Chapter VII: Hades

CHAPTER VII

HADES

Hades let Persephone lead, using her magic to teleport to Sybil’s new home since she had been there before. They appeared in front of a green apartment door, in an alcove beneath a set of cement and metal stairs. Hades manifested with just enough room that his head brushed one of the steps overhead.

He shifted forward a little to give himself space, his hands settling on Persephone’s waist as he did. She shivered, but it had nothing to do with his touch. It was fucking frigid.

He had not been outside since last night when he’d left the Underworld for La Rose, and while it had been cold, it was evident the temperature had dropped.

He should have waited to jerk off. This cold would have killed his boner faster.

Fucking Demeter. It was as he feared. The weather was getting worse.

Hades felt a surge of power against his palms. It was warm and came from Persephone. He held her tighter, his head lowering so that his lips were near her ear.

“Are you well?”

When she didn’t respond, he frowned, straightening.

“Persephone?”

She seemed to realize he was speaking and looked up at him, the back of her head resting against his chest. She looked adorable and felt so small in his grasp. These were his favorite moments, the ones that felt quiet and intimate, and he craved them more and more.

“I am well,” she said, but something moved behind her eyes—a darkness he recognized in his own. “I am,” she attempted to assure him. “I was just thinking about my mother.”

“Do not ruin your evening thinking of her, my darling,” he said.

She did not need to know that he had been thinking of her too.

“It is a little hard to ignore her given the weather, Hades.”

He reluctantly turned his head toward the sky, dense with cloud cover. He hated that Demeter was on her mind. He knew it was likely because she’d read all the reports in the media about the winter storm being a form of divine punishment, and she likely felt responsible.

Despite knowing very few things about her daughter, Demeter was aware that the way to get to Persephone was through her heart.

She would ensure this storm was devastating to the people of New Greece, and when that happened, would Persephone regret agreeing to marry him?

He wondered if she was thinking about it now.

If she wasn’t yet, she soon would be.

He ground his teeth, and Persephone shifted from his grasp to knock on the door, her warmth disappearing with her distance. He didn’t like it.

And he liked it even less when a man answered Sybil’s door.

Not because he felt like a threat or even appeared to be. It was how he felt.

Wrong. Deceptive.

Hades returned his hand to Persephone’s waist. He wasn’t sure if he should feel relieved or worried when she seemed just as confused by the blond, blue-eyed man.

“Um, I think we might have the wrong—”

“Persephone, right?” the man asked.

Hades stiffened. He did not like the way he said her name. It was too casual, too comfortable.

“Persephone!” Sybil cried, running up behind the man who did not move, forcing the oracle to bow beneath his arm, which was braced against the doorframe as if he were some kind of guard.

Hades also did not like that.

He let Persephone go when Sybil pulled her in for a hug.

“I’m so glad you’re here!” she said, and it was impossible not to hear the relief in her voice. Hades cast a dark look at the mortal male who watched them, unmoving.

Had he made Sybil uncomfortable in her own home?

His fingers tightened into fists.

If Sybil did not introduce him soon, Hades would send him to a deserted island somewhere off the coast of New Greece.

“I’m glad you could come too, Hades.”

Hades was surprised and met the oracle’s gaze.

“I appreciate the invitation,” he said sincerely.

He was rarely invited to anything that wasn’t his own event.

“Aren’t you going to introduce me?” The man standing guard in the doorway had finally moved to cross his arms over his chest as if he were pouting. His voice was grating, and he spoke with a crude entitlement Hades found irritating. He got the feeling the mortal only spoke to draw attention back to himself, and his attention he would have.

The God of the Dead glared.

Did he really need an introduction to death?

Sybil half turned to the man, as if she’d forgotten he was here. She gave them a look as if to apologize for his insolence.

“Persephone, Hades, this is Ben.”

“Hi, I’m Sybil’s boyfrie—”

“Friend. Ben is a friend,” Sybil interrupted him.

Hades exchanged a look with Persephone, who could not hide her bewildered expression.

“Well, soon-to-be boyfriend,” Ben amended.

Hades couldn’t hide his disgust and glowered—which deepened when Persephone shook the mortal’s outstretched hand.

