Instinctively, I kicked.

I was lucky enough to catch my attacker in the knee. She hissed, and I swung out at her face, rolling in an attempt to divert her weight.

Her hand closed around my throat, and I choked, scrabbling at the pressure of her fingers. Her grip was too strong.

In the moonlight streaming through the window, I got a good look at her and almost stopped struggling entirely. My attacker was Khione, the Selected and the traitor.

She smiled, seeing the recognition on my face. "Yes, I'm back again. And unfortunately for you, you've got maybe thirty seconds to live, and that's if I'm feeling good."

"How did you get in?" I croaked, my head pounding from the lack of oxygen.

"Your guards aren't bad, but they're less capable than you'd like to think." Khione relaxed her grip slightly, and I sucked in air. "It was easy enough to get a few of the more skeptical protesters to help sneak me into the passages after today's events. The trick was waiting for the right time to make a move."

I coughed, twisting away from her arm. "Your people are gone. Your cause is dead. Why do this and doom yourself?"

"Because I hate you," she whispered. "Because you came along and ruined everything we could have done when you should've been on our side. You condemned your own father today. Is there a worse crime than that?"

"Yes." I spat at her. "Being complicit in treason."

Her knife dug into the thin skin of my throat. "What, no plea for mercy? No noble attempts to save yourself?"

"I'm not stupid enough to believe you'd pay any attention."

"Good. I'd hate for you to be that dull."

I frantically searched the room for anything I could use against her, eyeing the lamp just a few feet over. "You know you'll never be able to get out of here once it's done."

"I know," she replied coldly, "and I don't care. You killed us all, sure as if you lit the mine yourself. You ought to pay for that. And since life brings no justice, I'm taking the responsibility myself."

I snorted. "And who are you to decide what is and is not justice?"

"Bold words from a girl who just condemned her own father to life in prison. Quite possibly more torture." Khione's voice was nothing more than a soft hiss, but it held so much malice that I shuddered. "Do you realize what they've done to him?"

"I know," I responded quietly. "But in the end, he brought his punishment on himself."

Her lips curved. "As did you, my dear cousin."

"Fine." I closed my eyes. "Do it, then."

Her weight shifted. "So meek. I guess you never did have the spine to stand up for yourself. Who knew that could be fatal?"

I felt her arm lift, raising the knife. I forced my trembling body to remain still as it hovered there, taunting, ready to snatch my life away from me far too early.

Khione tensed, and that gave me all the signal I needed. As the knife dropped, I shoved with all my strength and rolled out of the way as she drove it into the pillow beneath me. I drove my elbow into her ribs as she yelped in surprise.

I had knocked the breath out of her, but she was quick on her feet. Her newly retrieved knife opened a gash on my leg as I scrambled backwards, and I cried out. She snatched at the edge of my nightgown, but the soft fabric slid through her fingers.

I dove for the lampstand, fumbling with the drawer. She leapt at my back and I whirled, fending away her swings with one arm while the other messed with the latch.

Finally, blessedly, it clicked and I scrabbled for the gun inside. Khione saw it a split second later and lunged, her blade narrowly missing my fingers. I jerked the gun out of her reach, but it slipped out of my hands and clattered to the floor a few feet away.

I threw myself on top of it, kicking out with my feet to hinder her. By a stroke of pure luck, I caught her ankle and managed to throw her off balance.

Pulling back the slide of the gun, I aimed with shaking hands. "Put down the knife, Khione."

She froze. "You don't know how to shoot."

I promptly fired at the doorframe. She clapped her hands to her ears and backed away, even as the noise of pounding footsteps grew louder and guards raced down the corridor. One flung the door open, his weapon raised, and Khione turned, panicked. "I didn't shoot! She shot!"

The guard squinted, and I recognized Leo's friend Frank. "So, uh, Calypso, what exactly is going on in here?"

"She snuck in and attacked me," I said wearily, letting my gun drop to my side. "Some of the rioters helped sneak her in, and she hid herself in the tunnels."

His jaw dropped. "You're sure?"

"She told me so herself."

"Dakota, take care of the girl." Frank kept his gun firmly trained on her chest as the guard to his right secured Khione's wrists behind her. "Oh, man, you're bleeding. How much damage did she do?"

"It's nothing. A scratch on my leg, that's all." I swept my hair back from my face, conscious of how mad I must look with my red eyes and bloody nightgown. "I think she made it into my room while the guard was changing. Apparently it didn't wake me up in time to realize someone was there."

The curly-haired guard jabbed Khione in the back. "Let's move. There's a cell with your name on it."

"Careful, Dakota. She's a Selected. I'm sure the king will want her in decent condition." Frank lowered his weapon. "You sure you're okay, Calypso? I can't imagine that you'd want to stay in here after being -- "

I was already waving him away. "I'm exhausted. I'll sleep fine, recently attacked or not. Just find me a bandage for the leg and I'll be set."

