Iridescence

CHAPTER THIRTY

APOLLO

I showed up at Billy's house because I knew he needed to be healed. I definitely sensed Nyght's soul within the boy, and his eyes were just as sad as his deity self's had always been.

"If you heal him, we can't prove abuse," Lucky pointed out. "Billy shouldn't go to prison for this."

"Don't worry about that," Simone said. I'd gone and found her after Faith ran off to try to stop Lucky's brief but traumatic death. If Athena said she was our best bet, I was all for meeting her. "We'll make sure it's recorded as a case of severe abuse, but there's no need to leave him in this much pain."

As I moved closer to the boy, he shrank away from me. My heart broke for him.

"You can trust Apollo," Vanessa said soothingly. "He won't hurt you."

Billy still seemed skeptical, but he let me get close enough to heal him. I was able to tell he was more injured than he looked.

"You have internal bleeding," I said gently, "and your spleen has ruptured."

"Can you fix him, or do we need to get him to a hospital?" Darrell asked.

"Of course I can fix him," I said. I was genuinely offended. "I'm the God of Healing."

"And he ruptured an organ," Della pointed out.

"I'll need to remove his spleen. It's almost impossible to heal a ruptured spleen that has this much damage, but he can survive without it."

"So he needs surgery?" Vanessa asked in horror.

"Don't worry," I replied. "I can use magic to remove it." I focused, because it had been a long time since I'd done magical surgery. In cases like this, I could simply turn the failed organ to ash with the heat from my sunlight.

"Are you trying to kill the kid, Apollo?" Hermes asked from the door.

"I'm trying to save him, Hermes," I replied in annoyance.

"He's Nyght, right? The embodiment of Darkness? You're a Sun God! Sending that much of your energy into him will poison him."

I cursed softly. "Good catch, Brother," I admitted. "I hadn't thought about that."

"Let me help the boy," Hermes continued. He was a God of Medicine in addition to his other skills, so I decided to let him work. He grabbed Billy and raced out of sight.

"Where did they go?" Vanessa asked in alarm.

"To a sterile environment, most likely," I replied. "Hermes will actually do surgery to remove the organ. Don't worry, Vanessa. He's very good at this sort of thing."

Vanessa did not look reassured. Lucky frowned. "I could have just created an operating room for him if he'd asked," he said.

"We have not yet had the chance to inform him you are Ly, Lucky," I said. "I only know about that because I had a vision once you were marked for death."

We spent some time conversing as the demigods cleaned up the crime scene. I did my best to keep Vanessa calm, but she didn't fully relax until Hermes reappeared with Billy.

The boy was very pale, but I suspected he was back to his usual color since the poor kid never got to see the sun. His injuries had been healed, and he seemed a little bit stronger. Hermes had provided Billy with fresh clothing and a brand new pair of black sneakers. I recalled he'd been barefoot, and judging by how uncomfortable he looked, I suspected he hadn't worn sneakers in a very long time.

Vanessa flung her arms around him. "I was so worried," she said.

Billy hugged her back gently, like he was afraid he might hurt her. "I'm okay," he replied softly.

"He's completely healed," Hermes added. The look on my brother's face told me that hadn't been as easy as he was making it sound.

"Where are we bringing him?" I asked Vanessa.

"To my house," Vanessa replied firmly. "I'll convince my mom to let him stay."

"Vanessa, are you sure your mother will agree to that?"

"Her mom's pretty cool," Lucky replied. "And she'll do anything to keep Vanessa happy."

I had a feeling Vanessa might need a little bit of help on this one. "Allow me to go with you," I said. "I can vouch for Billy's need for a sanctuary."

"Thanks, Apollo," Vanessa replied.

We left the house and headed toward the Singh residence. Lucky left us along the way as we passed by his house.

Mrs. Singh greeted us with a dazzling smile. "Hi, I'm Jaya. Welcome to our home!" She said as she opened the front door wider to allow us inside.

Vanessa cleared her throat before softly saying, "Shoes..."

I understood and quickly took off my shoes. Billy looked confused, but he followed my lead. He looked incredibly uncomfortable being in a strange new house.

"Mrs. Singh-" I began.

She cut me off. "I told you, I'm Jaya," she said firmly. "A home is a place where you can be yourself without worrying about formalities."

