Chapter 43 A Captive Bird's Struggle

• Aphrodite's Point of View
• Days blended with nights, the unending sameness dragging on like a chain I couldn't break free from. I ate the food they fed me, tended to the twins, and waited at the door for Zeus's expected appearances. Every time he came, I steeled myself to remain emotionless, to show no fear, no weakness. I knew what he was after—he wanted to test me, probe for cracks in the armor I built around myself. But I could not crack. Not now, and not ever.
• Every day, the healer, that woman who seemed more like a ghost than a person, came to my room. Silent, businesslike, and yet I saw flickers of unease in her eyes. She did not wish to be there any more than I did, but she had no say. None of us did, under Zeus's control.