Chapter 12

"What are you up to, my mischievous little flower?" I muttered to myself as I followed the pull of energy that pulsed from the kirkyard.

I knew it was her. I recognized her scent on the breeze. That and she was the only other person here capable of summoning spirits. I felt it the moment they materialized in this realm. It was like a buzzing beneath my skin. Not in an uncomfortable way, more like unrealized potential. The more spirits nearby, the stronger I became. Add Dahlia to the mix, and you had the recipe for an unmatched level of power between the two of us. No, not unmatched. Limitless.

As I crested the hill, my whole body tensed upon catching sight of my wife. She sat perched on a headstone, all bundled up with her hair in a messy bun, as she spoke to a spirit, a crowd of them surrounding her. The one she was talking to must've pissed her off because she grabbed him by the soul and threw him into a nearby grave.

"That's my good girl," I murmured, pride washing through me at the sight of her coming into her own. Pride and—I wasn't ashamed to admit—arousal.

Fuck, I was in awe of her. She was coming into herself, becoming the queen I always knew she would. We could rule the underworld without interference from any other deity. She would be my partner in all things, my equal. Hell, the two of us never had to return to my realm if we didn't want to. We might as well take over this land right here.

"Well, well, look who's finally got his ego back. Stow it, boss. You don't want to get too cocky before you've even started. Remember last time? Tempt the Fates and see where it gets you."

"Take a hike, Asshole."

"But—"

"It's not too late for us to test out my punting theory."

"Fuck you, man," the puppy muttered, but he heeded my warning and trotted off back the way we came.

I adjusted myself before continuing on toward Dahlia. Seeing her in her element like this had me feeling some kind of way, and I was not about to allow that interfering menace to get between us. She'd left her room and was alone for the first time in days. I was seizing the shit out of this opportunity.

I stayed quiet, letting her conduct whatever business she had with these restless spirits before they all seemed to scatter at once. Then, before I could get to her, she began strolling through the graveyard, stopping to chat with the strongest spirit I'd seen since being sent here. I remained a respectful distance away, allowing Dahlia her privacy. Not that I wasn't ready to come to her aid the second I sensed she might need backup. I didn't like the way he looked at her or the smirk on his lips as he doffed his cap before walking away whistling. She had more than enough suitors to keep her busy. She didn't need a playful old ghost.

Unable to stay away any longer, I closed the distance between my mate and me, reaching out to run my fingers over her exposed nape as I did.

She screamed and turned to face me, eyes wide,

"What's the matter, baby doll? You look like you've seen a ghost." My lips curled with the words.

She punched me in the arm. "You jerk. Give a girl some warning before you scare her shitless. At least step on a twig or something, you skulking skulker who skulks."

"Maybe you need to be more aware of your surroundings. I wasn't keeping quiet on purpose. You were lost in your thoughts."

She bit down on her bottom lip, eyes shifting in the direction the spirit had wandered. "Maybe."

"You all good, doll?" I asked, brushing my thumb down her cheek and pulling her attention back to me.

She flicked her gaze away from mine again and I had to bite back the frustration building inside me at the gesture. Gripping her chin with my thumb and forefinger, I forced her to look at me once more. "Don't do that. Never hide your eyes from me. What happened to rattle you? Was it something he said?" I had half a mind to chase the fucker down and make him pay for his sins.

Overkill? Probably.

Did I fuckin' care?

Do you know who I am? Overkill may as well be my middle name.

"It's nothing. Really."

"Don't fucking lie to me, wife. I can read you like a book. What did that dusty old specter say?"

She forced out a breath and shook her head. "It's not about what he said. Not really. It's everything." She gestured to the gravestones around us. "It's what happened here the other night with the raising of the dead and the ritual sacrifice. It's trying to break the cycle and be a force of good instead of evil and then being surrounded only by evil. How do you help people who don't deserve to be helped? Answer, you don't. So then, what does that mean for my trying to rise above?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but she bulldozed right over me.

"And then there's the rest of it. The Ripper just being the beginning, and something worse is on the horizon. Does that mean the evil spirit that keeps popping up everywhere I look? Or is it yet another boogeyman? Is there something even badder than the baddie we already killed? Where does it end, Hades? Why is it always something new and terrifying? There's never time to come to terms with one thing before there's something even bigger and scarier."

I took her by the shoulders and locked eyes with her, finding myself nearly lost in her intoxicating gray irises. "Take a breath, baby. You're going to hyperventilate."