"Jaya," I started again. "My name is Mr. Ray. I teach at Vanessa's school."

She studied me, and I suddenly felt like this woman could see right through my illusion. "Is that so, Mr. Ray?" She asked. "To what do I owe this home visit?"

"Your daughter befriended a boy recently... This is Billy," I motioned toward him. "I'm afraid he's been through quite an ordeal."

Jaya looked at Billy curiously before seeming to decide something as Vanessa clung to his hand. "I made aloo tikki, Vanessa. Why don't you and Billy go have some while Mr. Ray and I chat?" She asked.

"Sure, Mom," Vanessa replied quickly, dragging Billy toward the kitchen.

"Alright, now you can stop tap-dancing around what you want to say," Jaya said once we were alone. "Who is this boy, and why did you and my daughter bring him here?"

"Billy was being abused," I told Jaya. "His most recent injuries have healed, and now he needs a place to stay."

"You're asking me to take him in? I'm a little bit confused."

"It was your daughter's idea."

Jaya softened. "Well, my butterfly has brought home many stray animals who needed to be rescued over the years," she said. "It shouldn't surprise me that, upon seeing the pain in this boy's eyes, she wanted to rescue him, too."

"I understand that this is asking a lot of you."

"I see how broken he is. This boy has suffered enough. I will let him stay here for now, but what is the legal situation? Have his parents been arrested?"

"His mother died when he was very young. He just lost his father, who has been nothing but cruel to him. This boy never knew kindness until he met your daughter."

Jaya smiled sadly. "That sounds like Vanessa." She shook her head. "This poor child... Why didn't the authorities help him? Surely the school noticed the signs of abuse."

"I don't think he was enrolled in school... At least not after his mother died."

"That's even worse! He had no escape..." She shook her head. "I can't turn away a child who needs a safe place to call home. Just tell me what I need to do."

"Tonight, just help him settle in. A social worker will come by tomorrow." Considering I knew we had a Goddess walking around in the form of a social worker, I figured I could ask for her help to ensure Billy was allowed to stay with Vanessa and Jaya.

"Alright. Would you like to stay for dinner? You can snack with the children while I prepare it."

It was a rare thing for me to be invited to eat Indian food. I was very tempted, but there was too much I needed to take care of. "Regrettably, I don't have time right now," I said with a genuine sigh, "but I'll take a rain check."

The irony of a Sun God taking a rain check wasn't lost on me.

Jaya smiled and said, "Very well. Another time. Excuse me for a moment." She walked away to answer her cell phone.

I walked into the kitchen. "I have to head out," I said. "Billy's staying. I'll make sure the legal side is handled."

"Thank you," Vanessa said, hugging me.

Billy was stuffing food into his mouth in a way that broke my heart. It was obvious he hadn't eaten much of anything in far too long. He looked embarrassed.

"Eat up," I encouraged him. "You deserve to savor some real food."

He nodded. "Thank you for your help," he said softly, not daring to meet my eyes. Even knowing I wouldn't hurt him, he was terrified of me. I hoped Vanessa and Jaya could help him feel safer.

"Apollo, wait!" Vanessa said. She quickly put a few aloo tikki patties into a container. "For the road," she said with a smile.

Gods bless that girl.

"Thank you, Vanessa," I said, somehow keeping my composure and not showing how excited she'd just made me. I gave her an extra hug. "Rest easy tonight, Billy," I said. "You're finally safe."

I let myself out of the house, waving goodbye to Jaya as I left. The first thing I did was call Elios, or Addison as she was currently calling herself. I explained the situation and she promised to start helping Billy right away.

I found myself walking toward Krissy's house, which was Eliza's new home. Ares stood outside looking ridiculously conspicuous as he kept an eye on things. Subtly was never his strong suit.

"Are you trying to tempt Theos into attacking?" I asked.

"Let him come. I owe him an ass kicking," Ares replied.

"Ares, you're supposed to protect the girls."

"Relax, Apollo. Your girlfriend's fine."

"She's not my... I mean... She's fifteen, Ares!"

"She's your consort, and she unlocked her soul," Ares said. "Don't pretend her incarnated age matters. Girls her age used to be married with kids. And in the realm of the Gods, fifteen is considered an adult."

