Chapter Four

 Lord Ares traveled the Astral to his Cave and then stumbled through its corridors holding onto his flank, which was spurting Ichor like a fountain shooting water. “Enya!” He growled. “Enya!”

“My Lord?” The small and very pregnant woman who’d served as his Consort and Companion the past fifteen years rushed to his side at the sight of the crimson Ichor. “Ares!” Throwing her small arms around his thick waist, she tried to hold him up. “Help! Come now!” She shouted out to the women in his stable. “Our Lord is injured!”

From all corners of the cave the women came rushing to answer Enya’s call. They ushered Ares into his bedroom, laid him on his bed, stripped his body and gathered bandages and herbs to tend his wound. “What happened, my Lord?” Enya asked as she held his head in her lap letting the other women work on him.

Ares’ onyx eyes rolled back in his head and he let out a deep grunt. “Get her out of here,” he ordered. He’d been wounded many times in battle, it was part of the game but the pain was great and the loss of his Ichor was making him weak and light headed. The last thing he wanted was for her to see him like this.

Enya didn’t understand, “My Lord?” then she heard the voice.

“Father! Father!”

“Yes, my Lord.” Enya began to lay his head gently on the bed but she was too late. Calla rushed into the bedroom.

“Father!” She scrambled to his side. So much Ichor soaking the animal skins on his massive stone bed it alarmed her as it meant the wound was deep. “Father!” Calla reached for him.

“Get away from me!” Ares hissed and batted her hand away.

“Father, I can help you.” Still she tried to touch him and come closer to him and he snarled at her.

“Don’t touch me!” Ares demanded. “I don’t need your help!”

“But I can heal you!” She cried gazing at his open left flank. Calla clearly saw her Father’s ribs and the precious organs they protected. “Please, Father. Why won’t you let me?”

“The wound will heal on its own.” Ares told her. “Get out of here!”

“Ares…..” she pled.

“I am still your Father, still your Lord, you will do as I say woman! Get out of here before your Husband misses you.” Ares shouted at her. “Go!”

“You heard your Father, Callestah,” Enya said and stood up. “Your presence is not wanted, please leave.”

“Or what?” Calla threatened Enya as she looked her Father’s Consort up and down noticing her burgeoning belly. Why didn’t Ares tell her that she’d soon have a sibling?

“Or I shall have to throw you out.” Enya returned with a stern voice. All around them, the women worked feverishly to stop the bleeding. “Do not under estimate me simply because of my present condition.”

“You will let her do this?” Calla asked Ares. “I am your Daughter, an Olympian, and you will let her threaten me this way when all I wish to do is aid you and to ease your suffering?” Tossing her hands in the air out of frustration Calla turned around on her heels and saw the painting hanging on the wall opposite the bed. It took a few moments for the reality of it to sink in. “Ares?” Calla turned back to look at him. “You bought it? Why?”

“Because I can’t wait until the day I can do again!” Ares roared.

Fear rose in her heart. “I don’t believe you.” Calla whispered. “I won’t believe you.”

“Get out!” Ares growled. “You’re not wanted here!”

Not knowing what else to do and having to obey the wishes of her Father and Lord, Calla disappeared from his Cave and reappeared in the master bathroom to the sound of Daniel knocking on the door. Never a moment’s peace nor enough seconds just to catch her breath.

“Calla?”

She had no idea how long he’d been standing out there calling her name. “Just a minute, my love.” She called back and tried to get herself under control. Splashing a little cold water on her face and then drying it off, she opened the door. “Sorry, my stomach…” her voice trailed off.

“Yeah,” he hadn’t heard her getting sick and he knocked three times before she answered him. “Well,” Daniel cleared his throat, “the living room’s fixed, Nicholas did a great job.”

Calla smiled and nodded her head. “Wonderful. That was a bit of excitement, huh?” She walked out of the bathroom.

“Well, that’s a…ha…, a bit of an understatement.” Daniel mumbled. “Don’t you think, Cal?”

“Perhaps,” she chimed, “we’re all right, my love.” Calla put his hand on her stomach. “Everyone is safe. There’s nothing to worry about.” While she was happy to hear that her living room had been repaired, she had more important things to think about. “Why don’t you go downstairs and see if the meat is fully thawed? I’ll be down in a minute I just want to brush my teeth and freshen up.”

“Calla, don’t you think we should talk about last night?”

Oh crap! He always wanted to talk at the most inopportune moments. “About your dream? Yes, if you wish. Tell me all about it.”

“Not that.”

“Then what?”

“You know what.” Daniel growled. “Calla why are you doing this?”

“Doing what?”

“Agg!” He groaned. “Playing this…this….game with me. We both know what I’m talking about.” Daniel sat down on the bed.

“Do we have to do this now?” Calla asked but did not sit with him.

“You have something more important to do?” Daniel looked around and looked at her, she looked anxious. “If I’m keeping you from something, Cal, let me know.”

Sitting on the edge of the bed managing a smile for him she wrestled with herself. Ares is wounded! He’s in pain and quite possibly dying and…

“Ares? What about Ares? You weren’t in the bathroom, you went to see him!” Daniel charged as he stood up and walked away from her. “I can’t believe you did that. So, tell me, how is the old man?”

