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Gorgon's Price

Redemption of the Gorgons Book 1

by Claire Davon

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Print Length: 209 pages

Publication Date: December 3, 2019

Euryale will never forget the day the gods turned her into a monster. After millennia, her heart beats faster at the idea of regaining her normal form. For the feel of skin and not scales, hair and not snakes. But the price could be too high.

Knowing full well the gods can’t be trusted, Euryale agrees to take on a reluctant partner to track down whoever is murdering a growing number of gods. A murderer no one cared about until the killings edged uncomfortably close to bigger and bigger pantheons. Tracking the murderers down is the price she has to pay for her newly restored form—and that of her two equally cursed sisters.

Asher’s unusual gift for eerily horrific sound effects make him a highly sought-after voiceover artist. While he keeps a low profile, there has always been a ticking time bomb in the form of the bargain between his banshee mother and his father, the god Ares. It’s time to pay up—or pay with his life.

As Euryale and Asher dance around their mutual mistrust, the friction ignites a fire of unexpected attraction. But love is almost as impossible as the dangerous task ahead. Because even if the murderers don’t stab them in the back, the fickle gods certainly will.

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Asher’s broad shoulders twitched against the trendy form-fitting shirt he was wearing. The ripple of his muscles was evident under the cloth, and something flipped inside her belly. It had been a long time since she had been driven by anything other than bestial desires. If she were in her other form, she would have sniffed the air to inspect if he was feeling the same heat she was. But she was no longer a beast.

Except she was. It had taken them decades to stop thinking of themselves as immortal goddesses, and it would also be the reverse. It had been so long since someone considered her with longing—and for her to feel that same pulse within her—Euryale wasn’t sure what to make of it.

“How much do you grasp of how things work today?”

She scoffed at him. “I’m a monster, but I’m not living in a cave. That’s for legends. I made my home in Casper, Wyoming after all. I can function—I have a glamour that allows me to move in human circles. I keep to myself and don’t socialize, but I get by. I can assure you I act appropriately in polite company. I’m not going to turn around and eat them. Although,” she grinned and allowed her shields to slip, “mortals can be tasty.”

The image she projected of eating a man who had mistaken her human form for a weak one was designed to shock. To Asher’s credit, he displayed no emotion.

“Good. That will make this easier.” Euryale was disappointed. He took her for who she was now and not a monster, something she hadn’t experienced in a long time.

“What do you have in mind?”

“Our cover is that I met you when I vacationed here last, and we fell in love. It’s been a long-distance relationship. You’re moving to Los Angeles to live with me. To answer your question, I think the reason that the gods asked for our help is because we can find out things a god could not. We’re both creatures whose weapons are sound, and it may come in handy in battle.”

Euryale met his gaze and tried to probe his mind but found that his shields were good. Almost, but not quite as good as hers.

“Asher, that’s nonsense. The real reason they came to us is that we are expendable.”

He nodded. “That too.”

Excerpt #2

Euryale’s tone was challenging, and the goddess raised an eyebrow. Asher had to remind himself that Euryale, too, was a goddess.

“We cannot afford for him to make a hash of it. If he does, then the banshees must take up the battle. This cannot go unanswered. Asher, you will find help in unexpected locations. We are many places where people do not think we can be. Too often, older women are disregarded. It is to our benefit to remain, as you Americans say, under the radar. You may need allies and we will provide them. Just don’t eff it up.”

That seemed to satisfy his mother, although she was still stiff with indignation at his side. He could feel a wail growing in his throat, a desire to howl at their queen, but he resisted. Asher had no doubt that Clíodhna could top whatever he could do, and more.

“You are a goddess,” Euryale continued, “Does Asher have a way of getting in touch with you if he needs you? I don’t mind telling you that I’m happy to know we’re not completely alone.”

She looked from the goddess to the man and Asher paused, and then glanced at his mother.

“I can reach out if I need to, no matter the distance. I think…I think you will be watching, my Queen, is that right?”

Clíodhna gave him an approving nod. “It is, young Asher. I was concerned you were not up to this task, but I may have been mistaken. There is more to you than meets the eye. Your god blood is a potent mixture with banshee stock. And you, Gorgon, you are quite unexpected.”

Euryale said nothing for a moment, studying Clíodhna. The other goddess neither blinked nor stirred, and Asher wondered if they were communicating without words.

“So, if we need help, then all we have to do is call for one of you?”

Clíodhna appraised Euryale for more long, silent moments and Asher speculated what they were saying to each other. He could get nothing from behind their shields.

“If you are in need of assistance, we will be there. You have been elected to fight this battle and we would not take that glory. But you are not going in alone. If the need arises, we will find you.” She extended a hand toward Roisin. “There is nothing more potent than a mother protecting her child. In this sense, the banshees are all your mothers.”

“What would be better is identifying who or what we’re trying to find. That, and some teeth and claws.” Euryale did not appear to be kidding.