Nike suddenly appeared and smacked the back of his head. "Eliza's not old enough to consent, you pervert," she snapped. "This isn't Ancient Greece, Ares."

"I wasn't telling him to go have sex with the kid, Nike," Ares snapped back. "I'm just saying that he loves her and should claim her as his consort." He shrugged. "Artemis seems to have no issue pursuing Faith."

"First of all, it's Faith doing most of the pursuing," I pointed out. "Second, she's a foster kid who grew up before her time. Despite her impulsive nature, Faith has a very mature understanding of the world. Third, Artemis is eternally a maiden Goddess, making her technically about Faith's age. And lastly, if you ever bring up my sister's personal life again, she'll probably destroy you, so I wouldn't advise it."

Ares seemed to realize I was right about that last part. "You stay pretty young, too, Apollo," he pointed out, moving away from the subject of Artemis. "You're only about twenty-two or so, right?"

"That's still an inappropriate age gap."

"Unlike you, he's not a creep, Ares," Nike added. "Apollo recognizes the imbalance of power that exists between a twenty-two-year-old and a fifteen-year-old and won't risk taking advantage of that."

"Quit calling me a creep," Ares replied. "Eliza's soul is nineteen."

"Eliza's body isn't," I said firmly. "Besides, she's still trying to find the balance between herself and Kleia. The memories and powers are unlocked, but she has to find out where Kleia ends and Eliza begins. I don't want to make that harder for her."

"All I'm saying is you waited too long last time, Apollo. You thought you had eternity and look what happened! Don't make that mistake again."

I don't know what came over me... Perhaps it was millennia of grief over Kleia, or simply the fact that Ares had a habit of pushing people too far sometimes, but I snapped. The next thing I knew, my fist slammed against his powerful jaw.

Ares cursed before throwing a punch right at my gut. I doubled over and cried out in pain, but neither one of us was done yet. I slammed my palm into his nose, breaking it. That's not a big deal for a deity, but it still hurts in the moment.

Nike tried to separate us. Ares shoved her aside with so much force she slammed into a tree. That made me stop. I knelt beside her to see if she was injured. Ares took a cheap shot and kicked me in the back.

"Enough!" A voice boomed, making everything shake.

I looked up and saw that Poseidon had stepped between me and Ares. He looked angrier than I'd seen him in a long time.

"Mind your own business, Poseidon!" Ares snapped.

"You are supposed to be guarding the girl I blessed, who lives in that house a few feet away from us," Poseidon pointed out. "Instead, you two are brawling like boys in a schoolyard fight. That is my business, Ares."

"Apollo started it! He punched me! What was I supposed to do?"

"I imagine Apollo had a very good reason for his actions."

"You're taking his side? Typical!"

"Apollo rarely gets into fist fights. It's your favorite hobby, and I know you tend to run your mouth, so yes. I'm inclined to believe Apollo."

"Nike, are you alright?" I asked her.

"I'm fine. Ares will pay for his actions later," Nike promised.

"You attacked a Goddess?" Poseidon demanded.

"It's not like she can't defend herself," Ares insisted. "If I attacked Persephone or Aphrodite or another gentle Goddess, I'd understand your anger, but it's Nike, and all I did was shove her because she put herself between us."

"Ares, get out of here. Now," Poseidon said.

"But-"

"I am about to flood this entire street just to drown you. Leave."

Ares vanished. "Coward," Nike mumbled.

"Apollo, tell me what happened," Poseidon said patiently.

"I'm sorry, Uncle," I replied softly. "I briefly lost my wits... Ares was pushing me to pursue Eliza romantically despite the obvious moral issues with that. When I repeatedly protested, he mentioned that I waited too long with Kleia, and I... I just lost it."

Poseidon looked sympathetic. "I hope you got a few good hits in," he said with a laugh. "Ares has a bad habit of speaking without thinking."

"He was meant to guard the girls... Darrell and Della won't be here until tomorrow."

"I'll watch over the girls tonight," Poseidon promised. "You should get some rest, Apollo. Tomorrow, Eliza will need you."

I nodded, knowing that was true. The memorial for Eliza's mother would be held in the morning. I had to be strong to be there for Eliza. Nothing else mattered.