“It’s…nice to meet you,” she said.

She was far too nice.

The mortal turned to Hades expectantly, offering his hand.

“You do not want to shake my hand, mortal.”

First, he would crush it, and then he would force the man to face every fear he’d ever conjured. It would all happen in a split second and drive him to the point of madness.

Hades would enjoy watching it, but he felt like Persephone would disapprove.

The mortal did not like Hades’s rebuff. A kernel of anger sparked within his gaze. It almost made Hades laugh, and he wished the mortal would say something about his slight. He would take any reason to banish him from this party, but in the quiet that followed, he seemed to gain some sense and recovered his pleasant—albeit unnerving—facade.

He smiled and then finally moved out of the fucking door.

“Well, shall we go in?”

Hades was not keen on being in such a confined space with this mortal. They were already off to a bad start, but he pressed a hand to Persephone’s lower back as they entered the apartment.

He could feel her gaze on him, curious but also observant.

“What?” he asked, voice quiet.

“You promised to behave,” she reminded.

“It is not in my nature to appease mortals,” he said, especially ones who had a sense of self-importance in the face of actual death.

“But it is in your nature to appease me,” she said, and her words drew his attention to her face as they came to the end of the hallway, pausing in a small kitchen with a too-bright fluorescent light overhead.

Still, he held Persephone’s gaze and offered her a small smile.

“Alas,” he said quietly. “You are my greatest weakness.”

She watched him, a wealth of feeling flooding her gaze.

If she looked at him like that too long, he really would fuck her in this house.

“Wine?” Sybil squeezed between them as she came into the kitchen, heading straight for the bar. She obviously knew what everyone would need to get through this night since Ben insisted on staying.

“Please,” Persephone said.

“For you, Hades?”

“Whiskey…whatever you have is fine. Neat.” He paused, noticing the look Persephone cast his way, but he couldn’t tell what prompted her displeasure. “Please?”

Perhaps he should have summoned his own alcohol.

“Neat?” Hades could not help but cringe when he heard the mortal’s voice. Perhaps it was because he knew every time the man opened his mouth, he would say something stupid. “Real whiskey drinkers at least add water.”

There was a horrible silence in the room that everyone seemed to notice, save Ben. Persephone and Sybil froze, wide-eyed as they waited for Hades to retaliate.

He looked at the mortal, voice dripping with a disdain he felt blacken his heart.

“I add the blood of mortals,” he said.

Which was a joke, except that Hades was tempted to test it and have Ben be the first sacrifice.

Fuck, he had never hated someone so much in his life.

“Of course, Hades,” Sybil said as if she had not heard Ben or Hades’s reply. She chose a bottle from the many cluttering the counter and offered the whole thing. “You’ll probably need it.”

He smiled at her, as warmly as he could. “Thank you, Sybil,” he said, already loosening the cap to drink straight from the bottle.

“So how did you meet Ben?” Persephone asked as Sybil poured her a glass of wine.

Hades considered answering for her—the fucker was a stalker—but before she could even get a word out, Ben spoke.

“We met at Four Olives where I work. It was love at first sight for me.”

Persephone made a strange sound as she choked on her wine, though Hades had to admit he was pleased with himself.

He hadn’t been wrong.

Sybil gave them both a desperate look. It was evident she had tried to put this mortal where he belonged. The issue was she thought she could make him a friend, but he didn’t even belong in that zone.

He belonged in jail.

Or Tartarus.

Hades would take either one.

A knock interrupted the awful silence.

“Thank the gods,” Sybil said, darting to the door.

Hades imagined she was eager to fill the house with other people to drown out Ben’s annoying voice.

“I know she isn’t convinced yet,” Ben said when they were alone. “But it’s only a matter of time.”

“What makes you so sure?” Persephone asked, and while Hades could hear the revulsion in her voice, the mortal did not seem to notice.

Instead, he preened, squaring his shoulders and lifting his head in pride.

Hades was already rolling his eyes.

“I’m an oracle.”

“Oh fuck,” he said, unamused.

Persephone elbowed him, but it wasn’t as if Ben was deterred. He had no ability to sense emotion beyond pride in himself.

