“No, that’s true. But I don’t think I have to worry about you killing me either.” He smiled and the oven dinged. I went and pulled the springform pan out and set it on the counter to cool. “This isn’t a quick dessert; it could take a while.”

“That’s okay. Maybe we could have it for breakfast?”

He had a point; breakfast was only a short time away. I grabbed a bowl and put together some whipped filling mixed with a bit of pineapple juice that would be folded through the chunks of gelatin. I think, if I remembered right, it was called a broken-glass cake, the final product somewhat resembling a stained-glass window.

I put everything in the fridge and wiped the counters down while I tried to formulate a question. I had my doubts about Yaya, and I wondered if somehow she was playing me the way others had, or if she was just taking advantage of the situation as it presented itself to her. But there was no easy way to ask if my yaya was really on my side.

Finally I just blurted it out. “Do you think my yaya might be working with Hera somehow?”

Ernie flew backward, his hands over his mouth. “Girlfriend! Tell me you are shitting in my drinking water.”

I cringed at the image. “No, I’m not. Yaya is getting . . . younger. And so are her priestesses. They were all at Zeus’s today, at a pool party of sorts, and . . . she said that with the world changing, people were beginning to believe again. And that meant she was coming back into her own power in a way.” Left unsaid was that it was in her best interest for Hera’s plan to continue as it was. But Ernie was no fool, and he’d been at this game of the pantheon for far longer than I had. I rubbed at my face with both hands. “I just don’t know what to think anymore.”

“You really think she could be . . . using you?” Ernie shook his head, his eyes thoughtful. “I suppose it is possible, but really, she hasn’t given any indication before you were turned that she wanted you to be a Super Duper, right?”

He had a point, and I slowly nodded. “You’re right. She joined the Firstamentalists to keep our family away from all this.” I slid my hand to the back of my neck. “I guess she’s just making the best of her situation.”

“That would be my guess too,” Ernie said, but he didn’t sound all that confident. I glanced at him.

“What are you thinking?”

“That things change, people change. It wouldn’t hurt to be careful around her. Or maybe avoid her for the next little while.” He grimaced as he spoke, as if he didn’t like it any more than I did.

My heart lurched at the thought of not being around Yaya. She was a bright light in my life, a support I hadn’t found elsewhere. But I couldn’t be a fool and deny that there were things that benefited her the more I challenged the current system. I blew out a sigh, and with it came a jaw-cracking yawn I felt all the way down to my toes.

“I think it’s time you go have a sleep.” Ernie waved at me with his hands, herding me toward the stairs. He flicked the light out as we left the kitchen, and followed me up to the second floor, the brush of his wings against my back gently urging me forward.

He was right, I was exhausted. There were only a few hours till dawn, but a little sleep now would do me good. My brain felt like a soggy oatmeal cookie. I fell into bed, and Ernie floated beside me. “I’ll keep watch over you both.” He tipped his head toward Sandy, who slept soundly in the bed across from me. “No fear. Nothing will get past me.”

“Thank you, Ernie,” I mumbled into my pillow as exhaustion pulled me down.

I woke to the back and forth of soft voices chattering. Sandy’s bed was empty, the sheets neatly folded, and the bed made neat as a pin.

I picked up her voice and then Tad’s out of the discussion going on below. I rolled over to see Ernie sitting on the edge of my bookshelf, his chin on his chest as he snored, sounding like an oversized bumblebee, of all things. “Some guard he is.” I kept the words quiet, though. He needed his sleep too. If Hercules was as hard to face as everyone was making him out to be, then I needed to be on my toes. And I needed to be at my best, along with my friends. I grabbed some clean clothes and hurried into the bathroom. I showered in record time and pulled my hair up into a high ponytail. I stared into the fogged mirror, my face distorted with the steam, and for a moment I didn’t know who I was looking at. Alena. Drakaina. Baker. Lover. Fighter.

I shook myself and headed down the stairs. Sandy was smiling at Tad, and he was oblivious to what I saw in her eyes. A bit of a crush going on there apparently. I cleared my throat, and she glanced at me, blushed, and looked away. “Have you talked to Dahlia?” I pointedly asked Tad.

He snorted and frowned at me. “She’s asleep right now. Did you suddenly forget that she’s a vamp?”

“Nope, I didn’t forget, just making sure I’m not the only one who remembers she’s a vampire.” I glanced at Sandy, and she gave me a quick bob of her head. Good, she was picking up what I was putting down.

I pulled out the pans from the fridge and started to combine the gelatin and whipped filling, then spooned it all into the springform pan with the graham-cracker crust. “What is that?” Tad breathed over my shoulder.

“Out of my way, it’s mine!” Ernie came flying—literally—into the room and grabbed at the pan. I spun sideways to keep him from snatching it right out of my hands.

“It needs to set still! I told you it wasn’t a quick dessert.” I laughed around the words while I continued to dodge both Tad and Ernie.