Todos los capítulos de I Broke His Heart to Save Him: Capítulo 1 - Capítulo 10

My mother had just helped me into bed when Apollo's mother showed up. I wasn't surprised. Lady Leto had always had perfect timing—bad timing, depending on how you looked at it.She stood in my doorway with that same expression she had worn eight years ago. Guilt and urgency mixed together, like she was about to ask for something she had no right to ask for, but she was going to ask anyway because she had already decided that her son's divine future mattered more than my life."Aria," she said, stepping inside. Her voice was soft, almost gentle. That was how she always started. "I need a favor. A very difficult favor."I watched her face turn red. She kept opening her mouth and closing it again, like a fish gasping for air. I didn't let her finish. I already knew why she was here.It was the same as eight years ago.Eight years ago, when I first received the oracle's prophecy, Lady Leto rushed into my chamber before the tears on my face had even dried. I was still trying to understand w

When my mother wheeled me out the door, Apollo's frown deepened. His eyes swept over me again. He took in my hair, the paint on my lips, and the way I sat slumped in the chair because my strength couldn't hold me upright anymore. I saw something flicker across his face. It was probably disgust or pity, and I couldn't tell which was worse."What is wrong with you?" he said. "You were spoiled as a child, and you are still spoiled now. A minor divine backlash at the altar should have cleared up by now, yet you still make your mother push you around."I smiled at him with the calm and practiced smile I had perfected over eight years of lying to everyone I loved."The temple healer said the backlash damaged my nerves," I said. "My legs simply will not obey me."Chloe jumped in before Apollo could respond. She looped her arm through his and leaned into his shoulder to stake her claim."Don't mind him, Aria. He has been in the frozen north for too long, so he is cold to everyone except me."

Chloe let out a light laugh. "Don't mind him, Aria. He's very particular about his divine touch now. He can't stand anyone else brushing against him—a habit from the northern wastes, I suppose."I watched him scrub until his knuckles were red, forcing myself to look away.It wasn't about cleanliness.Eight years ago, whenever I touched him—holding his hands, wrapping my arms around his waist, or falling asleep against his chest—he had never pulled away. He had never flinched.This was deliberate. He was showing me that every inch of skin I had ever touched now repulsed him. He was erasing me.We entered the pavilion, and the host escorted us to a high terrace chamber overlooking the winding Anphissos River.Apollo ordered for the table, calling for rich northern delicacies—spiced mountain game, frost-berries, and heavy honeyed wine from the polar lands. A lavish spread.He had hated those heavy, bitter flavors when we were young. So had I. We used to prefer fresh figs, soft bread, and

(Apollo's POV)The next morning, Apollo left the temple chamber before Chloe woke. He left a note, a lie, saying he had to handle something for the ceremony.But he didn't handle anything for the ceremony.He took his chariot and drove. He drove through the polis, past the Moon Spring, past the house where he had grown up. He drove in circles for an hour. Then he stopped outside Aria's estate.He sat there for a long time with the reins loose in his hands, staring at the front gate.Eight years ago, he had stood at that gate for three days and three nights.He had smashed his fist into the temple pillar until his knuckles bled. He had shouted until his voice gave out. "Aria! Come out! Tell me why! Who is he? Who is the man you kissed by the river bank?"She never came out. She just stood behind the second-floor window, watching him through the glass, crying.He didn't understand then. He thought her tears were guilt. He thought she was crying because she had been caught.Now he wasn't

(Apollo's POV)Aria's room was at the end of the third-floor hallway. The door was closed.Aria's mother stopped outside. She turned to face him."She doesn't have much time," she said. "The healer said maybe a month, but—" She shook her head. "She's getting weaker every day.""I know," Apollo said. "I know.""And she doesn't know you're coming. She didn't want you to find her. She wanted you to move on. To live your life."Apollo swallowed. "I know."She opened the door.The room was small. A bed, a cabinet, a chair. The curtains were drawn, but a small oil lamp on the bedside table gave off a soft golden glow.Aria was lying in the bed.She was so thin. Thinner than he had ever seen her. Her cheekbones stood out sharply. Her collarbones were visible above the edge of the blanket. Her skin was pale, not just pale but grayish, like ash.A cloth soaked in herbs lay across her forehead. A small clay bowl of dark liquid sat on the cabinet beside her bed.There was a bandage on her forehea