“My goodness, child. What has gotten into you?” She didn’t look happy. Normally I would never think of talking to her like this, being so disrespectful, but I was way past my limit.
“Chase and I are destined to be together?”
She nodded. “Yes, Jodi, you and Chase are destined to be together. He’s the only other Ophi who’s even close to being like you. You two are meant to be.”
“That is not going to happen. I can’t be with Chase.”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t warn you. I tried to tell you to stay away from him. I thought, if maybe you never joined powers with him, you could avoid the prophecy.”
“Why didn’t you tell me? You could’ve stopped me!”
“I don’t think so. His pull was much too strong, and I was bound to secrecy. Hades may not have my soul, Jodi, but he can still keep tabs on me. If I interfere with what is destined, Hades can reclaim me.”
“To hell with destiny. To hell with Chase. I don’t care about any of that. I’m supposed to be the leader of the Ophi, and look at what I’m doing. I’m failing miserably. I don’t care about what I’m supposed to be doing, Medusa. I’m not playing by the rules anymore.”
“It’s not that simple. You can’t change a prophecy. This isn’t Chase’s fault either. He’s no more in control of his destiny than you are.”
“Are you defending him? A minute ago you said you’d hoped I would stay away from him so the prophecy wouldn’t come true.”
“It was foolish of me, but you are one of mine, Jodi. I was desperate to try to protect you. Now, I see I cannot.” She lowered her head, and the snakes transformed back into hair. “This is what I looked like before I was cursed. Before I became a monster.”
She was beautiful, but she’d always looked beautiful to me—with the exception of the snakes.
“None of us is free from fate. This was mine.” Her hair wiggled and turned to snakes once again. “Chase was no safer than you were.”
“What do you mean?” She was trying to tell me something in her own cryptic way.
“It’s easy for an Ophi to go bad.”
“But why is that?”
“Our powers are tied to our emotions. Every emotion we experience is heightened. So if you’re angry and feeling the need for revenge, that feeling is even stronger than it would be for a human.”
“So, what you’re saying is that Chase wasn’t always evil?”
“Probably not. I didn’t know him, so I can’t say for sure, but most likely something happened to him. Something that caused him to be this way.”
“Is that why I keep seeing glimpses of a different side of him? A kinder side of him?”
“It could be.”
“Is there any possibility that the old Chase—the person he used to be before this terrible thing changed him—is still there somewhere inside, buried by his emotions?” I was shocked that I was defending Chase, but if he and I really were destined to be together, I didn’t want to believe I was supposed to end up with someone evil.
“I wouldn’t put all your faith in that, Jodi. Something happened to Chase. We know that. Whether or not he’s strong enough to come back from it, we don’t know.”
“Doesn’t that mean we should at least try? I mean, do we just give up? He and I have such a strong power together. How do I turn my back on that? What if his power combined with mine is the only thing that can stop Hades from killing us all?”
“What if his power combined with yours is the thing that kills the entire Ophi race? Are you willing to take that risk?”
Chapter 26
I let go of Medusa and faced the group of Ophi staring at me, waiting for confirmation. I couldn’t say the words out loud, couldn’t admit the truth. Alex saw the answer on my face and said, “It’s true.”
I ran back upstairs and locked myself in my room. Alex knocked on the door, begging me to let him in.
“Just go, Alex. I can’t face you right now.”
“Jodi, either open this door or I’ll break it down. Either way, I’m getting into this room.”
I wiped my eyes and went to the door. The second the lock clicked, Alex pushed the door open and wrapped me in a hug.
“We’ll find a way around it. I promise.”
“Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”
He let go of me. “So what, you’re giving up? You’re willingly going to Chase?”
“I don’t know, but I can’t hurt you like this. I want to be with you. More than anything. But if that’s impossible, then you shouldn’t waste your time on me.”
He grabbed my face in his hands and kissed me. He wrapped his arms around me and lifted me off the floor. Quicker than I’d thought possible, we were on my bed. I felt the full weight of his body on mine, and it made my head spin. I kissed him like there was no tomorrow, because I wasn’t sure there was one for us. My blood boiled, and I was afraid I’d end up raising more souls. I made the quick decision to transfer my power to Alex. He moaned in response. He kissed me harder, and his hands ran along both sides of my body. I knew what he was feeling because I’d felt it with Chase. Chase. The thought of him created a shift in my blood. Alex pulled away from me, choking.
“Oh, God! I’m so sorry.” I squirmed out from under him. I quickly willed my blood to mix again and reached for Alex, but he backed up. “It’s okay. I’ll heal you. I promise.”
He stopped, and I touched his cheek. Instantly he stopped choking. Then he was kissing me again, as if he hadn’t just been on the brink of death. He pulled away from me long enough to take his shirt off and toss it on the floor. Then he was back on top of me, his fingers inching up my shirt.
“What the hell?” Chase yelled.
I let go of Alex, but he continued to paw at me. I calmed my blood so the effect would wear off him. He looked dazed for a second before he turned to Chase and reality set in.
“Get out,” Alex said. “This doesn’t concern you.”
“Really?” Chase said. “‘Cause it looked like you were about to hop into bed with my girlfriend.”
“I’m not your girlfriend, Chase.” Wow, it felt good to say that.
Chase cocked his head to the side. “The prophecy says differently, Jodi. And as your future husband, I forbid you to see Alex anymore.”
“Forbid me?” My voice went up an octave. “You can’t forbid me from doing anything.”
“I can make you do whatever I want. Don’t forget that. I’m trying to be nice. I thought, once you knew the truth, you might give in and start to be the person you’re meant to be. But you always have to fight, don’t you?”
Alex was on his feet and in Chase’s face in seconds. “Get out before I put you out.”
Chase laughed. “The last time you tried that, you ended up with a concussion. I can promise I won’t go as easy on you this time.”
“Stop!” I said. Didn’t anyone care what I had to say? “Look, this stupid prophecy is about me, so I’m deciding what’s going to happen. Got that?” I looked back and forth between Chase and Alex.
Chase shook his head. “Sorry, Jodi, but you’re not the only one in the prophecy. I get a say in this, too.”
“Fine. Then the two of us will work this out. Find a way around the part about us ending up together.”
“I’m not leaving you two alone to talk.” Alex turned his back on Chase and looked me in the eyes. “I’m not giving him a chance to hurt you again.”
“Alex, we can’t talk with you here. You’ll be a distraction.”
“Too bad.”
“Screw this.” Chase touched Alex’s shoulder. Alex’s face twisted in pain as Chase dosed him with poison.
“Stop it!” I reached for Alex and pulled him away from Chase. I mixed my blood and transferred enough power to heal Alex, careful not to make him start throwing himself at me again. That would only anger Chase more. Alex breathed normally, and I turned to Chase.
“If you ever do that again, we’re finished. Do you understand me? I’ll personally hand you over to Hades.” I stepped closer to him, letting him know I wasn’t afraid anymore.