Still, Hades could not take much more of this. He needed distance from this fucker who he refused to call by name.

“If you’ll excuse me.”

He glanced at Persephone as he left the kitchen and wandered into the adjacent living room, sipping from the whiskey Sybil had so kindly given him. His only wish was that he could get drunk because tonight, he needed it.

He could still hear Ben from across the room as he leaned toward Persephone—an action that made Hades want to rip his head off. Hades let himself imagine it, what it would be like and feel like, just to calm down.

“I don’t think he likes me,” Ben said.

Persephone arched a brow, replying unenthusiastically, “Whatever gave you that idea?”

Hades tuned them out for a moment as he observed Sybil’s space. It was cozy but sparse—evident that she was starting over. Despite the fact that they were gathering tonight to celebrate her new chapter, Hades knew none of them were completely happy, well aware that the reason they were all here was because one of them was gone.

Lexa’s death had changed everything.

He still felt guilty over how he handled Persephone. He had failed to be there for her through Lexa’s time in the hospital, failed to prepare her for a death that he had not realized would be so devastating.

You’ve been the God of the Underworld so long, you’ve forgotten what it is really like to be on the brink of losing someone.

But even as she had spoken those words, he had felt like he was losing her.

“Sephy!” Hermes’s voice tore through his thoughts, and he turned to see the God of Mischief enter the kitchen, two bottles of alcohol in each hand. He set them down before dragging her against him for a hug. “You smell like Hades…and sex,” he declared, which, despite feeling a little guilty, made Hades chuckle.

“Stop being creepy, Hermes!” Persephone seethed.

Amusement ignited the god’s eyes as he released her and turned to Ben with intrigue. Hades groaned inwardly. Why did Hermes have to be attracted to literally everyone? He supposed it didn’t matter. Once the fucker opened his mouth, Hermes’s interest would cease.

“Oh, and who is this?”

“This is Ben. Sybil’s…” Persephone hesitated, apparently uncertain of how to describe the stalker. It didn’t matter, anyway, because neither one of them was paying attention.

“Hermes, right?” Ben asked.

Hermes looked bright with pride. “So you’ve heard of me?”

Hades offered a humorless laugh as he took another drink. The comment was absurd—there wasn’t a mortal alive who didn’t know the God of Mischief.

“Of course,” the mortal replied. “Are you still the Messenger of the Gods or do they use email?”

Hades tried to hide his smile as he turned toward the window, pulling back a single curtain that had been tacked to the wall as he listened to Hermes’s snappy reply.

“It’s Lord Hermes to you,” he said.

Whatever followed was lost to Hades as he observed the weather. The snow was heavier, and now and then, ice tapped against the window.

The storm was worsening by the hour.

“Well, well, well,” Hermes announced, his voice closer than before. “Look who decided to darken the corner—literally.”

Hades turned from the window and watched the god approach.

Hermes stabbed his thumb over his shoulder. “Can you believe that mortal?” he asked, then spoke in a mocking tone. “Do the gods use email? Fucker.”

Hades found himself chuckling again.

Hermes glared. “Don’t pretend like you aren’t antiquated too. Weren’t you replaced by murder?”

“That’s…no, Hermes,” said Hades.

“I mean, the audacity!”

“You know, true revenge would be to not let him know he’s gotten under your skin,” said Hades.

“You’re only saying that for your benefit.”

Hades shrugged and took a drink.

“The fucker thinks he is an oracle. Let him offer false prophecies and find himself at the mercy of Hecate.”

Hades was not certain which god the mortal claimed to speak for or if he only claimed to see visions. Either way, Hecate despised anyone who alleged false power.

“Summon her,” said Hermes, and then his voice darkened. “I want to see him burn.”

Hades did not respond, though he enjoyed thinking about the scene Hecate would make inside Sybil’s small apartment if he called for her to punish the false prophet.

“Did you speak with Dionysus?” Hades asked.

“No,” said Hermes.

Hades glared.

“You said soon, not right this minute,” Hermes defended.

Hades continued to stare.

“Fine. I’ll go tonight.”

His gaze was unwavering.