His brow creased. "Even with a suppressor, that gunshot just woke up everyone in close proximity. Leo will want to see you, make sure you're okay."

"He needs sleep just as much as I do."

"I'm really sorry, but I'm not comfortable doing that."

I heaved a sigh and headed for the bathroom. "Fine. Do whatever you want. I'm staying here."

It wasn't long before Leo burst into my room, his hair hopelessly frizzy. "Cal Cal Cal Cal oh my gosh oh my gosh, are you okay?"

"I'm fine." I rested my hands on his shoulders as he scanned me up and down, looking for signs of injury. "She barely drew blood. They apprehended her. I'm fine."

"I can't believe this. I can't believe this could happen." Leo ran his hands over his hair, clasping them behind his head. "How could someone sneak her in? How? She almost killed you!"

"Leo. Calm down." I raised my hands. "It doesn't matter anymore."

"It mostly definitely does!" he nearly shouted. "If one can get in, so can others. She convinced commoners to help her get in; what happens if they all decide at once they want you dead? What then? They can't know this happened."

I folded my arms. "A bunch of servants have seen me already. They're not all going to keep their mouths shut even if they're loyal. Let it go."

"You don't understand." He rubbed his brow. "When they realize it might be done, there'll be no stopping them. They'll keep trying until someone succeeds. That's what happened to Kronos, that's what happened to Ouranos -- sheesh, it's practically what we did with Gaea. It's inevitable."

His words should have scared me, but at that hour and in that frame of mind, I was beyond fear. I simply slid down the wall till I was seated and leaned my head against it. "Then I'm leaving."

He stopped in his tracks. "What?"

"I'm leaving," I said firmly. "The Convicting was our best shot at winning the people over. It failed. We're out of options, and the longer I'm here, the more of a liability I am. The king can find some obscure place to send me."

He laughed. "That's not an option."

"Isn't it?" I tilted my head back. "You would force me to stay against my will?"

"That's not what's happening. You just want to keep us safe and you have to your perfect kind little self as usual, but I'm too selfish to let you."

"We're not engaged yet. There's nothing to stop me from packing my bags. You'll get over it."

"If you think that, then you don't know me as well as I thought."

"Good," I countered, my ire rising. "Then it'll be even less of a problem for me to leave. You said yourself that it's inevitable -- I'm not going to stay under those circumstances."

Leo shook his head. "No, you don't understand. I was never fit to run this country by myself, and I certainly can't do it without you now. Your leaving will be my ruin."

"You have people to help you through that." I stood. "I won't say it again."

"Don't you do this, Calypso. Not after everything we've been through."

I forced my words out. "What if I said I no longer wanted to stay with you? Would you let me go then?"

He froze, and I held my breath, wishing I could take the words back but knowing they were the ones that would benefit him the most in the end. I'd been selfish before, and I couldn't be that way again.

At last he met my gaze. "Yes, I would. I'd let you go if you meant it," he said slowly. "But I don't think you do."

I exhaled, angry and disappointed and relieved all at once. "It doesn't matter, Leo! It's not just about you, it's about Piper and Annabeth and Percy and the king and everyone else here. I could be the death of them!"

"No." He clenched and unclenched his fists over and over, deep in thought. "No, there's another way. I think I can fix this."

"We've tried that and nothing we came up with -- "

"There's one more thing, something I haven't wanted to do. But I think it's the only possible way." Leo stared up at the ceiling. "If I handle it right..."

I waited. "Are you going to tell me what it is?"

"No," he answered. "No, I won't. I don't think you'd get it."

I scowled. "That's your excuse. This is just a last-ditch effort to get me to stay a few more days, isn't it? While you hatch a harebrained plot of some sort."

He smiled wryly. "Would I really deceive you?"

"Then tell me what your stupid idea is!" 

"I can't. You'd bring up a million more doubts than I ever could and you might even talk me out of it and we can't have that, can we?"

I threw up my hands on frustration. "I guess we'll never know!"

"Just...just give me a day and a half, till Monday morning. That's it. If you're not convinced after that, then I'll send you wherever you want to go." He swallowed. "I swear."

I studied him for a long time, wondering whether the added danger to his life was really worth one last shot at a future together. Do I trust him with that much?

"Alright," I said finally. "A day and a half. After that, I'm gone. I won't stick around and risk your neck, okay?"

He took my hands, running his fingers over them and sending chills up my spine. "I don't think you'll be sorry."

"You really won't tell me anything about what you're going to do?" I couldn't help but ask.

Leo stepped back. "I'm going to gather a crowd and cameras, and I'm going to address the Illéan people one more time. When I'm done, our lives will be decided. I promise."

~
~~~
~

A/N:
Late writing whomst?? If this is crap I fully blame the hour and definitely not my writing skills. I hope it brought you some small measure of serotonin :)

I'm pruning my playlist for this book so if you have suggestions drop 'em here! —>