He expected the woman to react in some kind of way—with frustration, or perhaps defensiveness. While they’d never supported them publicly, Hades knew the Hellenic Police Department supported Triad’s idea of fairness, free will, and freedom. They did not like the idea that the gods intervened in justice and that there was nothing they could do about it. Divine justice ruled all.
Instead, the woman said, “I need your help.”
Hades raised a brow. “You don’t want my help.”
“Do you make a habit of telling women how they think?”
“Well, aren’t you bold,” Hades replied, staring at the woman for a moment. It was only then he saw a bit of her confidence waver, and that was the root of her soul—a once self-assured woman who was crumbling on the inside. But why?
“I would not have come here if I wasn’t serious,” Ariadne said, and she crossed the room. “There are women going missing all over New Greece, three in the past week.” She opened the folder she had held under her arm and laid three photos on his desk, each facing him. “Niovi Kostopoulos, Amara Georgiou, Lydia Lykaios. I must know…are they dead?”
“If I answer you, this can go no further. You don’t get to question the dead.” She nodded and he answered, “They are not.”
“Then I believe their disappearances are connected, but I can’t find anything concrete to link them. There are no commonalities in their background or appearance, nothing. It’s like they vanished into thin air except for this one…”
She pulled out another folder and placed it atop the others. The woman in the photo had thick auburn hair, and she was smiling.
“Megara Alkaios. Her friends tell me she was last seen at Bakkheia. They swear she went inside and never came out.”
The irony that this woman was here speaking of Dionysus when Hades had just discovered his acquisition of the Graeae yesterday was not lost on him.
“You still have not said why you require my help,” Hades replied.
“I’m asking you to help me get into Bakkheia.”
“Why?”
“Have you heard nothing I just said?”
“I heard every word, Detective,” Hades said. “You have one instance of a woman going missing after entering Bakkheia, and suddenly you are accusing Dionysus of what? Trafficking?”
She raised a brow. “You said it, not me.”
“Those are big accusations.”
“You cannot tell me you aren’t curious yourself,” Ariadne said.
After the incident with the Graeae, he was.
“I am,” he admitted. “But why do I need you?”
“It’s my investigation!”
“One, if I had to guess, your supervisor would not approve of. So I will ask you again, why do I need you?”
“I’m putting everything on the line for this case. It will make or break my career. Do you understand?”
She might be putting her career on the line by coming to him for help, but that did not answer why she was invested in the case.
Hades was about to reply when his phone rang. He might have ignored it, but he noted that it was Ivy, the office manager at Alexandria Tower, the headquarters of his charitable organization, the Cypress Foundation—and she never called.
“Yes?” he answered.
“Lord Hades,” Ivy said, breathless. “You did not tell me Lady Persephone would be by for a visit. I was grossly underprepared to serve her.”
Hades’s brows rose in surprise, though he supposed it was just a matter of time. He had hired Lexa, after all, though he berated himself for not being the one to introduce her to the ins and outs of Alexandria Tower. He could only imagine how overwhelmed she might be.
“I was not aware,” Hades replied, glancing at Ariadne, who glared back, a sour look on her face. She apparently did not like being ignored, but all the same, Hades did not like being interrupted by unwanted guests. “Accept my apologies. I shall arrive soon.”
He hung up the phone and picked up the folder Ariadne had placed on his desk. He would hand it over to Ilias.
“What are you doing with my file?” she demanded.
“You’ll forgive me for wanting to conduct my own investigation into this matter,” he said. And you, he added silently.
“I have done a thorough investigation.”
“By mortal standards, I am sure,” he said as he headed for the door. “As a rule, Detective Alexiou, it would be wise to never place all your money on one bet. My men will be in touch. Please, see yourself out.”
With that, he left.
* * *
Ariadne’s file felt heavy in Hades’s hands, and while he was curious to figure out what exactly Dionysus was up to, he also wanted to proceed cautiously. The God of the Vine was neither an enemy nor an ally, though he represented a part of Hades’s past he did not really like to recall. Still, this was the second time Dionysus had come up within a week.
He was up to something.
Hades took the folder to his office at Nevernight for safekeeping until he could meet with Ilias, then he teleported to Alexandria Tower. He used his glamour to remain unseen among his staff. He wanted to locate Persephone uninhibited, which was easy given that she was in his territory. He could feel her presence just the same as when she was in the Underworld. It was comforting to have her near, and the tension that had crept into his muscles while speaking with Ariadne lessened.
“Here it is!” he heard Lexa say as she walked ahead of Persephone into his office. Persephone stood in the doorway, her head tilting up and around as she took in the space. He wondered what she was thinking—probably something sarcastic about how he never used this office, though he’d like to make use of it now that she was here.
“Lexa,” a woman called from her cubicle. “Have you finished the posters for the gala?”
Hades appreciated the interruption, as it left Persephone alone and Lexa occupied.
He made his way into his office, still undetected. She had moved beyond his desk, which he kept free of clutter, save a vase of white narcissus Ivy insisted on refreshing daily…and a picture of her. He had taken it when she was unaware as she wandered in the gardens outside his palace. He could recall exactly why he’d been drawn to capture the moment too…because she’d looked so perfect among his flowers, and he remembered not understanding how he’d gone so long without her presence among them.
The picture was a reminder of his awe that she was his.
Persephone reached for it, and Hades appeared behind her.