“Sounds like you need to have a little talk with Thanatos.” Apollo shrugged.
It unnerved me he didn’t offer to help, and on top of that, he acted like this was all no big deal.
Apollo rubbed his chin. “I’m curious. How did you go about telling her about, you know?”
Hades cocked an eyebrow. “I showed her.”
“You just—” Apollo’s eyes widened. “You took her to the Underworld?”
My body stiffened.
“No, you idiot. I showed her power. The fog from Styx.”
“And that was it? Just like that, she was cool with it?”
“More or less.”
Apollo frowned.
“Is there a particular reason you’re asking?” Hades said.
“No. Nope. Just curious,” Apollo replied, looking away.
The lights faded on the stage before brightening again.
Apollo raised a single finger. “That’s my cue. It was a pleasure meeting you, Stephanie. And Uncle, charming as always.” He flashed a smile before returning to his waiting audience.
Hades paced like a caged lion. “I’m sorry. I wish nothin’ more than to spend time with you, but I’ve got to take care of this.”
“I understand.” Tears built up in my eyes, but I fought them back. “Will I ever see you again?”
He frowned. The deepest frown I’d seen on him yet. “I’ve never lied to you, and I won’t start now. I don’t know.”
There was no stopping them now. Several tears rolled down my cheeks.
His face fell, and he cupped his hands around my face, wiping the tears away with his thumbs. “This may sound strange to you, but mortal tears over me is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.”
I gulped, staring up at him, wishing with every fiber I could go with him. Before, the thought of the Underworld terrified me, but now facing the harsh reality of never seeing him again terrified me more. He dipped his head down and kissed me. A kiss so tender no one would have ever believed it came from a man who tortured the evil in Tartarus. And then he vanished. The faint smell of fire hung in the air, the taste of ash on my lips.
For the rest of the concert, I felt numb. Gone were the excited jitters. I didn’t even bother sticking around for the encore, yanking off my lanyard, and tossing it in the closest garbage can. I texted Sara to tell her I was going back to the room and not to worry about me as I didn’t feel right. In reality, I wanted to be alone, go for a walk, and try to forget Hades.
After half an hour of wandering the resort grounds, it was proving impossible. How did he know I couldn’t go to the Underworld with him? He didn’t even try. Maybe he toyed with me like all the other gods. My insides twisted. The night grew chilly, and I rubbed my arms. I passed by a series of rooms.
Clank.
I stopped.
What was that?
Following the direction of the sound, I heard it again. It sounded like chains rattling against each other. I pressed my ear to a door, hearing a man’s pained moans. Either someone was into some severe kink, or they were in trouble. This was one of those moments I should’ve stepped away, but my conscience wouldn’t allow it. I pushed my ear harder, and the door creaked open.
My heart raced as I pushed my fingertips against it. The room was pitch black save for a sliver of moonlight sneaking through the curtains. Against my better judgment, I stepped inside, a chill running down my spine. I held my breath, taking cautious steps forward.
“Don’t come any closer,” a voice said from the darkness. The clanking sound happened again, followed by him grunting.
The voice sounded like several voices speaking at once. One was no louder than a whisper, and the other two were in different pitches. But the tone was deep and husky.
“Who’s there?” I stopped, squinting into the darkness.
“It’s me, darlin’. Don’t come any closer, please.”
The southern accent was too recognizable.
“Hades?” Ignoring his plea, I continued forward. “Why? You sound like you’re—are you chained up?” My heart thudded so quickly I thought it’d burst through my ribcage.
“Stephanie, please. I don’t want you to see me like this.” He spoke low, with a gravelly voice.
I rounded the corner and gasped. The moonlight spilled over Hades, illuminating his half-naked body. He was barefoot and shirtless, wearing only his black pants, chained shackles around his wrists.
“Oh my God,” I stammered, running to him and dropping to my knees.
He lifted his head when my hands clamped around the chains, and I gasped again. His hair was white, flowing down to his stomach. It floated around him as if in water. He had no facial hair, and his irises were a vibrant white. His skin looked inhuman in a pearl-like sheen, and ears that came to a point like an elf.
I cupped his face with my hands, a tear rolling down my cheek. “Is this the real you?”
“Yes.” Those white eyes gleamed up at me, his brow crinkling, and with the staggering whispers of his real voice.
I thinned my lips, staring down at the true him. Should I have been afraid? Aghast from his appearance? Because I wasn’t. In a warped way, I preferred this side of him. “Why are you chained up? Who did this to you?” I pulled on the chains, eyeing the connection to the shackles.
“You’re not afraid of me?” He dipped his head down to look at my face, his hair floating behind him.
“I haven’t been afraid of you since the day we met. Why would this change anything?”
His nostrils flared as he stared at me. His lips parted several times, but in the end, he pursed them together, saying nothing. I opened the drawers of a nearby desk. What did I expect to find? It’s not as if hotels stored toolboxes in each room.
“You won’t be able to remove the chains. They’re cursed.”
I slammed the last drawer shut, fishing through my hair for a bobby pin. I squatted on the floor next to him. “Like hell, I can’t.”
The chains clattered together as Hades’ arms tensed, hands balling into fists. The faint sound of a revolver’s hammer pulling back filled my ears, followed by cold metal pressing into my head’s side.
“Step away, love. No sense in you getting tangled up in all this,” Rupert’s voice said in a hushed tone.
Hades growled, trying to stand up, only to be brought back to his knees. “When you arrive in the Underworld, I will not be merciful. Mark my words, mortal.”
My hands trembled as I held them up and rose to my feet. Rupert pressed the gun harder against my skin, and I pinched my eyes shut.
“As long as I keep you chained, no one has to die. And I’ve got far too many things left to do with my life.”
I grunted. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“Oh, come now, love. What kind of a Greek myth trivia winner are you? The story of King Sisyphus and the god of death?”
It wasn’t easy drumming up Greek myths with a loaded gun to your head.
“He tricked Thanatos and chained him with the same chains the gods were going to use to punish him. Without the god of death roaming free, no mortal could die or go to the Underworld.” He chuckled.
And with Thanatos relinquishing his duties…