Worse, she had held his daughter out to him and he'd cursed her for it. Now he cursed himself for being so damn blind and stupid. How could he not have known? How could he have allowed his anger at her to blind him to something so important?
He could kill himself for his own stupidity. He had denied his own child. Gods only knew what she must think of him and his rejection.
"It's been eleven thousand years, Artemis. You know, you could have mentioned this to me before now."
Her eyes were filled with tears. "I wanted to hurt you then I held her out to you and you insulted me and refused what I loved more than anything else in this universe. You have no idea what I went through trying to prevent anyone from knowing I was pregnant. I suffered through her birth alone, with no attendants. No one to help me in any way. I didn't have to have her, you know."
Artemis was still trying to hurt him with that last remark, but he wasn't willing to let her get away with it. "Then why did you?"
"She was a part of you and she was mine. The only thing in my life that has ever been purely mine. There was no way I wouldn't have had her. By the time you started talking to me again, she was grown. I didn't see the point of losing you over something I couldn't help when I'd already done everything I knew to do to make you love me."
Ash gave a bitter laugh. "I'm happy for you, Artie. You got to love my daughter and I'm nothing but a stranger to her. Thank you."
"Don't be so surly. I didn't have her long to myself before she went behind my back to find your mother. She's just like her father-ever out to punish me when all I want to do is hold her."
He went cold at her words. You've got to be kidding me...
"My mother knows about her?"
"Of course the bitch does. I had to give up my protection of my daughter to your mother to save you that night in New Orleans when Stryker was about to kill you."
Ash seethed in anger even though he didn't know why. He'd been screwed over by his mother and Artemis more times than he could count. There had never been a woman in his life who hadn't lied and betrayed him.
Not a one.
Simi had been the only pure thing he'd ever known. And even she had gone behind his back to seduce his best friend. She'd lost her innocence and he'd gained an enemy who now had no intention of stopping until Ash was dead.
Or until Ash killed him.
Yeah, women were the very bane of Ash's entire existence. He wished he'd been born gay so that he would have spared himself centuries of pain at their hands.
But there was nothing he could do to change the past. Letting out a long, angry breath, he glared at Artemis. "And where is my daughter now?"
"That's why I'm here. I sent her to kill Sin."
"You what!"
Artemis squeaked and put more distance between them. "Don't worry. She's too much like you and wouldn't do it. So I had to call out Deimos to do it."
Oh, this was going to be good. "Let me guess. Deimos is on the loose now after both of them?"
She nodded. "I told him not to hurt Katra, but he doesn't listen. And somehow he knows she's my daughter."
Now it all made sense. "You want me to stop Deimos."
"I want you to kill him."
He laughed in disbelief.
"Don't shake your head at me," she snapped. "I know you can do it. You're a god-killer. His powers are nothing compared to yours."
He cut a lethal glare at her. "Oh, you have no idea, Artie. Not really. In fact, you're lucky I don't cut you down right now where you stand."
"You can't. You swore you wouldn't."
"Yeah, but I'm thinking right now your death might be worth mine."
"You wouldn't dare."