Read Online 1304 The Harbinger (The 13th Floor) by Christine Rains - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Christine Rains
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limbs. Meira didn’t want to know this. She’d rather have lived with her heartbroken misery than with the knowledge that it would’ve never worked in the first place.
“You’re not a part of this.” Ares waved a hand, motioning to the apartment. “Not a part of that world. You’re something greater than it. And I can help you realize that greatness.”
Numb and empty, Meira knew she should kick the bastard and walk away. Sam didn’t want her to help him. He didn’t want to escape this. And Ares would only use her. He’d make her fight. Grand battles. Not that it mattered any more. Maybe she should go with him.
“Meira!” Sam rushed into the hall, pushing Ares to the side. The God of War vanished as if he hadn’t been there to begin with. Sam cupped her cheek. “Are you all right? Are you hurt?”
She blinked slowly. Maybe she was caught up in an illusion now. Closing her eyes and ramming her head back against the wall, a lance of pain went through her.
When she opened her eyes, Sam was still there, looking more concerned than before. “Is that really you?”
“Yes, of course. What happened?”
“You came back.” Meira pushed the pounding from her newly acquired headache into the fading numbness. “Why did you come back?”
“Why would you ask that? This isn’t real. We need to get through the labyrinth.” Sam pointed out the window. No longer a cityscape, but the gray rock walls of the maze.
Meira pushed away from the wall and cocked her head as she regarded him. “Sam, you were lost to the illusion. I saw your face. This is what you want, isn’t it? You could’ve stayed here forever and been happy.”
Sam sighed and glanced back at the bedroom. “This is one of my dreams, but I know it for what it is. It’s not real. I just wanted to …” His lips thinned, and he shook his head. “I’ll never be happy with something that isn’t real. Reality is imperfection, and while I have dreams of perfection, I embrace the real world as it is.” Then he flashed her a little grin. “Besides, even if I imagined you as a mother, you’d never be like that. You’d have a nanny.”
She laughed and impulsively kissed him. Sam knew her. He truly knew her.
As she pulled away, there was a moment of awkwardness. It felt right to kiss him, but she belonged to Zeus, and he was going to make her life horrendous after this challenge. Sam would never be hers no matter how every molecule in her body screamed that he belonged to her.
“We should go.” This time, her feet clicked as she walked toward the door.
“Yeah,” Sam agreed softly and opened the front door for her. She stepped back into the labyrinth with the exit in sight.
CHAPTER 11
The end stretch was designed to take them out with a bang. Meira accidentally discovered this as she had Sam throw a rock down the corridor to check for traps. The stone hit the ground and was blown into miniscule bits.
“Land mines.” Dangerous, but it wasn’t something that was a difficult problem to solve. Meira couldn’t fly Sam over the walls, but she could lift him off the ground and get them to the exit. “Prepare yourself for a short flight. Keep your knees bent and legs up.”
“All right.” Sam nodded and rolled his shoulders.
As Meira spread her wings, the upper half of the corridor over their heads filled with murky water. Not a single drop fell on the bottom ten feet of the corridor, but it was as if the ocean had stretched to that exact spot. It was surreal and more than a bit disorientating.
“You can’t fly through water.” Sam gaped at the river flowing gently above them.
Meira wasn’t going to let the gods beat her with a bit of water. Harpies weren’t swimmers by any means, but ten feet was just enough room. She could hold her breath if her head dipped into the water. “We can still do this. You need to curl up. Hug your legs tight to your chest and don’t slip. I can fly with my knees bent. It won’t be pretty, but we
“You’re not a part of this.” Ares waved a hand, motioning to the apartment. “Not a part of that world. You’re something greater than it. And I can help you realize that greatness.”
Numb and empty, Meira knew she should kick the bastard and walk away. Sam didn’t want her to help him. He didn’t want to escape this. And Ares would only use her. He’d make her fight. Grand battles. Not that it mattered any more. Maybe she should go with him.
“Meira!” Sam rushed into the hall, pushing Ares to the side. The God of War vanished as if he hadn’t been there to begin with. Sam cupped her cheek. “Are you all right? Are you hurt?”
She blinked slowly. Maybe she was caught up in an illusion now. Closing her eyes and ramming her head back against the wall, a lance of pain went through her.
When she opened her eyes, Sam was still there, looking more concerned than before. “Is that really you?”
“Yes, of course. What happened?”
“You came back.” Meira pushed the pounding from her newly acquired headache into the fading numbness. “Why did you come back?”
“Why would you ask that? This isn’t real. We need to get through the labyrinth.” Sam pointed out the window. No longer a cityscape, but the gray rock walls of the maze.
Meira pushed away from the wall and cocked her head as she regarded him. “Sam, you were lost to the illusion. I saw your face. This is what you want, isn’t it? You could’ve stayed here forever and been happy.”
Sam sighed and glanced back at the bedroom. “This is one of my dreams, but I know it for what it is. It’s not real. I just wanted to …” His lips thinned, and he shook his head. “I’ll never be happy with something that isn’t real. Reality is imperfection, and while I have dreams of perfection, I embrace the real world as it is.” Then he flashed her a little grin. “Besides, even if I imagined you as a mother, you’d never be like that. You’d have a nanny.”
She laughed and impulsively kissed him. Sam knew her. He truly knew her.
As she pulled away, there was a moment of awkwardness. It felt right to kiss him, but she belonged to Zeus, and he was going to make her life horrendous after this challenge. Sam would never be hers no matter how every molecule in her body screamed that he belonged to her.
“We should go.” This time, her feet clicked as she walked toward the door.
“Yeah,” Sam agreed softly and opened the front door for her. She stepped back into the labyrinth with the exit in sight.
CHAPTER 11
The end stretch was designed to take them out with a bang. Meira accidentally discovered this as she had Sam throw a rock down the corridor to check for traps. The stone hit the ground and was blown into miniscule bits.
“Land mines.” Dangerous, but it wasn’t something that was a difficult problem to solve. Meira couldn’t fly Sam over the walls, but she could lift him off the ground and get them to the exit. “Prepare yourself for a short flight. Keep your knees bent and legs up.”
“All right.” Sam nodded and rolled his shoulders.
As Meira spread her wings, the upper half of the corridor over their heads filled with murky water. Not a single drop fell on the bottom ten feet of the corridor, but it was as if the ocean had stretched to that exact spot. It was surreal and more than a bit disorientating.
“You can’t fly through water.” Sam gaped at the river flowing gently above them.
Meira wasn’t going to let the gods beat her with a bit of water. Harpies weren’t swimmers by any means, but ten feet was just enough room. She could hold her breath if her head dipped into the water. “We can still do this. You need to curl up. Hug your legs tight to your chest and don’t slip. I can fly with my knees bent. It won’t be pretty, but we
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