Among Men

This is CHAPTER ONE of my online English novel, Among Men. To receive the installments of the story, please sign up here. Enjoy!

Pallas Athena banner by Caro.

—

“FOR THE GODS’ SAKES, not when it’s my turn to bring home Chinese!” Athena Parthenos muttered as she quickened her steps.

Her car had broken down without warning, her Blackberry had died after a long conversation with her best friend-slash-assistant-slash-roommate, and she was wearing killer three-inch stiletto heels. There had been no cab in sight for the twenty minutes she had been waiting by her car. And to top it all off, she could sense five – no, six – guys following her through the curiously unlit park.

The fates were messing with her again, and she didn’t like it. Not at all.

She hefted the bag of takeout to her chest and pulled the collar of her khaki-colored coat closed. Athena kept her senses open, and walked briskly with her head held down. She could feel adrenaline start to pump through her system, and struggled not to rush.

Athena was only a few inches over five feet, something she always believed to be an asset. She blended well in crowds and instantly disappeared if she wanted to. She wore heels in class because she didn’t want to appear like a total wimp especially if you’re making a living as an assistant professor at Harvard.

Petite and delicate-looking, Athena was more than capable of handling herself. More than that, point of fact. She had a black belt in several forms of martial arts and had an uncanny interest in all sorts of weapons. Even without the stiletto strapped around her right thigh, she was a dangerous woman.

She caught a shadow a few meters away from her on the path. The man was tall, blonde and handsome in a way no human male can be handsome. She could feel evil intent emanating from him in waves even before she saw the malevolent smile on his face. Athena cocked her head as she slowed her steps.

“Hello, sweetheart,” he said before he smiled.

Athena stopped walking ten feet away from him, but even from that distance, she could see his white teeth. She felt rather than saw the others surround her. They all looked preternaturally handsome, if you ignored the flash of red in their eyes and the menacing glint of fangs.

Athena narrowed her eyes. They were all going to die.

—

HE WAS DARKNESS. HE was the night. He was one of the things that went bump in the night. One of the monsters in the closet. And, ironically, he was also one of the gods-be-damned heroes. At least, as far as all those people he had saved were concerned.

He didn’t really see himself as a hero. He was an average guy just doing his job. That job entailed leading the army of a goddess and kicking asses, but he didn’t think it was out of the ordinary considering who and what he was.

And, right now, he was pissed.

He stood at the ledge of one of the buildings looking down as six shadows followed in the wake of a petite, young college co-ed carrying a loaded take-out bag from the local Chinese restaurant. The woman was foolish enough to be walking alone in the dark, in her sensible above-the-knee skirt and less than sensible three-inch ice pick heels. He had seen her enter the restaurant from his perch where he had settled down to watch the night, and come back out to her spiffy silver Aston Martin Vanquish. She was of average height without the impractical heels, but he had to give her credit since, even with the distance, he could see what those heels did for her legs.

Her face was oval-shaped and pretty, dominated by a pair of eyes that he’d kill to see the color of. Her nose was pert, her mouth full. Her hair was a curly mass of ebony secured at the top of her head in a haphazard knot. He could see her figure through her open coat, and it was lush enough to spark interest that had no business sparking.

He wanted to read her mind, look into her future, just take a quick peek to see what would happen to her. Will she get home early? Will she graduate from school? Marry, live in the suburbs with a staid, accountant husband and raise 1.5 kids?

But before he could try, he was distracted by the familiar tingling at the back of his neck that told them that they were near.

They. The damned. The vampires. He watched as they followed her into the park, watched as the lights on the lampposts flickered, watched as they surrounded her.

Mykonos Agraeus smiled. It’s time to take care of business.

He took one step and prepared to teleport himself behind her when he saw the first vampire attack. The pretty lady with the gorgeous legs only lifted one foot and let the vampire’s momentum propel him to the deadly heel of her strappy sandals. With a cry, the creature impaled himself on her heel and was dusted.

What the-?

She bent down from the waist to avoid the next vampire’s fist and her leg shot out again, connecting with his jaw. For a tiny thing, she could kick high as hell. When the Vampire’s head snapped back, she whirled around, coat billowing. In the next instant, she had a deadly looking dagger in her hand and dusted the second Vampire.

And she was doing it all with the bag of Chinese takeout still in one hand.

—

ATHENA CURSED WHEN SHE heard her skirt rip and felt the more generous give of the thorn fabric. She moved her head with lightning speed out of the way of an oncoming vampire’s fist, and caught him with her heel to the chest. He exploded into a million dust particles that fluttered in the breeze.

Thank God for Manolo Blahniks.

The two remaining vampires circled her. If they had gotten smart and decided to jump her at the same time, she was going to lose the Chinese. If she did, and she got out of the fight alive, Tori was going to kill her.

They sneered at her, and she whirled her knife in her free hand before making a mocking, come-on motion. Suddenly, she felt them. There were more. And they were coming from out of the dark.

“Great, just great,” she muttered as she turned around in a wide circle. “Why don’t you guys just drop by a blood bank and leave me alone?”

As if on cue, they rushed her.

Athena prepared to fight for her life when she realized that she was surrounded by a thick, gray fog, before she saw a large blur that started moving around her like the shadows cast by a flickering candle flame. Her head swiveled from side to side, trying to follow its movement, but the fog has gotten too thick. She waved her hand to dispel the smoke and stepped out of it to see better.

