Hired Gun #4 by Julia Crane, A.J. Bennett Page A

you’re right and he’s a good guy who means well. Where does that leave us?” 
    Her stance relaxed just a tiny bit. “I-I don’t know.” 
    “Do you believe we are fated to be together?” 
    Kataya wrung her hands. “I don’t know what to believe. But yes, we were meant to meet. That much is obvious. I should get back home. I’m sure Geoffrey is worried.” 
    “He is.” 
    “You saw him?”
    “Yes, I went to offer him something that would spare your life.” 
    Kataya narrowed her eyes. “He would never hurt me.” 
    “I’m afraid he would, child.”
    They both turned around to see Athena standing before them. 
    “Anna?” Kataya reached forward and touched Athena’s arm, but quickly snapped her hand back as if she’d been burned. 
    “Who’s Anna?” Thorne asked, confused. 
    “My spirit guide, but I’ve never seen her in the flesh. Just while scrying.” 
    “Oh what a tangled web we weave,” Thorne said sardonically. 
    “Your guide also goes by the name Athena. Yes, the Athena. Who also happens to be my aunt.” 
    Kataya sat back down, her legs too shaky to hold her up. “Is he speaking the truth?”
    “Yes, my dear. I am Athena, but I am also your guide by choice. And before you say it, I never lied about my name. All I gave you was A. You are the one that named me Anna.”
    Kataya covered her face with her hands. “I’ve been acting like a blubbering fool to you for my whole life. You must think I am so weak.” 
    Athena smiled warmly. “Not at all, but your teen years were pretty trying.” 
    “This is mortifying.” 
    Thorne crossed his arms over his chest. As much as he hated to admit it, he was jealous that Athena had watched Kataya grow up. “We have more important things to worry about than your embarrassment.” 
    “Thorne’s right, and he is your soulmate, your twin flame. I can’t say I envy you for that.” 
    Thorne scoffed. And then something clicked. “Athena, if you’ve been with Kataya all along, then you have known about Thanatos this whole time.”
    “Yes. I have known, and had hoped Kataya would be enough to change his ways, but Thanatos is hell bent on going through with his plans. Which is why I had to interfere.”
    “Did you know about this all along from your vision?”
    “No, but it didn’t surprise me in the least. One of these days I’m going to find a way to get back at those little bitches, the Fates. They move things around like it’s a game for their entertainment.” 
    Thorne figured now was not the best time to remind Athena that she was the one that probably got the ball rolling with the Fates when she interfered with Kataya’s bloodline. 
    “I refuse to believe that Geoffrey wants to end humanity. You don’t know him the way I do.” 
    “I’ve known Thanatos for eternity, trust me he is capable of worse. Much like the two of you, he is a victim of his circumstances. He did not wish for the hand that was dealt him, but he also didn’t choose the right path.” She paused. “He wasn’t always this way. As you know, his parents are Nyx and Erebos, and his twin is Hypnos. The twins were separated before they were of age. Thanatos got the bad end of the deal. He was taken by Erebos and left in pure darkness, alone for centuries. Eventually he escaped, and he was so powerful that no one could take him down, but he’d changed in that time. The darkness had won, that was until he met his wife. She refused to believe he was unredeemable. She’d known him as a child; they’d played together. It took centuries, but little by little she wore him down and he accepted her love. So as you can see, since Apollo took his family, Thanatos has nothing left to live for. That is until he met Kataya. I’ve watched them together. His feelings for her are real, but they are not strong enough to prevent him from taking revenge.”
    Thorne raked his hands through his hair, surprised to feel a sort of kinship with Thanatos. He’d though