Star-crossed lovers, soulmates, two sides of the same coin, call it what you may. The very reason for his existence sat in the passenger seat of the car just ahead.
It had truly been love at first sight, all over again.
Cronus pulled up behind the BMW at the stop light. The rigid body language of its occupants revealed that the very public argument, which started at the restaurant twenty minutes earlier, might have ended, but it clearly hadn't been resolved. He'd managed to brush past the beautiful creature at the coat check on the way out. The delicious scent of her perfume still lingered in his nostrils. Fate brought him to that restaurant just for her, of that there could be little doubt. The flashing brown eyes, the pouty mouth, strong chin and long, slender neck were unmistakable. What good fortune to have found his true love so quickly. He'd moved to Penticton just three months earlier, but had worked hard to prepare for such an opportunity.
The light turned green and the silver 650i surged forward angrily. Cronus felt a pang of panic. He could not afford to lose them. He made note of the distinctive taillights and kept his eyes locked on them. He knew almost nothing about the couple, other than the way they were dressed and the car they drove suggested more than a modicum of prosperity. The fact that he'd never seen them before tonight made what he meant to do perfect. He calmed himself and pressed down on the accelerator. Traffic had lightened this time of night and as they left the small city core it thinned even more. He followed the car up Vancouver Avenue. The vehicle ahead stayed the course, as Vancouver became Lower Bench Road. He followed them past a familiar sight, the Perseus Winery. Cronus had done the wine tasting tour from Penticton to Naramata when he first moved to the area, buying one or two bottles from several of the boutique wineries. The prices had often been ridiculous; however, he'd had to admit that many of the wines hadn't been half bad. Although, paying double what some excellent Napa Valley wines went for seemed wrong.
A couple blocks later, the BMW turned left onto Bankview Road. A stone's throw from downtown, surrounded by vineyards, with an uninterrupted view of Lake Okanagan below, even a newcomer to the region could recognize this as one of the most expensive neighborhoods in the whole valley. Even though Cronus lived in a mansion and had amassed a small fortune himself, he'd never been motivated by material things. A comfortable bed, reading a good book and providing a safe environment for his family were his only vices. Well, okay, he had to admit to a fondness for good wine, Italian shoes and nice cars. These few things, plus the smug knowledge that he was simply smarter than everyone else.
He hadn't had a name at that time, but Cronus had been born the day he'd castrated and killed his abusive step-father fifteen years earlier. In Greek and Roman mythology, he later learned, the god Cronus became ruler of the Titans after castrating his father, Uranus.
Cronus felt the power swelling inside his body. Only a god could have accomplished what he had in the past decade, or what he was about to do tonight. His senses heightened, his muscles flexed. Every god deserves to have a goddess. He would take what was rightfully his.
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