"This is too much, Hades. I have so many questions and not enough answers."

"Well, let's see if I can help with that. Let's start at the beginning and work our way through your list."

She slumped in relief, as though I'd given her permission to finally voice all her concerns. "Okay, what the fuck am I supposed to do if I can't help these damn ghosts cross over or whatever?"

"Well, firstly you have to choose the right kind of ghost."

"There are right and wrong kinds?"

"Yes. The spirits you were working with weren't here because they had unfinished business before they could cross into the Elysian Fields. These were the lost. Trapped in purgatory. They weren't even the damned, destined for the Rivers Acheron or Cocytus."

"Rivers? You mean there's more than one?"

"Dozens. All with various purposes and punishments."

"Sort of like Dante's circles of hell?"

I nodded. It was a close enough comparison.

"How do you decide who goes where?"

I gave her a sad smile. "They decide by their actions. I simply place them there. The good and kind are given peace, the wicked... well, they suffer the consequences of their choices. Some in a never-ending river of fire, others one of misery and woe, and some..." My heart twisted uncomfortably at the thought of the River Lethe.

"And some?" she prompted.

Throat tight, I answered, "And some are made to forget before they return to the realm of the living to try again."

Her eyes widened with understanding. "That's what happened to me, isn't it? My soul, I mean."

"I... It shouldn't have happened the way it did, Dahlia. They made you drink from the river and hid you from me. And now they're trying to take you away again. I won't let them."

She flinched. "Take me away? What are you talking about?"

Realizing my misstep, I shook my head. "We're supposed to be finding answers to your questions, not adding to your list."

"You can't just throw that out there and then try to walk it back."

I held her stare, refusing to say another word on the matter. It didn't bear discussion because there was no way it would ever fucking happen. I'd lost her once. It would never happen again.

"And you can't just ignore the questions you have. We haven't even talked about the fact that you raised an army of zombies to save yourself from the Ripper."

"It wasn't an army."

"A small army is still an army."

"I didn't even know it would work. I just called them from the grave after summoning my scary ghost didn't work. It was that or die. Would you have preferred I go the other way?"

"Obviously not, but since it would place you safely back in my realm, it"s not the worst option."

She glared at me, hands on her hips. "There's something really fucked up about being mated to the god of the underworld when not even dying is considered a bad thing."

"Oh, it's bad. But as long as you're mine, I'll take you however I can get you."

"You're a hard man to have an argument with, Hades."

"It's one of the reasons you love me."

"Maybe you're right. But... are you saying you'd still love me even if I was a ghost you couldn't touch?"

Fuck, she didn't understand. I'd love her until the River Styx ran dry and the sky turned to ashes. "If they hadn't made you drink from the River Lethe, I'd never have let you leave me, my heart. And just because you were a ghost wouldn't mean I couldn't touch you."

She raised a brow.

"Perk of the job," I explained. "I can touch a spirit as easily as you touch me. It's sort of the counterpart of how I can touch you with my shadows."

I could tell by her expression she didn't quite understand, but that was okay. She didn't need to understand the physics of it all to appreciate the truth of it.

"Can I touch a spirit?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. Have you ever tried?"

"No. Just holding on to their souls like you and Masterson taught me."

"I don't know of anyone other than me who could, but if there was anyone else with the ability, it wouldn't surprise me to find it was you."

She frowned, beginning a slow stroll through the rows of graves, her fingers trailing over headstones as she went. "That brings me back to the threat against me. Adonis mentioned something about my mother and a bigger badder, erm, bad guy. And you said ‘they' were trying to take me from you. Who are they, and what did that mean? Do you think your ‘they' is Adonis's Mr. Bigger Badder?"

Something about the way she phrased the question shook something loose in my mind. Without warning, I was flung into a decades-old memory.

* * *

London

Thirty-five years earlier

"And that's me out,"Chaos grumbled, slapping his cards face down on the table.

"Fucking pansy. You folded before I even got a chance to bluff." I sat back in my chair, frowning at the horseman as he raised a challenging brow.

"Some of us like to hold on to our assets, Hades. Then there's the rest of you."

I bared my teeth in a silent snarl. The bastard always went straight for the jugular. What else could you expect from War, though? He was an expert at sussing out his enemy's weakness. Even if that enemy was mostly a friend.

