I have to shield my eyes from the suns and tilt my head all the way back to look those suckers in the eyes. They seem like two of the mindless ones who try to impress with a mountain of muscles. Their faces are grim with lethal glares, as if that would scare me.

C'mon, fellas, I'm the devil.

Back off.

My smile is a little crooked. "We come in peace." I wave my hand as a friendly gesture. "And we won't be long. Just passing through."

Silence and stoic expressions is all I get in return. A deep, low chuckle rolls across the beach. I close my eyes. Stepped right into the hornets' nest.

He dares to show his face. Taller than his cronies, he's dressed in nothing but a short white cloth wrapped around his waist that's open enough to display some of his junk. At least he had the decency to try and hide his nudity, a courtesy some of his comrades have neglected over the years, causing quite a stir with Levinia and the angels.

He grins. "Look what the Strawberry Mollusks dragged in. The Creator's firstborn sons who think they are the shit."

I roll my eyes. "C'mon, Cronus. You can't possibly still hold a grudge that Zeus kicked you out of the heavens." I shrug. "And look at this fine place you got here. Soft sand, and two suns." I point at Sierra. "Sirens who stop by once in a while to keep you entertained. What more do you want?"

"Tartarus is at the pit of the universe. Even hell is higher up than us."

Fair point, though I still don't get what the fuss is about. "Look, we aren't trying to step on your toes." Which, literally speaking, would be quite a feat. "My brother and I are simply passing through. Thirty minutes tops to cross the island and we are out of your hair."

Bad choice of words. He is bald.

He shoots me one of his obliterating glares he is famous for. "If you want to pass, you have to fight my Titans."

I point at Anchor. "My brother has a busted leg. That's unfair."

Cronus rubs his chin. "Alright, you two can fight one of the Titans. If you win, you get free passage. If you lose, well"—his lips split to the widest grin—"my Titan will get to crush you."

Seriously?

I groan. How stupid can one begrudged deity be? "You will destroy my physical form. Levinia will take issue with that." Plus, I do like the way I look.

He snorts. "You are a celestial being, so your spirit will survive, and I'll gladly send it up to Levinia in a spirit bottle." He lifts a little flask he carries on a chain around his neck. "Got one right here."

Forging a new body will take at least a week. It's time I don't have. "Okay, I agree to fight one Titan if Anchor gets to move on regardless."

"Lou, are you crazy?" Anchor hisses from his spot in the sand. He still holds his injured leg and the pain is all too visible in his eyes. If Cronus allows him to cross the island, he'll never make it to Nicoletta, and even if he succeeds, by some humongous miracle, Welbourne's demons will have a field day with him.

"On second thought, let's crush Anchor and I get to move on. How does that sound?"

"Lou, have you lost your mind?"

I ignore my brother's interjection. If things work out, neither of us will get squashed under a Titan's foot and Cronus will end up on the losing side of the field once again. If things don't work out . . . well . . . I'm still more suitable to save Cass than he is.

Cronus squints and I can practically see the wheels spinning in his head. Precious seconds trickle down, and I'm about to remind him that this is a time sensitive matter when he growls, "You got yourself a deal."

"Excellent." I drop into the sand next to Anchor and wave Sierra closer. "Okay, this is how we're going to do this. My powers are much weaker here, but I still have my sword, so I'll be able to cause some minor damage, though ultimately, we have to get Cronus's trident if we want to win. That's Sierra's job. Go and bedazzle Cronus, and once you have the trident in your possession, toss it to me."

Anchor clicks his tongue. "What am I supposed to do?"

"You are the distracting bait."

He frowns. "That's not funny, Lou."

"Good, because it wasn't meant to be a joke."

"I can barely stand, so how can I distract the Titan?"

"Just scoot around on your ass. The key is to bamboozle him, so that he doesn't pay too much attention to me or Sierra. Titans are dumb, so it shouldn't be too difficult."

"Your word in the Creator's ear."

I dismiss his sarcasm. Right now, I have a much better handle on things.

I get to my feet and rub my hands. "Alright, let's go."

The light-skinned Titan backs away; of course they pick the bigger brute to do their bidding. He puffs like a bull, steam floating out of both nostrils. I pull the sword. Anchor does his thing by moving away from me. He's actually quite fast for a demon with a shattered leg and my plan is working. The Titan turns his head and takes a step toward my brother. I strike by slicing my blade across his ankle. His holler rumbles across the island like thunder.

Man, those Titans are whiners.

He swings around, his gigantic fist balled for a blow. Just like Goliath, he is slow and clumsy, and I easily jump out of the way.

Anchor whistles. "I'm here, dumbass."

The Titan blinks and turns away from me.

Dumbfuck indeed.

I ram my sword into his heel, soliciting another loud grumble. Swinging his arms between me and my brother, he is obviously unsure whom of us is the bigger threat. Out of the corners of my eyes, I find Sierra working her magic. She has one of her arms on Cronus's shoulder; he is so absorbed in her moving lips that he misses the fight. Her other hand reaches for the trident he has propped against a boulder. I go for a third attack to buy her more time; this one leaves a deep gash on the top of the Titan's foot. He is swaying, fighting to keep his balance.

Sierra calls, "Lou," and the trident flies toward me. I stretch out my arm, my fingertips already scraping the precious metal, when a shadow darkens my peripheral vision. The Titan's fist is like a battering ram bashing into my temple. As I fly through the air, pain shoots across my skull, temporarily robbing me of my senses. I crash into a rock and the agony spreads to the rest of my body.

Oof.

Fighting a bout of nausea, I shake my head to rid myself of the humming in my ears. Stars blur my vision. When the world resharpens, a massive foot hovers over me. The Titan totally disregards Cronus's frantic shout, "Not him," and I hide my face in the crocks of my elbows, preparing for the worst.