“If you think I’m leaving this party without playing drinking games, you’re fucking insane. Oh wait, you are.” Hermes crossed his arms over his chest and looked away. “Why don’t you go talk to him?”

“Because I have to talk to Apollo,” said Hades. “Unless you want the task?”

“Hmm, no. Apollo still hasn’t forgiven me for stealing his cattle.”

“Again? ” Hades asked.

“No, just that one time. You know, when I was a baby.”

“I thought you settled that,” said Hades.

If he recalled correctly, it was how Apollo had obtained his first lyre, which he now used as one of his symbols of power.

“We did,” said Hermes. “But you know how grudges work.”

There was another knock at the door, and this time, Helen entered.

Hades was not as familiar with the young mortal, except for what Persephone had communicated, which was mostly to say that she was beautiful and a hard worker.

“This weather,” she said as she entered. “It’s almost…unnatural.”

“Yes, it’s awful,” said Persephone.

Hades’s chest tightened, noting the worry etched across Persephone’s face.

It wasn’t going to get any better either. The tap of ice on the window was only increasing.

Leuce and Zofie were the last to arrive. Apparently, the two had decided it was a good idea to live together, though from what Hades had heard from Ilias, it was rather disastrous. Leuce had only just returned to her physical form after being a tree for centuries, and Zofie…Zofie was born and bred to be a warrior. Her instinct was to kill when something did not go her way, which meant she spent a lot of time destroying things for no reason.

Like the vending machines at Alexandria Tower.

They both had a lot to learn about society.

Of the two, Hades expected Leuce to act uncomfortable in his presence. After all, he had been the one to turn her into a tree, but it was Zofie who froze when she spotted him.

“My lord!” she exclaimed and swept into a stiff bow.

“You don’t have to do that here, Zofie,” Persephone said, though Hades was not opposed. He found it strange that the Amazon insisted on bowing to him but not Persephone, who was technically her mistress, but he knew his goddess would be uncomfortable with that considering they were among…friends.

“But…he is the Lord of the Underworld!” Zofie said.

Hermes scoffed. “We’re all aware. Look at him—he’s the only goth in the room.” Hades scowled at the god who offered a sheepish grin and left Hades’s side, declaring, “Since everyone’s here, let’s play a game!”

“What’s the game?” Helen asked. “Poker?”

“No!”

The reply came from almost everyone in the room—even Persephone.

Hades glowered.

He recognized he had a reputation when it came to card games, and a loss to him came at a great cost, but he was not interested in a bargain with anyone here—except for, perhaps, the mortal parading as a false oracle. He liked the idea of giving him an impossible challenge, something along the lines of: Stop being a fucking creep.

He would fail spectacularly, and then Hades could rid the world of his soul.

“Let’s play Never Have I Ever!”

Hades groaned. He hated this game.

Hermes bounded toward the kitchen and reached over the bar, which was followed by the sound of glass clinking as he managed to gather several bottles of liquor in each hand. “With shots!”

“Okay,” Sybil said. “But I don’t have shot glasses.”

“Then you’re all going to have to pick something to gulp,” Hermes said, strolling toward the coffee table in the living room and arranging the bottles on the table.

“What’s Never Have I Ever?” Zofie asked.

“Exactly what it sounds like. You make a statement about something you’ve never done, and if anyone has done it, they have to take a shot,” said Hermes, which was exactly why Hades hated the game. It was the last thing he wanted to play with Persephone in the room.

He’d done everything in the fucking book because he was ancient—things he had never had the opportunity to tell Persephone about.

He considered lying but knew Hermes would call him out.

Fuck me.

He would not forgive Hermes for this.

Everyone gathered around the table in the living room and had to watch as Ben invaded Sybil’s personal space just to squeeze beside her on the ground.

“Me first!” Hermes exclaims. “Never have I ever…had sex with Hades.”

A warm flush rushed from the top of Hades’s head to his toes. Forget summoning Hecate to torture Ben. Hades would summon her for Hermes.

“Hermes,” Persephone hissed.

Forget Hecate. Perhaps Persephone would execute him on her own. She looked murderous enough.

“What?” Hermes grumbled. “This game is difficult for someone my age. I’ve done everything.”