"Come on, now, Chaos. Don't poke at him too hard. It's been hundreds of years since the guy's been topside. It stands to reason he's got energy to burn." Grim snapped his fingers and a cute little brunette scampered over, the bottle of whiskey already open and ready to refill his glass.

Sin and I shared a look at the pompous display. Only Malice was more of a snob, which was amusing, considering he had a history of slumming it. How else were plagues started, I guess?

The girl filled all our tumblers, taking extra care to push her tits out as she leaned over me. I didn't spare them a glance. There was only one woman who had my heart, and she was lost to me forever. I'd never be tempted again.

"Brimstone whiskey this time?" Mal asked, holding up the glass and taking a long look at the amber liquid before sniffing deeply. "Aged a thousand years by the smell of it. Who are you trying to impress, Grim? Certainly not Hades."

Grimsby didn't bother with a reply.

Death and I were old friends, or as close to friends as a god and a horseman of the apocalypse could get. He was sort of an accidental foot soldier of mine, not that he would ever agree to any position that made him a subordinate. But what else would I consider him? I was the one who ruled the realm; he just ushered in my subjects.

As we finished out the hand, I knocked back my drink and forced myself not to look at Chaos's smug face when Grim took the pot. Again.

"All right, you tossers, final round. Let's make it interesting this time, shall we? None of this playing for cars and property, yeah?" Grim said, scooping up the deck of cards and shuffling it with practiced ease. "I want a proper wager."

The other horsemen were instantly on alert, all three sitting up straighter and leaning in.

"What do you have in mind?" Sin asked.

"What better than to bet our most valuable assets? Unless you're too scared, Chaos."

Chaos huffed. "Tell me what you're talking about, and we'll see."

"Power. More specifically, the power passed down by blood. We each put up our firstborn in order to win the right to the next apocalypse."

"Sounds fun, except we promised the girls they could go next, remember?" Sin said, his voice filled with annoyance.

"I'll give them a few tries. They'll fail. They always do. Then I'll make my move." Grim was so confident he was going to win this round.

"Unless I win, and then I'll jump in before any of them can. No sense letting them get their hopes up." Chaos knocked back his drink, and I could tell he was already making his plan.

I scratched the back of my neck, wondering how in the hell they expected me to match their terms. "Uh, fellas. I can't exactly compete here." Not only did I not have a firstborn, but the apocalypse was not my game.

Grim waved a hand. "Not the point. If you win, you'll have the power of the four horsemen at your fingertips. That has to be worth something to you."

A spark of hope lit in my chest. If I had that amount of power in addition to my own, perhaps I could call my Persephone back from wherever she was being held. I wanted nothing more than to bring her back to me.

"Fine. But I don't have, nor will I ever create, a child. I'll have to wager something else."

Mal looked around the table, a sneer twisting his lips. "Are we really not going to address the elephant in the room? I'm the only one with a kid."

"Pandemic is a full-grown demon and has been for some time," Grim pointed out.

"That doesn't matter. I'm the only one playing for actual stakes if I lose. The rest of you fuckers could very well never procreate."

"Why do you care?" Sin asked. "Have you even seen him in the last century?"

"That's a low blow, and you know it," Mal snapped.

I took a healthy sip of my whiskey. I wasn't going to pretend to understand the intricacies of their romantic entanglements, nor did I want to try.

"Yes, yes, we all know the story. She got you drunk. You didn't understand how very fertile a horsewoman would be when paired with her counterpart. Pestilence is mean and never let you be part of your progeny's life. She used you for your sperm. Blah, blah, blah. You were the only one of us stupid enough to sleep with a horsewoman, and none of us pity you, Mal." Chaos was nothing if not direct. Definitely a stab-you-in-the-chest kind of guy. I had to hand it to him. Then he turned his attention to Grim. "But I'm not sure this is a fair wager. What if the three of us never father a child? I mean, you can't even touch a human without stealing their soul from their body. How are you supposed to impregnate a woman?"

"If humans can figure out how to perfect artificial insemination, I'm sure I'll find a way. But to address your other concern, part of the wager is that we all agree to try and reproduce."

"Leave it to Grim to make the art of fucking sound cold and clinical," Sin said with a shudder. "I, on the other hand, am going to have so much fun with this."

"You probably already have an entire football team of your brats running around sucking the lives out of everyone they encounter," Mal muttered.

"What about him?" Chaos said, jerking his head in my direction. "He already said he won't have a kid. He's got to wager something of value, or it's not fair to the rest of us."

Like I said, fucker stabbed straight in the chest.

