled backward, and Mordi climbed to his feet, already summoning his power. The thug was back up, though, and Mordi wasn’t ready.

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