There was a huge shadow in the shape of a man moving among the vampires, dusting them one by one by one before they could react. She watched as whatever it was defended against the attack of three vampires, turning them to dust before they knew what hit them.

She was too preoccupied watching her rescuer that she didn’t see another sneak behind her until it was too late, and he had twirled her in his arms. The bag of takeout flew from her hands and dropped to the ground. Dumplings and spring rolls went every which way.

The vampire was grinning at her, fangs bared, eyes glowing.

Athena snarled. “I am so going to hurt you,” she said before her arm flew and the base of her hand snapped his head back. The vampire screamed and released her, and she went at him in a flying leap, dropping him to the ground before she dusted him.

The smirked, dusted her hands and stood up. She turned around to face the tallest, most blatantly attractive man she had ever come across in her entire life.

He was probably close to seven feet tall, dressed in all black to better blend in the night. His hair was dark blond with golden streaks of sunlight. He had tied it at the nape of his neck, and tendrils had escaped the band to frame his face. He had wide shoulders and the lean body of a runner. His narrow face was that of a fallen god, powerful, wicked, arrogant, handsome beyond any human’s ability to comprehend. He looked at her through midnight blue eyes. He had a perfect nose and a full mouth that was made from every woman’s dreams. And at that moment, her mind went totally blank.

He stood, still as a statue. But even in the lack of motion, there was something compelling about him. Something that both drew her to him, moth to flame, and at the same time, repelled her and told her to step back. He was like a lethal, wild animal, waiting in the shadows, hidden, bidding his time until before he pounced on his unwitting prey. She felt like she was that prey, and she wanted to take a cautious step back. But she stood her ground.

Something powerful and dangerous surrounded him, so thick she could reach out and touch it. She almost did, but he straightened up to his full, daunting height, as if daring her and warning her at the same time. She shook her head clear and licked suddenly dry lips. She squared her shoulders, tilted her head to one side, and asked, “Are you hurt?”

Her eyes were a blue-gray, Myk told himself as he stood before her, mesmerized for the first time in his very long life. Her eyes were pale, silvery blue with wild hints of a stormy sky. He was right about the body beneath the coat. Lush and rounded, it was a woman’s body. Her skin was alabaster white, and he had to keep his eyes from falling to the tear on her skirt that showed a creamy thigh.

Again, for the first time in a long time, he felt interest in a woman. He was interested in this woman, and by all the gods in Olympus, he couldn’t see her future.

The man just stared at her, making her feel like an attraction at the Franklin Park Zoo. And not just that, he made her feel like an attraction at the Franklin Park Zoo that had gotten loose and was dancing the tango in front of him. Athena blinked again.

When he spoke, his voice was deep, rolling over her the way silk would feel on bare skin. “Who are you?”

Athena raised an eyebrow. “I’m royally pissed. It’s nice to meet you.” She bent down, picked up her Prada backpack, and shook it free of dirt and dumplings. “The stupid army of darkness just won’t quit,” she continued with her tirade as Myk watched her. After her bag, she dusted her skirt and her coat. “But that doesn’t really answer your question now, does it? My name’s Athena Parthenos. It’s Greek. Don’t ask me to spell it.” She tilted her head back and looked up at him. “You’re really tall.”

Myk still watched her with curiosity. She stood in front of him, none the worse for wear, unaffected by the fog he used to camouflage his attacks on vampires when a human was around. In fact, she had fought them, had known how to kill them, had moved almost as fast as they had. He noticed that she was staring at him with a half smirk. “I know how to spell it,” he said in Greek. He continued watching her. “What is it?” He switched to English, and spoke with a heavy Greek accent that all but made her melt. It was seductive, sexy, and hot as a summer’s day in the Sahara.

“What? You were the one staring,” she said, slipping the straps of her backpack over her arms.

“I’m sorry,” he said, his eyes narrowing. There was nothing about the woman he could read. Not her future, and not her mind. And, he had incredible talents in foresight and mind-reading. “You shouldn’t be walking around on your own.”

“Considering the fact that I live nearby in one of the apartment complexes, my car got busted, and, as you can see, I can take care of myself…”

“The ones who attacked you are no ordinary muggers,” Myk told her.

“I can see that,” she sniffed. “No ordinary muggers turn to dust when you stake ‘em.”

“This isn’t a joke.”

“Who said I was joking?” Athena sighed with frustration. “Look, pal. I can handle myself. Sure, you helped me back then, and I’m too polite not to thank you, but I’m not a coward and I’m not a weakling. And I don’t fight like a girl.”

“’Vampire hunting’ is not for little college girls.” He wanted to kick himself for that sexist comment. Except that he couldn’t think of anything to say. There was nothing left of the Mykonos Agraeus who’d kick both vampire and collective Hunter asses. She had reduced him to a sputtering idiot, and thank the gods it was just inside his head.

“Do I look like Buffy to you?”

Mykonos watched her for a couple of long seconds before he smiled. Athena’s breath backed up at the tilting of his lips. To say that the man had a killer smile was an understatement. Athena found herself dead, done and long buried. “Watch yourself,” then he slowly turned his back on her.

“Wait! What’s your name?” Athena called back.

“Myk,” he said. “And I have a feeling that we’d see each other often.” Then like the mist, he disappeared into the shadows, leaving Athena alone surrounded by darkness and spilled Chinese food.