Mettius almost didn’t recognize the man his son had become. The fight in him was the same. He was too much like his mother. Obstinate. But his time with Selene had changed something fundamental in him.
Augustus was afraid.
Hours had passed since Augustus stormed from their rooms, leaving Cassia exasperated. Selene in shock. Mettius wanted to follow on his heels and shake the lad to his senses. Didn’t he see how hard this was for his mother? She didn’t want to come here. The gods had given her those visions for a reason. A taunt, she’d said. Dangling their son’s fate like a carrot. Had it been anyone else, they’d already be out to sea preparing the fleet for war.
Augustus needed time to process, though, so Mettius had waited. Let the sun set on this brow-beaten harbor. There’d been no room for their fleet in this little cove, and no room to host their numbers on land. Their ships were miles out, most of their crew still aboard.
Read the full text on Patreon.