Chapter 41

41

Midafternoon the next day, Persephone took a little walk into the park. No bodyguards with her. She’d given them the slip again after they dropped her off at the shelter earlier that day. She’d been worried about what she would say to Hades or how to act with him once he got home last night…but he never came home.

Whatever Hades was up to had him working day and night. Either that or he was avoiding her. Which was probably for the best right now, all things considered.

She flopped down on a bench and checked her messages. Nothing.

A shadow fell over her, and she squinted at Pete the cop. He took a seat next to her on the far side of the bench. His posture was relaxed, but his eyes swept the path and park area around them.

“I have to say, you’re the last person I expected to hear from.” Pete looked her over. “I nearly dropped my phone when I got your message last night. I looked into you. Married to the biggest crime lord in the city.” He let out a low whistle.

Persephone spoke without looking at him. Anyone watching would see a young woman resting from her jog and a man on lunch break. “I want to be clear. I’m not ratting on my husband.”

“Oh, you made that clear.” Pete sat up and rummaged in his pocket, taking out a cigarette and lighter. “I heard about your little visit down to the station two weeks after the wedding. Wouldn’t flip even though the feds were offering you witness protection.” He lit the cigarette and puffed on it.

“The offer wasn’t real,” Persephone said stiffly. “It was a test.” And if it hadn’t been, she’d still have made the same decisions. There was no point dwelling on the past.

“Well, you passed anyway. Not sure what that says about you. The type of woman you are.” He squinted at her through his smoke.

She waved the cloud away. “I’m loyal. And anyway, I’m not here to talk about my husband.”

“No? Then why the hell did you call me?” He glanced around warily. “You playing some sort of game?”

At the cop’s raised voice, a grey shadow lying on the ground next to Persephone raised its large head. Cerberus, the Great Dane puppy, got to his feet, coming around the bench to stand in front of Persephone, between her and the cop.

“Gods, what is that thing?” Peter coughed and scooted further down the bench.

Persephone reached out a hand and scratched the dog’s ears. “Great Dane mixed with something. I took him from the shelter to stretch his legs.” She raised her hand and the dog leaned happily toward her, begging for more.

“I thought he was a boulder.” He watched as she praised the Dane, and got him to lie back down to chew a toy. “So Ubeli lets you wander around alone?”

“My husband’s men are too busy to be babysitting me.” The lie fell easily from her lips. But she realized it was the wrong one when Peter’s eyes lit up.

“Busy, huh? What has their attention?”

Persephone took a deep breath. “That’s not why we’re here. I’m actually trying to find a missing person. The singer at my husband’s club—Orpheus. His fiancée disappeared late Saturday.”

Pete shrugged. “So have him go to the station, file a report.”

“It’s more complicated than that.” Persephone rushed to fill in the details about the tragic couple and her and Athena’s search. She pulled out Eurydice’s picture and laid it on the bench for him to see, along with the shot she’d forwarded from Orpheus’s phone of Eurydice. “We think a man named Ajax is behind it. We tracked her phone. She’s in his club, or well at least her phone is. And she’s in trouble.”

Glancing down at the picture, Pete grunted. “Yeah, I heard of Ajax. Used to run a few corners in this city. Got flushed out with the old crowd. Now he’s back.”

“The old crowd?”

“Gods, your husband don’t tell you anything. The Titan brothers. There were three of them, or maybe it used to be three? I think one of them got axed back in the day?” He frowned as he thought. “They owned this town before your husband did. Some think they’re trying to get back in. They say that this Ajax is the first advance.”

The wind picked up, and Persephone wished she’d worn something other than a cashmere sweater. Even in the sun, she felt the chill. “So, can you help find Eurydice?”

Pete snubbed out his cigarette on the concrete by his feet. “Look, miss, this just isn’t my line of work. Find a missing junkie? You don’t even know if she wants to be found. Maybe she wanted to leave this Orpheus fellow and go back to scoring.”

“She didn’t want to leave him. And Ajax’s a snake. He?—”

Pete cut her off. “But I guess I could tail this Ajax guy a little. But I’m not doing anything without getting a favor back. This is small time stuff you’re asking here. I’m going to need something in return. Something juicy. And I wanna know why you’re not taking this to your husband.”

Persephone didn’t answer, staring down at the picture of Eurydice.

“You think Ubeli’s involved,” Pete deduced. “That’s why you’re sneaking around.”

“I’m not?—”

“You called up a cop and asked for a meet. How’s that going to look to your husband? Or anyone who runs with him?”

This sounded too close to what Ajax had said to her. “Hades knows I’m loyal.”

The cop rubbed his head and jaw again, not listening. “Hell, I’m probably a marked man just for meeting with you.”

Something inside her snapped. “Then why’d you chase me down and give me your card?” Persephone rounded on him. “You know what—forget it. I thought you had a pair. An innocent woman is in trouble.”

She snatched up Eurydice’s picture and waved it in his surprised face. “You’re supposed to be a—I don’t know—a protector of the city. Instead you just want a big bust to make your career. And use whoever you can to make it.”

She turned away from the cop’s surprised face and stuffed the picture back in her purse. “Look for someone else to hand you my husband’s head on a silver platter. And anyway, he’s done more to protect people in this city than you ever will?—”

“You really think that, you pampered princess?” Pete rose to his feet, towering over her. She tugged at Cerberus’s leash and the big dog leapt up, pushing between them.

The cop retreated, but kept talking, his face twisted with anger. He shouted after Persephone as she hurried away, Cerberus in tow. “You’re just like the rest of them, with your money and your secrets. You people think you’re gods and goddesses, better than us. Untouchable by us mere mortals. Well, you know what? We’re going to bring you down.”

She strode away, head down, as his rant hit her back like ineffective bullets.

And when she got home, her fingers flew to open her contacts. She hesitated a moment, then dialed.

Hermes answered the phone. “Persephone?” Surprise was in his tone.

“Hey,” she said lightly. “Are you busy?”

“Just about to leave the spa—why?”

“I need a favor.” She bit her lip and remembered how the designer had hovered over her at the party. If she’d read his body language right, he’d be up for helping her. She only hoped she wasn’t opening herself up to too much trouble.

“Sure—you ok?”

“I’m fine. I just—I promised a friend of mine I’d help her out and go see her show tonight. Hades is working late and I wondered if you’d go with me.”

“Uh, sure. If it’s cool with your husband, I’m free. What’s the show?”

“Well, that’s why I’m asking you to go. It’s a tiny bit out of my norm.” She rose and pulled Ajax’s card from her purse. “I need you to take me to a strip club.”