He couldn’t say it. He couldn’tthinkit.
“Danny, please, answer us,” Lynn begged.
“I just thought that if you let out some steam,” Andre said, “you’d feel better, but you can’t—”
“I’m fine,” Danny said on reflex, even though he knew it wasn’t what they wanted to hear, and it definitely wasn’t the truth. “I stopped. I’m…I’m getting out of here.”
Danny grabbed the man and jumped with him around to the front of the building where the police had just pulled up. Leaving the thief on the sidewalk, he jumped again, not knowing where he wanted to go but feeling the fatigue of overusing his powers creep up on him like cloying shadows.
Shadows…
“Danny, please come back to the precinct,” Lynn said.
Sparking out of his lightning somewhere unfamiliar, Danny leaned against a building to catch his breath. He was getting disoriented, jumping randomly as his powers drained. “I can’t. I need to call it a night. I need to go…”Home, he thought, but that wasn’t where he wanted to go either. “I just need to go.”
He should have taken the pills. Why hadn’t he taken thepills? He wished he had them with him now.
“Danny,” Andre tried, “we’ve been over this. We’re here for you. You don’t have to deal with this alone.”
“I know,” Danny said, and in that moment he knew there was only one place he wanted to be. “I won’t.”
Reaching up to shut off his comms, he risked jumping one last time—to Cho’s apartment.
ß
Hades had been so very upset when he first saw Zeus stick his head into the alley he’d been walking down, certain for a moment that his true power had been uncovered. But no…no. Zeus didn’t know nearly as much as he thought he did.
Detective work, he’d said. Hades knew Zeus’s day job well now thanks to Prometheus, but keeping tabs onDanny Grantwas difficult. He used his powers all the time, jumping across the city in seconds, making it impossible to know where he hung his hat or where he had his headquarters as Zeus.
Hades would find out soon enough, but while he’d been distracted tailing Prometheus, he wouldn’t allow Zeus to get the jump on him again. One day Zeus would know what Hades was really capable of; how he moved, how he worked, and how, with his powers, he was the only person alive who could do what he did and survive.
Finally, he was a villain worthy of Thanatos’s legacy.
Soon, Zeus, he thought. Especially with Prometheus’s heist on the horizon. Claiming the Winterheart Diamond first was going to be ever so much fun.
ß
Before digging for his keys to head into his apartment, Mal rubbed his eyes with his thumb and index finger. It was late. Later than he liked. Staying up after midnight was always a pain leading up to a heist, but if he didn’t work a few late nights, even adrenaline wouldn’t be enough to keep him alert come the real thing. Most heists didn’t happen in the middle of the day; this one was going to be well after closing. He’d been at the safe house ever since leaving Priestly at the shop. Right now, Mal just wanted to sleep.
Pushing inside, despite how exhausted he was, he instantly knew he wasn’t alone. Someone was in his apartment.
Right arm shooting out in front of him, Mal iced over in defense as he aimed outward from the dark entryway. The door clicked softly shut behind him. Nothing stirred, but within the otherwise quiet, there was the faint sound of even breathing.
Dropping his hand, Mal let the ice recede as he took further stock of the room. In front of the coat closet door was a pair of very recognizablegoldboots.
He relaxed, locked the door behind him, and reached for the light switch. Then he stopped. Even breathing. Lights still off. He considered calling out but thought better of that too. Slowly, after toeing off his shoes, he stepped into the living room, moving toward the sound of those indistinct breaths.
Even in the dark, Mal could make out the figure on his sofa. Sprawled out, cowl drawn back to reveal a mess of ginger hair, suit unzipped, Danny laid there fast asleep.
Mal should have been annoyed to find his hero having once again broken into his home, in full Zeus costume, no less, but he couldn’t stop the smile from tugging at his lips as he watched the slow rise and fall of Danny’s chest. The tousle of his hair. The subtle part to his lips as he slept.Damnif Mal wasn’t smitten, seeing the kid so undone.
For now he’d let him sleep. Any fallout could wait until tomorrow.
Chapter17
Something smelled amazing. Like…cinnamon? Was Dad making cinnamon rolls?
Danny stirred, blinking up at the ceiling as he snuggled in deeper under the covers. His alarm hadn’t gone off yet, so he had to have a little extra time. But breakfast smelled sogood. So did his sheets, come to think of it, though he didn’t remember washing them recently. Only it wasn’t that fresh clean smell, more like remnants of a very familiar cologne…