Clíodhna appeared to consider Euryale’s statement with the same gravity that the other goddess had. “Your centuries as a beast have not yet faded. That may prove to be an asset. I wish

there was more I could tell you, but Cian’s mind is clouded from the attack and he remembers little of it. Just that he heard a high, piercing wail, and then he…exploded. It was gruesome, from what the Morrigan said. Those women love the blood, which cheesed the banshees off.” Clíodhna also didn’t appear disturbed by the idea. “He is not quite himself yet, or I would have had you meet with him.”

“How long do you think these people have been murdering gods?” Asher set his cup down. He didn’t like that they hadn’t received this information until it started affecting the major pantheons.

Clíodhna’s gaze went to the horizon, her face shadowed. “A decade or longer. We are gods, Asher. Time has little meaning for us. There is a method and a reason for what these killers are doing. Discover that and you will find them.”

He studied the goddess. “Fair enough. But once we do, how do we stop them?”

She returned his gaze, but he couldn’t read her face. “That is the mystery, son of Ares.”

Excerpt #3

Harmonia’s attention was directed to where the din was coming from. “You would think that, monster. We are not responsible for this. You have brought this blight to the island. How dare you?”

Aphrodite rose, still having every appearance of being unconcerned. The clamor grew until it was a shriek, and Asher couldn’t imagine how Aphrodite could stand it. Even he, a banshee, was having trouble.

Harmonia whirled around. The source of the sound came from the bottom of the cliff. Asher ran to Euryale’s side. She was still in a defensive crouch, her perception focused on the sand below. Around them the day was warm and breezy, but the racket dominated everything.

Aphrodite patted her lips and gestured to her daughter. Harmonia made a strangled noise and then crumpled.

The noise continued to rise.

“I’ll be right back,” Euryale said, and without another word, plunged off the cliff.

Asher’s attention was split between the heartbreaking image of his woman plunging to the bottom, and his collapsed half-sister. As he watched, Euryale landed, and then was once again on her feet. It was then that he remembered one of her Gorgon talents was the ability to leap. He always believed that meant up and not down, but now he stood corrected.

Aphrodite summoned a waiter, and they pushed Harmonia onto a makeshift couch strung together with two chairs. The other patrons in the restaurant had given up any pretense of their conversations and watched the trio with avid interest. He had no time to wonder what they were thinking of Euryale’s nosedive to the bottom of the cliff. He would worry about that in a moment. First, he turned to Aphrodite. She was patting her daughter’s face with a wet cloth, her face still serene. No frown lines or imperfections marked her beautiful visage, but he detected a momentary flicker of concern.

“I have to get down to Euryale,” he said, and Aphrodite glanced up. Now, pain flew across her face before it was gone, shuttered by a sanguine gaze that had to be a façade.

“Your Gorgon does not expect you to follow,” the goddess replied. “She is far more experienced in this than you are.”

“Nevertheless, I have to go down to her. Is Harmonia…will she be…what happened?”

“It is unclear. I believe your adversaries are taunting you.”

He coughed, anger starting to flare within him. “They’re your adversaries, too.”

“This task was given to you, banshee. Do you not understand? This is your mission to complete. Our lives are at risk and so is yours if you do not do what is needed. These gods who think they can murder us must be stopped, and you must do it.”

He paused. “Gods?”

She waved a hand toward the cliff face. “Only a god can kill a god. Why else would Athena bring a goddess into this? Did you ever wonder why your talents were needed? These criminals have the same skill set as you do, and therefore you are suited to combat them. Your Gorgon is down there wanting to take action, but she will not find your opponents. This is a mere way-stop. A pause in the proceedings, if you will.”

He scanned the prone Harmonia. As he studied his half-sister, the sound cut off.

Aphrodite rose, barely glancing at her handmaiden. Asher would have been appalled at the lack of empathy before this quest, but she was a goddess. Compassion was not part of the package.

“There. It has ceased. You must move to your next destination and end this. Or everything you have struggled for will be for nothing.”

“Next destination…” There was something else detectable in Asher’s blasted ears, a trickle of sound that rose to a torrent.

“…come…come…we are waiting…”

Claire can’t remember a time when writing wasn’t part of her life. Growing up, she used to write stories with her friends. As a teenager she started out reading fantasy and science fiction, but her diet quickly changed to romance and happily-ever-after’s. A native of Massachusetts and cold weather, she left all that behind to move to the sun and fun of California, but has always lived no more than twenty miles from the ocean.

In college she studied acting with a minor in creative writing. In hindsight she should have flipped course studies. Before she was published, she sold books on eBay and discovered some of her favorite authors by sampling the goods, which was the perfect solution. Claire has many book-irons in the fire, most notably her urban fantasy series, The Elementals’ Challenge series, but writes contemporary and shifter romances as well as.

While she’s not a movie mogul or actor, she does work in the film industry with her office firmly situated in the 90210 district of Hollywood. Prone to break out into song, she is quick on feet and just as quick with snappy dialogue. In addition to writing she does animal rescue, reads, and goes to movies. She loves to hear from fans, so feel free to drop her a line.

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