Calla looked up at him with heavy eyes. Here was her first chance to test Daniel’s word that he would help her if she just asked him for it. “Not well,” she whispered, “he’s been injured, Daniel, severely and he won’t let me help him.” Her eyes rose to look at him and they were heavy with tears. “He cast me out, away from him, wouldn’t even let me touch him. My Father is battle-hardened, he’s is the God of All Warriors, what mortals’ weapon did that to him? None that I can think of.”

The anger in him subsided as the fear in her grew and he tried to reach out to his wife. “What happened to him?” Daniel took a few steps back to where she was sitting. He listened to Calla tell him about looking out the window and seeing a battle rather than the falling tree. Told him how she tried to warn Ares but she was too late.

Calla told him how she contacted her Father while in the dining room and was brushed off by him so she’d gone to see him when no one was looking. A very pregnant Enya threatened her and Ares let her. She didn’t know whether she should tell him or not but she’d come this far with the truth. “Ares bought my painting.” However she did not tell him what Ares said about it.

“Thee painting?”

“Yes,” she whispered. “As he lay in pain upon his bed I turned round and saw it hanging on the wall across from him. He goes to bed and wakes up looking at it, Daniel.”

Well that’s just wonderful. Sick son of a bitch. “I don’t want you anywhere near him, Calla, do you understand? I forbid you to go anywhere near him.”

Calla nodded her compliance. “You needn’t worry about that, my Lord.” She said quietly. “I don’t want to be near him he frightened me.”

No argument? That couldn’t be good. “Did he touch you?” Daniel asked and held on for the answer.

“I told you he wouldn’t let me next to him, those women worked on his wound and that bitch stood between us and he kept shouting at me to go away.” The eyes that had been heavy with tears spilled their contents down her cheeks. “His wound is so great! I only wanted to help him.”

Daniel gave in. “I know, Kitty.” He sat down and put his arm around her. “I don’t know what Ares’ problem is but stay away from him, ok?” Enya was pregnant well that should make Ares happy now he’d have his own child and stop thinking about having one with Calla. The second Daniel found out she was pregnant that dark thought entered his head and he saw it in Ares’ eyes when she told him about the baby. Calla could bare children again and Ares dream of having more full-blooded Olympians roam planet Earth sparked back to life.

“Ok,” she said lightly and rested her head on his shoulder. “I’m sorry if I disappoint you.”

“Your Father was in trouble so you tried to help him, how can I argue with that?”

“I never learn.” She scolded herself.

“I think you just never give up.” Daniel kissed her cheek. Still, even though she was afraid, Kitty was concerned for the life of her Immortal Father. “He isn’t…he isn’t going to die from it, is he Kitty?”

“I don’t know I’ve never seen a wound like that before. Will you help him, Daniel?”

Whoa! “He hates me, Calla. Detests, no despises me.” That was all right with him since he felt the same way about Ares. Daniel would dance and sing in the street if Ares dropped dead, no doubt Ares would do the same if the situation were reversed but not Calla. She would be inconsolable if her Father died. “Kitty, I’m not a medical doctor there isn’t anything I can do for him. If he doesn’t want your help I don’t see where he’d want mine.” Even though in his heart Daniel was wishing the exact opposite he took her hands in his, “He’ll be fine, he’s Immortal. I’m sure he’ll come through this and be his same arrogant annoying self in no time.”

“Yeah,” she muttered.

With this sudden change of situation conversations of a more personal nature could wait for another time, it was probably best to get her off and onto something a bit more routine. “Come on let’s see what we can do about dinner.”

Down in the kitchen, while Calla chopped vegetables and seasoned the beef cubes, it didn’t take Daniel long to begin feeling guilty. Maybe he should see if there was some thing he could for Ares or at least go check out the situation. Calla had been brutally honest with him about where she’d gone and what took place and he did tell her that he, as her Husband, he was always there to help her. The first time she asked for it he turned her down. If it was anyone but Ares…

Nicholas came into the kitchen followed closely by his wife and sister who had his niece in her arms. Calla was laying a thin layer of vegetable oil into a cast iron skillet. “Why don’t you ladies help Calla.” Daniel suggested. “Nick I want you to come outside with me and we’ll check the house and walk the property to see if the storm did any more damage.”

Everyone agreed. Calla browned the beef chunks while Annie and Colleen finished the vegetables, Lilly bounced in her rocker/jumpy chair and Nick grabbed his coat.

“Take me to Ares,” Daniel said when they got out to the backyard and away from the windows.

“What did you say?”

“Your Grandfather’s wounded, your Mother is very upset and I don’t want her upset in her condition so take me to him. I’ll see if I can….help….” Daniel almost choked on the word, “him.”

Nicholas thought it over for a second or two. “Whatever, Dad, it’s your funeral.”

“Yeah, either way,” Yep, he was damned if he didn’t try to help Ares and damned if he did, so what difference did it make? Better to be damned by Ares than Calla. “Let’s get this over with, I want to get back before they notice we’re gone.”

Nick reached out, grabbed his Father’s hand and they disappeared from the snow covered yard and reappeared in the throne room of Ares warm cave. “You know, Dad, you should really have Mom show you to do that yourself then you wouldn’t have to keep hitchin’ rides.” Nick said smugly.

End of Chapter Four
The Cradle Will Fall
Continue to
Chapter Five