"I don't have anything of value left," I muttered, thinking of my lost soulmate. Persephone was the only thing in my life I'd ever truly cared about.

Grim's mouth twisted into a wicked smile. "Your heart, then. The only thing keeping you going."

"You've forgotten who I am if you think I can die."

"No, you misunderstand me, Hades. I don't want you to die, but I will claim your power and loyalty when I win."

"Fine," I agreed.

What did it matter to me? The Fates had already ripped it out of my chest when they stole my goddess.

Grim's lips twisted up in a cruel smile. "Perfect, we're all agreed. Let's play."

* * *

"Earth to Hades, come in, Hades..."

Snapping back to the present, I slowly shook my head.

"You all right? If you forgive the expression, you look like you've seen a ghost."

I wish that's all it had been. What I'd just uncovered was so much worse than a rogue spirit.

"Your mother," I whispered. "Gabriel can't be right about that. He can't know for sure she was Death's pawn. You're mine, not his minion." But I knew the truth. Grim had won that wager fair and square. He'd won and was using Dahlia to collect.

She was my heart. The only thing in my life of any value. The only thing I'd sacrifice everything for to protect.

And I'd unwittingly promised to give her up. It was supposed to be a safe bet. I never expected to find my Persephone again.

"I'm sorry, what now? Death? As in black cowl, scythe, skull face?" Dahlia grimaced. "Oh God, please tell me my dad did not get down with Skeletor."

"No, baby doll. Your father, the man who raised you, wasn't your biological parent. It makes sense now. I didn't want to pay the angel any heed. I was too angry with him for keeping his knowledge of your whereabouts to himself. Death chose your parents carefully and left you there with them until you served his purpose." Then, a bit softer and more to myself, I added, "Guess that fucker found a way to procreate after all."

"Wh-what? I'm not following you. What kind of purpose?"

"The only one a horseman of the apocalypse has. To bring about the end times."

"Time out," Dahlia said, using the hand signal for that same thing. "Nope. I'm noping myself out of this one. Remember when I said things just continue to get more and more fucked up, and you can never even wrap your head around the level of fuckedupness of one situation before getting slapped in the face by another? Well, you just proved my point, buddy. And I am here to say nay, nay. Not today, Satan. Or is that Uncle Satan? Jesus Roosevelt Christ. I cannot with this shitshow."

She waved her hands around as her spiral took hold. "And another thing, I didn't sign up to be the harbinger of the apocalypse."

My lips twitched at her mispronunciation, her emphasis on bing instead of binge, and before I could stop myself, I blurted, "Harbinger."

The glare she shot me would've given Medusa a run for her money. "Don't tell me how to say words, Hades. I don't need an editor right now."

I raised both hands in a placating gesture and waited for her to continue.

"It was bad enough to believe I was the crotch goblin of a cult leader and mass murderer. But no, you had to go and make that seem like a dream situation compared to reality. Death? Death! Come on. Who's my mother, Medusa? No, she was just a misunderstood acolyte. It's probably something way worse. Like a spider goddess or something gross. Ugh, maybe you should leave me while you can. I'm clearly doomed. Maybe I need to do what's best for all of you and leave you. I can't be the reason any of you die, and harbinger seems like a title that equals dying. If I'd never come here, you would all be safe and sound, not at risk of an apocalypse."

Oh, fuck no. This woman wasn't going to leave me. Not ever.

I snagged her by the arms and gave her a slight shake as my gaze burned into hers. "You listen to me, you silly, beautiful thing. I will not hear talk of you leaving me. Do you understand?"

Angry tears beaded on her lashes as she thrashed in my hold. "You're not the boss of me."

"Yes I fucking am."

"Let go of me, Hades."

"No. I'll never let go. You're mine. What part of that don't you get? Where you go, I follow. I'm your shadow for eternity. Stop trying to fucking leave me."

"If I don't, the world will literally end."

Godsdammit, did she not see how unimportant that was? "I don't care. If the world is going to end, you'll be in my arms while we watch it crumble."

That one seemed to penetrate. This time she simply blinked up at me. But as I watched, her expression morphed from shocked and loving to a cold mask of acceptance. Not in the way I wanted. She wasn't accepting our fate together. She was accepting our future apart.

Tugging out of my grasp, she turned away from me and began walking down the gravel path.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" I shouted after her, the sight of her walking away from me flaying me wide open.

"Finding a way out of this hellhole."

