03

A smack sounded and she looked up in surprise, recognising her saviour as the dark smouldering guy from the bar. He held the man’s wrist, his eyes dark. The other man seemed surprised to see him.

« So they sent you, » he sneered. « What a joke. »

« It won’t be a joke when I tear your arm from its socket, » her saviour replied coldly. His voice held no emotion, his grip on Thea’s waist tight. Thea continued to stare at him, still unsure of what was happening. Up close, Thea could see that he was quite attractive, the smell of his leather jacket filled her senses. His eyes glanced down at her, before returning to the men before him.

« I suggest you leave now, » he continued. « You know I hold more power here than you. If you don’t leave, then I’ll be forced to make you. »

Thea didn’t think they were going to leave, they stared at her saviour for some time before the smaller one stepped forward. « You can’t protect her forever, Hermes. Cronos will get what he wants, he always does. »

« Not this time, » the man called Hermes muttered, his hold on Thea’s waist tightening again.

Quietly, the two men melted back into the darkness, until Thea was only left with her saviour and –

« Shae ! »

Breaking free of Hermes grip, she rushed over to Shae, bending over her. « Shae… »

« She’s dead, Lissandre. »

« Shut up ! » She snapped, tears falling. « My name is not Lissandre, it’s Thea dammit ! Why are you all calling me that ? »

« All will be explained in time. For now, I need to get you out of here. » Hermes tried to grab her but Thea moved away from him, putting herself between him and Shae.

« Just leave me alone, I’m not going anywhere with you ! »

« Considering I just saved your life, I think you can assume I’m not here to kill you, » he said coldly, « I don’t think you’re being very appreciative either. »

The fight left Thea and her shoulders slumped. « I’m sorry, thank you for saving me. »

« We need to leave. »

« I can’t, » she whispered, looking back at Shae. « I can’t leave her alone, I have to wait –« 

She broke off with a sob and there was a slight softening around Hermes eyes. « I am sorry for your loss, Thea but we do not have time. You must come with me to begin your training. »

Thea sniffed. « What ? Training ? What are you talking about ? »

« You must rediscover your powers and help us defeat Cronos once more. » Hermes said impatiently.

Thea was sure she must have misheard him. Either that or he was nuts.

« Are you insane ? » She whispered, beginning to feel hysterical. « What the fuck are you talking about ? Cronos and powers ? You’re out of your fucking mind ! »

Hermes rolled his eyes. « I don’t have time for your silly dramatics, Lissandre –« 

« My name is Thea ! » she screeched, the hysteria bubbling over.

Police sirens sounded and Hermes made a noise of annoyance. « They’re quicker than before, » He muttered.

Lights flashed in the distance and Hermes moved away from her, melting back into the darkness.

« This isn’t over, Thea. » He stressed her name.

« Where are you going ? » Thea whispered, unsure why she even cared.

The last thing she saw was the smirk on his face. « Don’t fear, you’ll be seeing me again, real soon. »

In an instant, he was gone and Thea was left standing alone in an alleyway, her friend lying dead on the ground as the police came bolting around the corner.

« Look, we’ve gone over this at least ten times. I don’t know what else I can tell you, » Thea protested, rubbing her eyes.

Detective Dixon scribbled something down in his notebook and Thea wondered what new information he could have gotten from her outburst.

The last two hours had been a blur. One moment she was watching the police run towards her, red and blue lights flashing in the distance, then she watched as they zipped Shae’s body into one of those awful black bags. Now she was at the police station being questioned about the strange men who attacked her.

« I’m sorry, Thea, » Dixon said gently. « I know this must be frustrating but we need to know everything so we can catch these guys. »

« But I’ve told you everything I remember ! » Thea hadn’t told them about her flame fingers or the mystery man, Hermes. She didn’t want them to think she was insane.

Dixon opened his mouth to speak but promptly snapped it shut and vacated his seat.

« It’s alright Stan, I’ve got this. »

Dixon gave her an apologetic smile and left, Josh Cooper taking his seat. He looked dishevelled, as if he’d just gotten out of bed. He mustn’t live far away to have already been in bed, Thea thought as she tried to stop imagining him in bed.

Reaching out, Josh took her hand and Thea felt her skin tingle. « Are you alright, Thea ? »

His voice was soft and Thea wanted nothing more than to jump in his arms. « I don’t know. It doesn’t feel like it really happened. Does that sound weird ? »

He gave her hand a squeeze. « No, not at all. It’s a common reaction to have to something like this. »

His voice faltered as he finished his sentence. « I’m sorry about Shae. She was a sweet girl. »

Thea nodded, eyes stinging again. « She is – was. She didn’t deserve this. »

« She didn’t, » Josh agreed. « That’s why we’re going to get these guys. Don’t worry, I’m not going to ask you about them. Can you tell me about the man who saved you though ? Did he know your attackers ? »

Thea thought of Hermes, how he appeared from thin air. There’s no way Josh would believe her. « I don’t know, it was dark and I was scared, I didn’t get a good look at his face. »

Josh patted her hand and Thea felt guilty for lying. Something within her felt that Hermes had been different. Despite not wanting to believe any of it, Thea was beginning to wonder if he’d even been real.

« Your hands are cold, do you want something warm to drink ? »

Thea looked at her hands, remembering the fire. Had that been real too ? Panicking, she moved her hands away from him, not wanting to set him on fire too. « I’m sorry, Josh, no thank you. Can someone take me home ? I’m tired. »

« Sure. I’ll take you. » Grabbing his jacket, Josh wrapped it around Thea’s shoulders. Her heart jumped and she inhaled his scent of cologne. A small voice in the back of her mind whispered, The jacket doesn’t smell as nice as Hermes.