He disappeared in a swirl of black smoke, taking what little moonlight had been shining down with him.
Darkness descended, and the air became silent. Nothing moved in the forest around Zagreus—no leaves, no creatures, not even the wind.
He gasped in a breath and let it out. Winced because his cracked ribs were already knitting back together and they hurt like a motherfucker.
When the pain eased a touch, he drew in another breath, slow and steady, as he worked to reinflate his lungs.
Okay… That was an ass-kicking he hadn’t seen coming. He could have gathered his strength and fought back, could have given Hades a real brawl if he’d wanted, but he’d restrained himself. Partly because he hadn’t wanted to trigger something worse. But mostly because he needed to rebound from this quickly if he had any hope of keeping Talisa safe.
Talisa…
Hades hadn’t mentioned Talisa. Hadn’t even referenced her. His father knew about Ehrendia, but that didn’t mean he knew about Talisa or who she really was.
Cringing at the pain in his arms, his shoulders, his back, Zagreus slowly pushed himself up to sitting, knowing he had to get to her. To make sure she was safe. His head was still in a fog but slowly clearing. He might have severed his spine with that last fall because a tingly feeling was just coming back to his thighs and shins and feet.
His mind came to a spinning stop.
Holy shit. His father had mentioned spies.
The nymphs were too timid to ever betray him. And his silens were as loyal as the satyrs were perverse. The only person who’d been anywhere near Ehrendia recently and who could be a spy was…
Pandora.
A dark energy swept through Zagreus, giving him strength, stimulating his healing. Pandora knew everything about Ehrendia. Everything about its inner workings. Everything about Zagreus’s activities. About Talisa. And now she had Max. Which meant…
Shit. Which meant those satyrs she’d gathered at that fortress really were an army.
An army with one purpose.
He glanced around the dark forest as he slowly pushed to his feet, seeing none of it. Swaying, he reached out to the closest tree trunk to steady himself, but he barely felt the pain anymore. All he could focus on was Ehrendia. And Talisa. And what he knew he could no longer stop from happening.
His pulse picked up speed. Plans swirled in his head as his strength returned. The one option with even a miniscule chance of success meant abandoning the only thing he’d ever wanted.
“There’s more to life than misery and revenge. So much more than I ever knew was possible. And it’s not dark, it’s light. All it took was doing the right thing.”
Cynna’s words echoed in Zagreus’s mind again, only this time they brought a pain to his chest that was sharper and hotter than anything Hades had ever done to him. He breathed through it, though, knowing Cynna was right.
There was more to life, no matter what it cost him. And this time he was determined to finally be more. For Talisa. Even for himself.
Before he could change his mind, he opened a portal and stepped through.
“And that’s all he gave you?” Casey asked, trying not to be frustrated as she stared at Cynna, standing in the middle of the queen’s office. “Nothing more?”
Cynna cast a worried look from Casey to Theron’s rigid features beside her, then to Isadora seated at her desk, and finally to Zander and Callia, waiting anxiously on the queen’s other side. “About their locations?” she answered almost apologetically. She glanced back at Casey. “Yeah. That was it.”
Callia and Zander exchanged hopeful glances. Isadora tapped her fingers on the big wooden desk as Demetrius, standing behind her, leaned down and whispered something in her ear. Theron didn’t move, but Casey felt her mate’s own frustration as if it was oozing from his pores. And even though she was just as anxious as him, she knew venting about it was not going to help.
It was the middle of the night. They’d all been woken from sleep when Cynna and Nick had shown up at the castle with news about Zagreus’s visit. The Argonauts and Nick had only just returned from the human realm a few hours ago after nearly a week in the field searching for leads. Casey and her sisters had spent the same time harnessing their Horae gifts, trying to pinpoint Max and Talisa’s location. But none of them had come up with anything concrete—not the sisters, not the Argonauts, not even Cynna, if what she’d relayed here tonight was true. At least, not for Talisa.
For Max, however, it was another story.
“It could be a trap,” Demetrius said as he straightened behind Isadora. “Even if those satyrs aren’t under Zagreus’s control—which is still iffy—he could be leading us to slaughter all so we won’t come after him.”
And Talisa. Casey heard the words Demetrius held back when he glanced her way.
“So, what?” Zander snapped, his eyes flashing from their normal silver to a stormy grey that indicated his legendary rage was bubbling right beneath the surface. “That’s reason to let my son continue to suffer at the hands of those beasts?”
“That’s not what I’m saying,” Demetrius said on a sigh.
“Max did the right thing by going after Talisa,” Zander went on as if Demetrius hadn’t even spoken. “He didn’t ask to be captured by those satyrs. And he shouldn’t have to pay for the fact his daughter”—he pointed at Theron—"was reckless and immature.”
“Watch it.” Theron squared his shoulders and shot a blistering look Zander’s way.
Casey felt tempers rising by the second, her own included. She pressed a hand against her mate’s chest to hold him back, knowing the males were seconds away from getting into it. This tension between all of them had been building since the second Elysia had told them Talisa and Max had been taken.
“Knock it off.” She glared up at her mate then turned her glower on Zander. “Both of you. Bickering isn’t going to bring our kids back. They were both reckless. As for immaturity, I’ve seen plenty of it from the males in this room, so let’s not go there.”
Her sisters nodded in agreement, but Casey ignored them. “We need to focus on what we’re going to do now, not on who’s responsible.” She looked toward Cynna. “How many satyrs did Zagreus say were at that fortress?”
“At least three thousand.”
“Three thousand…” Shit. “That’s a lot.”
“Zagreus didn’t have close to that at his lair in the Yucatan,” Nick said at Cynna’s side, his arms crossed over his chest. “That’s not just a lot, that’s an army.”
And armies were only formed for one purpose. Casey’s stomach dropped.
“Cynna.” Isadora looked at her half-sister from behind the desk. “Zagreus said he witnessed this army, and he’s sure it was Max who was with them?”
“Yes. And it sounded like Talisa was with him when they saw Max with the satyrs.”
Isadora glanced toward Casey and Theron. “Then that means Zagreus has to be holding Talisa somewhere close.”
Theron crossed his own thick arms over his chest. “If Zagreus is still controlling the satyrs, it makes sense to find him before we attack the satyr compound.”