"Not without me," I growled, sending my shadows straight at her and binding her in place.

"Hades! Hades, let me go!"

"No. Haven't you listened to a fucking word I've said? I will never let you go."

She writhed in her bindings, her eyes darkening like storm clouds. "If you keep me, I'll hate you for it."

"Hate me if you have to, baby doll, but I'm not living a life without you in it. I've done it for far too long already." I moved her until she was backed up against a rotting mausoleum door. My lips close to her ear, I whispered, "I've fucked you while you loved me and been inside you when you said you hated me. I wonder what it's like to do it while you're feeling both emotions at the same time."

She could lie to herself all she wanted, but there was no missing the way her pupils dilated at my words. She was more than interested in finding out the answer herself.

"What you seem to be forgetting, Dahlia, is that I know you better than you know yourself. I've spent lifetimes loving you and recounting every single second we spent together. And you may think you could walk away and that there's some universe where I'd let you go, but here's something you've failed to consider. You would come crawling back to me. You know why?"

"I'm sure you're going to tell me," she gritted out.

"Because you are as consumed by me as I am by you."

My fingers trailed across the waistband of her pants, but I didn't move slowly once I slid them inside. I needed to touch her and feel how our fiery foreplay affected her. Sucking in a sharp breath when I found her slick and hot, I let out a dark chuckle.

"Look at that. Soaked." I nipped her earlobe. "Good girl."

"Hades," she protested, but it was more moan than anything.

"We belong to each other, goddess. No matter what name you use or form you wear. I chased you across lifetimes, and I will do it again because you. Are. Mine."

With a pulse of my power, I broke through the doors and lifted her in my arms. I needed to be inside her, fucking her until she remembered why she couldn't leave me. Why she'd never fucking leave me.

She brought her lips to mine in a bruising, hungry kiss even as I sent blue flames arcing toward the ancient torches set about the space. The two of us were a tangle of passionate kisses, harsh moans, and needy cries as we tore at each other's clothing. We only stopped when I pressed her against the marble wall that housed countless remains of the people buried here.

"Are you really going to fuck me in a crypt?" she whispered, her eyes bright with lust.

"Wouldn't be the first time, baby doll."

"It is for me."

"Then I'd better make it memorable."

Not that there was any doubt about that. Sex between us was always memorable. Grasping her by the thighs, I picked her up and spun her around, setting her atop the one raised tomb running along the center of the space.

She let out a breathless chuckle.

"Did I surprise you?"

"I'm used to Tor and Kai tossing me around, but I don't expect it from you."

I nipped her lower lip. "You should. In case you forgot, I'm a god, baby. There's nothing I can't do."

With an impatient grip, I parted her thighs, knowing I'd find her dripping and ready to take me. Panic rose in my chest as the thought of never having her like this again invaded my mind, but I pushed it back as I sank inside her to the hilt.

"Fuck, Hades," she cried, arching her back even as she dug her fingernails into my shoulders.

I held her hips, hammering into her hard and fast, proving a point more than anything. "You're. Never. Leaving. Me. Again." Each word was punctuated by a brutal thrust, drawing ragged gasps from her.

I didn't stop there. I had to drive my point home. "You're. Mine."

"Yes," she panted.

"Say it."

"Yes, Hades."

I could see my fire reflected in her eyes as I took her, the weight of my climax pressing down on me, but I needed to hear the words. I needed her to say it.

Bringing my fingers to my lips, I sucked on them before sliding them over her swollen clit. She whimpered and rolled her hips in response as I brought her close to the edge.

"Tell me, Dahlia. Tell me you're mine."

"I'm yours."

"Promise me you'll never leave me," I growled against her lips. Vows made during sex were hardly enforceable, but I didn't play by anyone's rules but my own, and this was one vow I would have before I gave her what she craved.

"I promise."

"Swear it, Dahlia. You and me. Forever."

"Yes," she cried. "Forever, my lord Hades."

That was it. I felt her walls clench around me as she fell, and I was done for, pumping inside her and filling my soulmate with everything I had to give her.

As we came down together, she began playing with the hair at the nape of my neck, her gentle touch sending tingles through me.

"I'll never leave you, Hades. I couldn't even if I tried."

"I know."

She gaped at me for a second before laughing and shaking her head. "Then why'd you get so riled up?"

"Because I needed you to know it too. You and me, we're a package deal, baby doll."

"And the apocalypse?"

I smirked. "Bring it on."