Read Online Seduced by Danger by Stephanie Julian - Free Book Online
Authors: Stephanie Julian
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Zone.
“I’ll just go get some coffee,” she said, stopping only briefly to brush a kiss on Aron’s head. She didn’t linger because she didn’t want to obstruct Nortia’s view of the TV.
The little goddess had clear blue eyes, golden-blonde hair and features worthy of a movie star, not to mention the body of a hot twenty-year-old. And she was giggling over Snuffleupagus and talking to Aron as if they were best buddies.
No doubt about it. Somehow, Cara had wound up in the Etruscan version of the Twilight Zone.
After she poured herself a cup of coffee, she took a muffin from the drawer and sat at the kitchen table, wondering, for some strange reason, how all this would seem to an eteri .
Flesh-and-blood deities, half-goat men, women who incited lust in the men around them and needed sex to live.
The eteri doctors would lock her away in a little white room somewhere, feeding her antipsychotic drugs and pudding.
Nortia was right though. The muffins were fantastic.
Well, of course, she was right. She was a goddess.
“That doesn’t mean we’re always correct.”
Cara quickly swallowed the food in her mouth and went to rise, but Hinthial waved her back into her seat and took one across the table from her.
“In Sal’s home, we don’t stand on ceremony,” Hinthial said. “There’s a time and place for all the ritual…just not here. Sal’s is a sanctuary for everyone. Those deities who choose to visit here are treated like everyone else. Some of us actually enjoy it. Aren’t Sal’s muffins amazing?”
Cara took a deep breath and nodded, wondering if she could make small talk with a goddess.
Even though she and Lacey had been brought up far from the Etruscan center here in Reading, their parents had passed on their knowledge and the Etruscan traditions to them.
They’d told Cara and Lacey about Uni’s Temple, hidden behind Marelli’s Trattoria on South Sixth Street, and about DownBelow , an amphitheater that looked like a miniature Coliseum built under a strip club only blocks away from the temple.
Much of the Etruscan magical population had settled here in Reading two centuries ago when they’d left Italy, where the oppressive Catholic Church had tried to wipe out their entire civilization. Even though they’d still had to hide their power and their temples, they’d been able to maintain their customs and rituals.
And custom dictated you didn’t shoot the breeze with a goddess.
“You have a very precious son,” Hinthial continued. “Very special.”
There was something in Hinthial’s tone that made Cara lift her gaze to meet the goddess’s.
“Yes, I believe he is,” Cara said. “But you’re talking about something else, aren’t you?”
Hinthial nodded, her dark eyes somber. “Yes. I’m sure your parents told you you’d never have children, true?”
Dread settled like a wet, heavy blanket on Cara’s shoulders. “Yes. But when I got pregnant with Aron , I knew they had to be wrong.”
Hinthial shrugged. “To my knowledge, there have been exactly four children born to quercioli . Including Aron .”
Cara let that settle into her brain before she took a sip of her coffee to moisten her dry mouth. “Four children. In the entire history of time.”
Hinthial nodded.
Cara shook her head. “What happened to them?”
Awful, horrible images invaded her thoughts, the kind mothers had nightmares about. Her hands started to shake and she had to set the coffee cup down before she spilled it.
Hinthial reached over the table to take her hand. “Nothing awful. Truly. Forgive me, I’m not explaining this correctly.” The goddess grimaced. “I’m not used to… Well, that’s doesn’t matter. What does matter is that Aron’s birth is a sign. And because of this, those of us who know about Aron have guarded that knowledge like a precious secret. Most of the gods and goddesses know nothing about his existence and those of us who do would prefer to keep it that way if we
“I’ll just go get some coffee,” she said, stopping only briefly to brush a kiss on Aron’s head. She didn’t linger because she didn’t want to obstruct Nortia’s view of the TV.
The little goddess had clear blue eyes, golden-blonde hair and features worthy of a movie star, not to mention the body of a hot twenty-year-old. And she was giggling over Snuffleupagus and talking to Aron as if they were best buddies.
No doubt about it. Somehow, Cara had wound up in the Etruscan version of the Twilight Zone.
After she poured herself a cup of coffee, she took a muffin from the drawer and sat at the kitchen table, wondering, for some strange reason, how all this would seem to an eteri .
Flesh-and-blood deities, half-goat men, women who incited lust in the men around them and needed sex to live.
The eteri doctors would lock her away in a little white room somewhere, feeding her antipsychotic drugs and pudding.
Nortia was right though. The muffins were fantastic.
Well, of course, she was right. She was a goddess.
“That doesn’t mean we’re always correct.”
Cara quickly swallowed the food in her mouth and went to rise, but Hinthial waved her back into her seat and took one across the table from her.
“In Sal’s home, we don’t stand on ceremony,” Hinthial said. “There’s a time and place for all the ritual…just not here. Sal’s is a sanctuary for everyone. Those deities who choose to visit here are treated like everyone else. Some of us actually enjoy it. Aren’t Sal’s muffins amazing?”
Cara took a deep breath and nodded, wondering if she could make small talk with a goddess.
Even though she and Lacey had been brought up far from the Etruscan center here in Reading, their parents had passed on their knowledge and the Etruscan traditions to them.
They’d told Cara and Lacey about Uni’s Temple, hidden behind Marelli’s Trattoria on South Sixth Street, and about DownBelow , an amphitheater that looked like a miniature Coliseum built under a strip club only blocks away from the temple.
Much of the Etruscan magical population had settled here in Reading two centuries ago when they’d left Italy, where the oppressive Catholic Church had tried to wipe out their entire civilization. Even though they’d still had to hide their power and their temples, they’d been able to maintain their customs and rituals.
And custom dictated you didn’t shoot the breeze with a goddess.
“You have a very precious son,” Hinthial continued. “Very special.”
There was something in Hinthial’s tone that made Cara lift her gaze to meet the goddess’s.
“Yes, I believe he is,” Cara said. “But you’re talking about something else, aren’t you?”
Hinthial nodded, her dark eyes somber. “Yes. I’m sure your parents told you you’d never have children, true?”
Dread settled like a wet, heavy blanket on Cara’s shoulders. “Yes. But when I got pregnant with Aron , I knew they had to be wrong.”
Hinthial shrugged. “To my knowledge, there have been exactly four children born to quercioli . Including Aron .”
Cara let that settle into her brain before she took a sip of her coffee to moisten her dry mouth. “Four children. In the entire history of time.”
Hinthial nodded.
Cara shook her head. “What happened to them?”
Awful, horrible images invaded her thoughts, the kind mothers had nightmares about. Her hands started to shake and she had to set the coffee cup down before she spilled it.
Hinthial reached over the table to take her hand. “Nothing awful. Truly. Forgive me, I’m not explaining this correctly.” The goddess grimaced. “I’m not used to… Well, that’s doesn’t matter. What does matter is that Aron’s birth is a sign. And because of this, those of us who know about Aron have guarded that knowledge like a precious secret. Most of the gods and goddesses know nothing about his existence and those of us who do would prefer to keep it that way if we
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