They sat across from each other. Persephone kept her hands cupped around her drink, watching as the foam leaf atop melted into nothing.
“How do they make this picture?” Leuce asked, inspecting the foam like a rare specimen.
“Very carefully,” Persephone responded.
The nymph took a tentative sip.
“Hmm,” she hummed, and took a bigger gulp. Persephone recalled the first time she’d had coffee. She hadn’t actually liked it all that much, but Lexa had claimed that was because she’d had black coffee.
She’d been right—add a little cream, and it was her favorite drink.
“Just wait until you try hot chocolate,” Persephone commented.
Leuce’s eyes went wide.
Silence stretched between them. Persephone kept her gaze on her drink. She wasn’t sure what to say to Leuce, and her body felt off. Her earlier panic making her insides feel shaky.
“Do you want to talk about earlier?” Leuce asked.
Persephone met the woman’s gaze and shook her head. “I’d rather not.”
The nymph nodded.
“I’m sorry your friend is sick.”
“She’s not sick,” Persephone didn’t mean to snap, but the words just spilled out of her mouth. Plus, she was still a little freaked out about earlier. “She’s hurt. She was hurt.”
“I’m sorry,” Leuce’s voice was a whisper.
Persephone’s shoulders fell. “Thank you. I’m sorry. It’s...hard.”
Leuce nodded. “I know.”
Persephone met her gaze and the nymph explained.
“I woke up a few days ago and everything I knew had changed. Most of my friends are dead,” the nymph paused. “I was angry at first. I think I still am.”
Persephone wasn’t sure what to say, but she was sincere. Now that she had distance from the situation, now that her anger toward Hades’ had lessened, she could think from Leuce’s point of view.
“I’m sorry, Leuce.”
She shrugged. “At least I am free.”
It was strange to sit across from this woman and realize how similar they really were.
“Were you...conscious while you were imprisoned?”
“No,” she said. “I think that might have been worse. Perhaps it was a mercy.”
Persephone bit her lip. They were talking about Hades, but indirectly.
“I don’t...blame him for his anger,” she said. “I antagonized him. It was not a good relationship. It wasn’t what you have.”
“How do you know what I have?” Persephone asked.
“You have love,” she answered. “He loves you.”
Persephone looked away. She didn’t really want to talk about Hades with his ex-lover. Leuce seemed to sense this and change the subject.
“Your friend, is she recovering well?”
Persephone wasn’t sure how to answer that—she was really just staying the same. She shook her head. “I just wish I could heal her.”
Leuce was quiet for a moment, and then she answered, “I think I can help.”
Persephone met the nymph’s gaze and she leaned forward to whisper. “Have you heard of the Magi?”
She had. They were mortal practitioners of dark magic. She didn’t know much about them, aside from the fact that Hecate often had to clean up after their spells.
Leuce offered a small smile. “I can tell you have. What have you heard?”
“Nothing good,” she answered.
“They aren’t,” Leuce said. “That is something that hasn’t changed since ancient times, but some—the ones that are good at their job—can craft some powerful spells.”
“What kind?”
“Any kind—love spells, death spells, healing spells.”
“That is illegal magic.”
It was illegal because it went against the gods. Love spells were Aphrodite’s territory, death, Hades, and healing, Apollo’s.
“Illegal yes, but many would prefer owing a mortal than a god. I’m not saying you have to accept a contract with a Magi, but...I can get you into the same club as them. If you draw their attention, you get an audience with them.”
“And how do they know I want an audience?”
“Because no one goes there unless they want something. Here,” Leuce said, pulling a card from her pocket and handing it to her. It was black. A name was embossed on the surface.
She read it aloud.
“Iniquity?”
“The club is true to its name. It’s a den of wickedness and sin. It isn’t a place for you.”
Persephone’s offered a small, humorless smile.
“You don’t know me very well if you believe that.”
“Maybe not, but I do know Hades would turn me back into a tree if he knew I was telling you about it, but...it might be the only way to save your friend unless you want to make a deal with Apollo.”
That was a huge no.
“How soon can you get me in?”
“Tomorrow, if you like.”
Persephone tapped the card against her palm.
“Hades will be angry if he finds out.”
Leuce smirked. “He always finds out.”
“I will protect you,” she answered.
“I’m not worried about me,” Leuce said. “Who will protect you?”
“From Hades?” She was surprised by the question but knew the answer. There was no protecting herself from her lover. The air between them was raw. Even if she had wanted to, there was nothing she could do against the God of the Dead.
“I no longer have protection against Hades.”
CHAPTER XIV - INIQUITY
Persephone needed to be at Iniquity at midnight.
Earlier in the day, she’d told Hades she was going stay at her apartment to be with Sybil. Instead, she spent the evening getting ready.
Her dress was revealing to say the least, and she wondered what Hades would say if he saw it. It featured a crisscross mesh top with a high neckline, long sleeves, and a short, black skirt. She paired it with a black bralette and strappy heels.
“You look stunning,” Sybil said. She stood in Persephone’s doorway in her pajamas—a blue shirt and grey shorts.
“Thanks.”
“You don’t look excited to be going out.”
“It isn’t for fun.”
Sybil nodded. “Do you have to go?”
“I think so,” she met Sybil’s gaze. “Is there anything I should know?”
She wasn’t completely sure how Sybil’s powers worked, but she liked to think if she was walking into anything dangerous, Sybil would let her know, but the oracle shook her head.
Instead, she pushed away from the doorframe and said, “I’ll call you a taxi.”
Sybil disappeared.
Persephone looked at her reflection again. She almost didn’t recognize the person staring back. She was different—changed.
It’s darkness, she thought.
But it wasn’t Hades who had coaxed it to the surface.
It was Lexa’s pain that had unleashed it.
Sybil returned. “Taxi’s here.”
“Thanks,” Persephone said. She took a deep breath, feeling as though she couldn’t quite breathe deep enough. She collected her clutch and phone, and when she turned to leave, she found Sybil still standing in the doorway, watching her.