It wasn’t until Leuce cleared her throat that Hermes seemed to realize the issue with what he’d said. Persephone wasn’t the only person Hades had slept with in this room, and the reminder wasn’t a pleasant one—for any of them.

“Oh. Oh.”

An awkward silence followed as both Persephone and Leuce took a shot, and while he kept his gaze trained on Persephone, he could feel the strain between them.

Without prompting, Ben went next. “Never have I ever stalked an ex-girlfriend.”

Hades could taste the lie, and no one drank because no one here was a sociopath.

“Never have I ever…fallen in love at first sight,” said Sybil, and despite the statement being for Ben specifically, the mortal did not seem to notice, or perhaps he didn’t care, because he took a shot.

Helen was next. “Never have I ever…had a threesome.”

Hades could feel Persephone’s gaze burning into him before she even finished her sentence, but he did not wish to look at her as he raised the bottle to his lips to drink. When he did meet her gaze, she looked pale, except for her cheeks, which were turning a warm, rosy red.

It was not as if they hadn’t discussed this before—well, not exactly this. He’d explained his long life, so his varied sexual partners and experiences were to be expected, but perhaps he should have been more specific.

This was no way to learn about what he’d done, even if it was all in the past.

He was desperate to be beside her, to have his arm around her, to whisper in her ear how much he loved her and no one compared.

But as the game continued, things only got worse.

“Never have I ever…eaten food off someone’s naked body,” Ben said, and Hades had to drink.

“Never have I ever…had sex in the kitchen,” Helen said.

Another drink.

“Never have I ever had sex in public,” Sybil said.

Another drink.

Hades never thought he would say this, but he was getting tired of drinking. Each time he did, he felt Persephone’s energy change and morph into something dark and angry, and it recoiled from his own.

He didn’t like it.

“Never have I ever…had sex with a priestess,” said Hermes.

“That’s a lie,” said Hades.

“Is it?” Hermes asked, surprised, and then shrugged. “Hmm. Okay.”

Hades did not drink.

Helen continued the game, declaring, “Never have I ever faked an orgasm.”

Hades watched in relative horror as Persephone lifted her glass to her perfect lips and drank.

What a fucking lie.

He narrowed his eyes. He was the only person she had ever had sex with, and he knew he had never left her unsatisfied or wanting.

“If that is true,” he said, his gaze unwavering, burning into her. He hoped she could feel what he intended to do to her—how he would make her beg for release, how he would shatter her so thoroughly she would feel the aftereffects for days. “I will happily rectify the situation.”

“Oh,” Hermes hummed. “Someone’s getting fucked tonight.”

“Shut up, Hermes,” Persephone snapped.

“What?” he grumbled. “You’re just lucky he didn’t carry you away to the Underworld the moment you lifted that glass.”

He’d thought about it, but it was far more rewarding to fuck her here where everyone could hear her come.

She had no idea what she’d done.

“Let’s play another game,” Persephone said quickly.

“But I like this one. It was just getting good,” said Hermes. “Besides, you know Hades is just making a list of all the ways he wants to f—”

“Enough, Hermes!” Persephone snapped, her frustration boiling over.

She got to her feet and disappeared down the hallway.

Silence followed, and after a moment, Hermes looked up at him.

“Well, are you going after her?”

Hades sighed and set his bottle of whiskey on the corner of the coffee table before straightening his jacket and vanishing from sight.

He appeared in front of her, bracing his hands on either side of her head as she leaned against the bathroom door. Her eyes were closed, and he leaned in, his mouth near her ear.

“You had to know your actions would ignite me,” he said.

They crawled under his skin and made him burn alive.

He wanted to fuck her, to feel her come around his cock so hard, she was left with no ability to stand or speak.

“When have I left you wanting?” he asked, his lips grazing the edge of her ear and down the column of her neck. She shivered. “Will you not answer?” He pulled away and lifted his hand to her neck. Her pulse raced beneath his hand.

“I’d really have rather not found out about your sexual exploits via a game in front of my friends,” she said.

It wasn’t his preference either.

“So you thought it better to reveal that I had not satisfied you in the same manner?”