This one is going to hurt.

"STOP!"

The sharp command has the Titan sway on one leg; he loses his balance and lands on his ass, almost squashing Anchor. My brother barely manages to roll out of the way.

Absolute silence shrouds around us; even the waves rolling to shore have turned into nothing but small ripples. Not that I can blame them. The woman who has appeared next to Cronos is downright scary, her features screwed in the typical anger-mask of a divine female who is thoroughly pissed.

"What in the Creator's name is going on?" Her silky voice that could beguile most of the gods trembles with anger.

"Lou and I were just kidding around a little." Cronus's eyes beg me to back up his story.

Fat chance, buddy.

On second thought, he's still one of the bros and I shouldn't toss him under a bus.

I beam at the woman. "Hi, Rhea. It's nice to see you again."

Rhea huffs and slaps Cronus on the back of his head. "Your Titan almost crushed him. What were you thinking? For thousands of years, I've been groveling up in the heavens to get you reinstated, and you are challenging the Morningstar brothers? Levinia would've had a fit, she worships these boys, and Lou is Big B's favorite son. You almost ruined everything."

"I'm sorry, dear."

"Do you think I like it here? You could've gotten yourself banished even further down into the fires." She delivers another blow to the back of Cronus's head. "That's why they don't allow males to be in charge anymore. You are always so belligerent. Now run along and let Lou and Anchor get on their way. I'm sure they have better places to be."

I offer her a smile. "Thank you, Rhea."

"No problem, love." She blinks at Anchor. "What happened to your brother?"

"He got stung by a Strawberry Mollusk."

"Oh, dear, that looks bad. Even an aloe vera wrap won't fix this. Which way are you headed?"

"We need to cross the southern lake of the Seas of Six Wonders."

"Once you get to the beach on the other side of the island, stay off to your right. That way, you'll avoid the Amber Snakes and pass by a couple of energy pools. One good soak will fix Anchor right up."

"Thanks, Rhea." I heave Anchor to his feet and he manages to stand with my support."

"And after you cross the southern lake, watch out for the dragons on Sarpedon. It's mating season and they are very protective of their eggs."

"Will do."

Sierra supports Anchor's other arm and we are able to cross the island in a few minutes. The waves of the southern lake have a stronger pull and I bend down to run my hand through the surf. The water is freezing.

Sierra shudders and shies away. "I'm going back. Good luck to you two."

"Thanks for all your help."

Entering the lake, I drag Anchor along. Skinny, slimy creatures with glowing amber scales that are the length of a Titan's arm wiggle past us, but the water around our ankles is too shallow for the snakes to come any closer. We wade through soft mud that gives way under our feet. Anchor is tight lipped and I'm graced with a few, dark glances.

I stop to smooth things over. "I was never going to let the Titan crush you."

"But you offered it."

"It was an idea born out of necessity. I knew we'd win."

"Things could've easily gone sideways. Cronus had the upper hand."

"I would've always stepped up to protect you." I nudge his shoulder. "You're my little brother."

He rolls his eyes. "Bro, I can smell your bullshit from a mile away."

"I'm sorry, Anchor."

"Hey, I'm still a little mad, but I know you were right. Without you, I don't stand a chance to beat Welbourne and his demons, so I get where you were coming from." His lips curve down to a grimace. "I mean, you are the devil and kind of badass."

I stretch out my hand. "No hard feelings?"

"You are my brother, so there are never any hard feelings." We shake on it and he points at a gurgling pond. "Look, this must be the energy pool Rhea was talking about."

I hold him back. "Let me check first. I don't trust those Titans."

Turns out Rhea didn't trick us; the water is warm and fills me with power to the brim. We soak for a few minutes to fully recharge; when we get out, Anchor's leg is as good as new. We make good time and reach the next island just as the suns of Tartarus dip beyond the horizon. Sarpedon is full of shadows and mist, cold and clammy, with marshes and green shrubbery as far as the eye can see. It's just as creepy as the stories surrounding its myths.

"Watch out for the dragons."

Anchor nods. He steps forward, a crunch under his boot muffled by a sudden gust of wind.

I look down. "Shit, you flattened one of the eggs." Flapping wings cut through the fog and a fireball ignites mere inches from Anchor's foot. "Run!"

We zigzag through the bushes, dodging fireballs and fierce smoke. The dragon's screeches summon a whole army and the air around trembles with wrath. The beating wings graze my head a few times, and I'm battling the biting fumes that make breathing close to impossible.

Anchor points at a dark hole framed by rocks. "There, a cave."

"What if it's one of their nests?" Dozens more dragons could lure in the dark.

"I'm gonna risk it."

He disappears in the hole and I lunge after him, just as a talon scrapes my shoulder. Stumbling on loose gravel, I land on my knees.

Honeyed laughter breaks the still air and sends warm tingles to my core. In the same breath, the hair on my neck rises in warning. I'd recognize the alluring perfume anywhere and it doesn't belong to anyone pleasant.

"Hello, boys." The seductive voice draws me closer. "It's so nice of you to stop by and visit good old Medusa."

WP total word count: 21,025 (third milestone met -- now I just have to finish before Tuesday night)

More hurdles on Lou and Anchor's trip to Nicoletta with precious minutes being lost along the way. Will they get there in time to save Cass or is Medusa's cave too big of a challenge? The answer will be revealed soon, so stay tuned and keep an eye out for updates. Five chapters left and only three days to write them, so it's gonna be tight.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter, if so, please consider a vote and/or drop me a comment. Thanks for reading and checking out this latest chapter of Between.

***For those of you who enjoy dark Fantasy Romance, check out my new story Bound by Blood.