“She will be ecstatic,” Persephone said, grinning.
They teleported outside Nevernight where Antoni was already waiting, the car warm, the heat from the exhaust turning to thick smoke as it met the icy morning. Antoni stood outside the back passenger door, hands crossed in front of him.
“Good morning, my lord, my lady,” Antoni said, smiling, his kind eye crinkling.
“Good morning!” Persephone said, smiling wide.
“I shall see you tonight, my wife,” Hades said and drew her in for a kiss. Then he reached for the door and helped her into the cabin.
“I love you,” she whispered.
“I love you,” he said, and shut the door.
Antoni squeezed into the driver’s seat.
“Where to, my lady?” he asked, looking into the rearview mirror.
“The Ambrosia Cafe.”
“Of course. One of my favorites,” he said as he put the car into drive and started down the street. “I believe congratulations are in order. The wedding was beautiful.”
She couldn’t help blushing. “Thank you, Antoni. I am still floating.”
“We are very pleased,” he said. “We have waited a long while for this day.”
From the beginning, those who admired Hades had been deeply invested in his happiness—and the fact that she was part of that happiness made her chest blossom with pride.
He’d chosen her and he would continue to choose her.
Even if the Fates unraveled our destiny, I would find a way back to you.
Those words filled her heart, made it beat—a truth no one could deny.
It did not take long to arrive at The Ambrosia Café. It was a small modern restaurant, built with salvaged blocks of marble. Antoni helped her out of the car and walked the few steps to hold the door open for her.
“Thank you, Antoni.”
“Of course…my queen.”
They grinned at one another before she entered the café.
Inside, the space was cozy with warm lighting, wood tones, and soft seating. When she was settled, she ordered a coffee and pulled out her phone to text Sybil that she had arrived.
While she waited, she took out her tablet and began to read through the morning news, starting with New Athens News. She was already anxious at the thought of what might feature on the front page, given the last two articles Helen had written, but she did not expect what she saw today.
GODDESS PLAYING MORTAL: THE TRUTH OF PERSEPHONE ROSI
Persephone drew in a shaky breath, her heart hammered painfully as she read.
For four years, Persephone Rosi posed as a college student, journalist, and entrepreneur. She claimed to be dedicated to the truth, outing the Divine for their injustices, a mortal suffering just as the rest of us, but the reality is, she is none of these things—not even mortal.
Persephone is a goddess, born of Demeter, the Goddess of Harvest.
The article continued, claiming to have begun the investigation by asking the question, would Hades really marry a mortal? Beyond that, they attacked her work.
She accused Hades of deception, but over the course of her articles, she fell in love with the God of the Dead. She wrote of Apollo’s harassment of women but when public outrage became too much, she fell silent. Now she is often seen out and about with the God of Music. Persephone’s attempts at outing the gods seem to have been nothing more than a way for a minor god to reach the rank of an Olympian.
The last line ignited a fine rage inside her, mostly because she knew this was Helen’s truth—she was the one searching for a way to rise and she’d chosen the wrong side.
Persephone looked up and noticed people staring. She started to feel uncomfortable and checked the time. Sybil was almost fifteen minutes late and she hadn’t responded to Persephone’s text, both were unlike her.
She texted again: You okay?
Then she called and her phone went straight to voicemail.
Strange.
Persephone hung up and dialed Ivy at Alexandria Tower.
“Good morning, Lady Persephone,” she chimed.
“Ivy, has Sybil arrived?”
“Not yet,” she said. “But I will double check.”
The nymph placed her on hold, and as Persephone waited, her stomach roiled with dread. She already knew Sybil hadn’t arrived at work. No one got past Ivy, a truth that was confirmed when she returned to the phone.
“She has not arrived yet, my lady. Would you like me to call when she does?”
“No, that’s okay. I’ll be there soon.”
Persephone hung up the phone and frowned. She did not like the feeling curling in the bottom of her stomach. It took hold of her lungs, making it hard to breath and swallow.
Perhaps she stayed the night with Harmonia. Maybe they lost track of time.
“Zofie,” Persephone called the Amazon’s name, and she appeared instantly. Onlookers gasped in surprised, but Persephone ignored them.
“Yes, my lady?”
“Can you locate Harmonia?”
“I will do my best,” she said. “Shall I escort you to the tower?”
“No, I’d rather you find Harmonia as quickly as possible.”
“As you wish,” she said, and vanished.
Zofie will find them, she thought.
She attempted to comfort herself with those thoughts as she paid for her coffee and made the short walk to Alexandria Tower in the bitter cold. As soon as she arrived, she welcomed the heat tingling across her face, melting her frozen skin.
“Lady Persephone,” Ivy said. “I have put in a call to Miss Kyros but her phone seems to be off.”
It was the one fact that kept her from completely believing she was with Harmonia. Sybil’s phone was never off.
Maybe she forgot her charger, she reasoned. Still, her fear grew.
“I’ll try again in a few minutes,” Ivy said. “I left coffee on your desk.”
“Thank you, Ivy.”
Persephone headed upstairs and entered her office. She started to take off her jacket, but paused as she came around her desk, noticing a small black box. It was tied with a red ribbon and sat beside her coffee. Had Ivy left a gift and said nothing of it? She picked it up and was even more confused when she found a sticky substance on the bottom—then, horrified, as she realized what it was.
Blood.
“Good morning—” Leuce’s voice halted abruptly as she entered Persephone’s office and saw the crimson stain on her desk. “Is that…blood?”
It was suddenly very hard for Persephone to breath and there was a ringing in her ears that hurt.
“Leuce. Get Ivy.”
“Of course.”
Persephone held the box gingerly, her hands already shaking. She pulled the ribbon free and removed the lid. Inside, was white, bloodstained paper. She parted the leaves and found a severed finger. An ache started in the back of her throat and she dropped the box, stepping away from her desk.
Just then, Ivy and Leuce returned.
“What is it, my lady?”
Persephone could feel thick tears gathering.
“Was this box here when you brought my coffee this morning?”
“Well…yes,” she said. “I assumed it was from Hades.”
“Has anyone else been in my office?” she looked from one nymph to the other as they answered in unison.