She averted her gaze and swallowed. He could feel her throat constrict.

He leaned in, his tongue trailing the edge of her ear.

“Shall I leave no doubt in their minds that I can make you come?” he whispered and let his hands smooth up the backs of her thighs, under her dress to her underwear, which he tore in two.

“Hades! We are guests here!”

“Your point?” he asked as he took out his cock and lifted her into his arms, letting her back rest against the door.

“It’s rude to have sex in someone’s bathroom.”

Despite her protests, she let him do as he pleased. He kissed her and ground his hips into hers, his cock resting between her thighs, sliding along her entrance, which was slick with her arousal.

“Fuck,” he whispered, or perhaps he didn’t say anything aloud at all, but she felt good.

He thought he would be able to drag this out, to torture her into begging for him, but he couldn’t—not when she was so ready and he could not wait to dive into that heat. He slipped inside her, and a guttural moan escaped from Persephone’s mouth, which was open against his.

She was…everything.

He held her tight and thrust into her, unable to manage much movement, but it was still enough, enough to drive all thought from his mind, enough to make his ears ring, enough to send the blood rushing from his head straight to his cock.

Perspiration broke out across his skin and his breathing grew ragged as he rested his forehead against hers, aware that the door beneath them rocked in its frame. It was so loud, he almost didn’t hear the knock, and when Hermes’s voice sounded from the other side, he wished he’d not heard anything at all.

“I hate to interrupt whatever’s going on in there, but I think you two will want to see this.”

“Not now,” Hades snapped. He wasn’t willing to give this up. He was so close to release—she was so close. He could feel her muscles clenching around him, coaxing him to come.

He let his head fall into the crook of her neck, breathing hard against her skin, when he felt her tongue and teeth against his ear. He stiffened, gripping her tighter.

Fuck, she made this hard.

“Okay, first, it’s rude to have sex in other people’s bathrooms,” Hermes said, his tone taking on a higher pitch, as if he were irritated. “Second, it’s about the weather.”

Fuck, fuck, fuck Demeter, he thought. How was it that this gods-damned storm was ruining even this moment?

“A moment, Hermes,” Hades growled.

“How long is a moment?”

“Hermes,” Hades seethed, and he hoped the god understood what he didn’t say—ask one more question and I’ll burn your balls off.

“Okay, okay.”

Hades took a breath.

Leaving Persephone’s body was torture. It was worse when he had to face his engorged cock, glistening with her.

“Fuck.”

“I’m sorry,” she said, and he frowned.

“Why are you apologizing?”

She started to speak but seemed to decide against it.

“I am not upset with you,” Hades assured and pressed his mouth to hers. “But your mother will regret the interruption.”

That was a promise.

They restored their appearances and left the bathroom. From the hall, they could hear the news reporting on the weather.

“A severe ice storm warning has been issued for the whole of New Greece.”

“What’s going on?” Persephone asked as she came into the living room. Hades was right behind her.

“It’s started to sleet.” Helen was at the window, the curtains parted. Persephone joined her there and looked outside, her arms crossed over her chest, a sign of her anxiety. Hades had heard when the ice had first started to fall, but now it came down like rain.

“This is a god,” the false oracle began. “A god cursing us!”

Silence filled the room at the mortal’s declaration, and while no one would argue the point, it was another to state it in a room with actual gods.

Ben met Hades’s gaze.

“Do you deny it?” he challenged.

“It is not wise to jump to conclusions, mortal,” Hades gritted out.

He really hated this man.

“I’m not jumping to conclusions. I have foreseen this! The gods will rain terror down upon us. There will be despair and destruction.”

Hades glanced at Persephone, who looked pale and uncertain. What Ben said was not outside the realm of possibility, but it was also information anyone could spout so long as they were familiar with the history of Greece.

“Careful with your words, oracle,” Hermes warned. His body had grown rigid, and he stood with his shoulders squared and fists clenched. He had taken great offense to Ben’s words.

“I am only speaking—”

“What you hear,” Sybil interrupted quickly. “Which may or may not be the word of a god, and judging by the fact that you have no patron, I’m guessing you’re being fed prophecies from an impious entity. If you had training, you would know that.”

An impious entity could be anything—another mortal filling his head with impious thoughts or even a soul trapped on this earth, whispering to him in the dark.

“And what is so bad about an impious entity? Sometimes they are the only truth tellers.”

“I think you should leave,” said Sybil, though her voice quaked.

Fucking finally, Hades thought.

“You want me to…leave?”

“She didn’t stutter,” Hermes said, taking a step forward.

“But—”

“You must have forgotten the way out the door.” Hermes took another step. “I’ll show you out.”

“Sybil—”

Oh, fuck. Enough.

Hades sent his magic barreling toward the mortal, who vanished from sight.

There was a moment of shock, and everyone looked at Hermes.

“That wasn’t me,” he said and looked at Hades, who made no move to explain what he’d done, which was what he should have done from the beginning—sent Ben to a deserted island.

“I think we all should go. This storm is only going to get worse the longer we stay.” Persephone looked at him. “Hades, I’d like to make sure Helen, Leuce, and Zofie get home safe.”

“I’ll call Antoni.”

The cyclops arrived in minutes, and they filed inside the limo. The sound of sleet was louder in the car and filled the space with a sense of dread.

Hades sat beside Persephone, one arm braced around her while Leuce, Zofie, and Helen sat opposite them.

“Did anyone else really hate that Ben guy?” asked Leuce.

What a ridiculous question, Hades thought. Of course everyone hated him.

“Sybil should keep a blade beneath her bed in case he comes back,” said Zofie helpfully.

“Or she could just lock her door,” Helen suggested.

“Locks can be picked. A blade is better,” Zofie insisted, and Hades couldn’t disagree. Someone like Ben wasn’t going to let a lock get in the way of what he wanted, just like he wouldn’t let the word no stop him.

Hades was glad for the silence because it let him think, though what he had to do next wasn’t exactly exciting. He had to visit Apollo and learn what truly killed Adonis, and he needed to know soon before any other attacks like this took place.

He would much rather return to the Underworld with Persephone and pick up where they left off in the bathroom, but he would have to wait until later, after this task was complete.

She wouldn’t be happy.

Antoni dropped off Leuce and Zofie. They watched until the two were safe inside their apartment before leaving and continuing on to Helen’s home.

The woman sat quietly for a while, but after a moment, she spoke, not looking at either him or Persephone.

“Do you think Ben is right? That this is the work of the gods?”

Hades felt Persephone’s body go rigid against his, and his hold tightened on her.

“We’ll find out soon enough,” he answered.

They arrived at Helen’s, and Antoni helped her out of the car.

“Thank you for the ride,” Helen said as she left.

Persephone burrowed closer to him as the cold filled the cabin, and he gladly let her.

Now they were heading home, and Hades began to dread arriving. He was content to be here with Persephone, warm and in the back of his limo.

He felt Persephone look up, and after a moment, she spoke in a quiet voice.

“Does she really think a storm will keep us apart?”

It was that question that made him realize she had no idea how bad this was going to get.

“Have you ever seen snow, Persephone?” he asked.

“From afar.”

Hades met her gaze, eyes searching. He could not figure out how to communicate what would inevitably happen.

“What is going through your mind?” she whispered as if she were afraid to find out.

“She will do this until the gods have no choice but to intervene.”

“And what happens then?”

Then I destroy the world, he thought.

He chose not to speak, and she did not ask for an answer.

A moment longer and they were close enough to Nevernight. Hades straightened, which also caused Persephone to shift away.

He hated it.

“Antoni, please see that Lady Persephone returns safely to Nevernight.”

“What?”

Hades reached for her and kissed her before she could say anything more. His tongue slid into her mouth, and it took everything in his power not to pull her into his lap, to seal their bodies together, to fuck her in the back of this car.

Instead he stayed focused on her mouth, his fingers tangled in her hair, gripping her tight to keep her in place, to keep him in place.

Fuck, how was this always so good?

He tore from her lips, pleased to see her eyes alight. It was her passion and her frustration.

She wanted him.

His lips quirked and he touched her with the tips of his fingers. “Do not fret, my darling. You shall come for me tonight.”

Then he vanished before he decided not to leave at all.