“To tear you both apart,” she answered.
There was no hint of venom in her voice, and Persephone found that strange. If the nymph had truly wanted this, why was she so...remorseful? She shifted, moving closer to the end of the bed.
“Why?” Persephone asked.
Leuce eyes widened and she shook her head, refusing to speak.
“You will answer,” Hades said.
Persephone didn’t think it was possible for Leuce to cry harder, but she did, and this time the nymph collapsed to her knees. “She will kill me.”
“Who?”
“Your mother,” Hades said.
The revelation shouldn’t have shocked Persephone, but it did.
“Is this true?” she asked, turning to Leuce.
“I lied when I said I didn’t remember who gave me life,” she admitted. “But I was afraid. Demeter reminded me over and over that she would take it all away if I didn’t obey. I’m so sorry, Persephone.”
Leuce hid her face. “You were so kind to me and I betrayed you.”
Persephone gathered the sheets around her and slid off the bed, ignoring the fact that she left Hades bared to the room. She approached and knelt before Leuce.
“I don’t blame you for fearing my mother,” Persephone said, and as she spoke, Leuce met her gaze. “I feared her for a long time, too. I won’t let her hurt you, Leuce.”
The nymph collapsed into Persephone, and the goddess held her for a long moment, until she was able to collect herself.
“Hermes,” Persephone said. “Will you take Leuce to my suite? I think she deserves some rest.”
“Yes, my lady.” He gave an exaggerated bow and smirked.
Once they were gone, Persephone turned to Hades, who had a peculiar look on his face.
“What?”
He shook his head, a smile growing on his face.
“I am just admiring you.”
She was temporarily distracted by his comment, and then said, “I suppose we should summon my mother to the Underworld.”
Hades’ brows rose. He clearly had not expected her to say that. “Shall we call upon her now?” he asked. “Perhaps we should make love so that she has no reason to suspect her plan worked.”
“Hades!” Persephone chided, but smiled, too.
CHAPTER XXV - COLLECTING PIECES
Hours later, Hades, Persephone, and Leuce gathered in the throne room. Hades was in his Divine form, and Persephone, too. They sat side-by-side, Hades on his obsidian throne, and Persephone on gold and ivory. Leuce stood by Persephone, shaking.
“She will lash out,” Leuce said. “I am sure of it.”
“Oh, I expect it,” Persephone replied, and look at the nymph. “She is my mother.”
“Hermes has returned,” Hades commented. He’d sent the god to retrieve the Goddess of Harvest—a task he hadn’t been eager to accept.
“I think you just want her to disfigure my face,” Hermes said. “She will bite my head off when I tell her you’ve commanded her appearance in the Underworld.”
“Then don’t tell her Hades sent for her,” Persephone replied. “Tell her I command it.”
Hermes grinned, just as Persephone was doing now.
She felt empowered in a way she had never felt before, and she couldn’t really explain why. Maybe it had something to do with what Hades had said the night of the solstice celebration—that he loved her for who she was, and it was those qualities he wanted in his queen.
It meant that she could be herself without sacrifice and the first step toward that would be dealing with her mother.
Hermes escorted Demeter into the room, and despite the severe mask she attempted to maintain, Persephone recognized the look of contempt on her mother’s face when she saw Hades and Persephone sitting side by side like royals upon the dark precipice.
Her lips were pinched, and her stare hard and cold. She halted when she reached the center of the room.
“What is this about?” Demeter demanded; her voice tinged with fury.
“My friend tells me you have threatened her,” Persephone said. If Demeter wasn’t going to feign pleasantries, Persephone wouldn’t, either.
Demeter glared at the nymph and then looked at Persephone. “You would believe your lover’s whore over me?”
“That is unkind,” Persephone said tightly. “Apologize.”
“I will do no such—”
“I said apologize,” Persephone commanded, and Demeter was sent to her knees, the marble beneath her cracking with the force of her fall. Persephone didn’t mean to use so much force, but the result had the desired effect. Demeter’s eyes widened in surprise. She hadn’t expected to be taken to the ground by her own daughter.
Her expression quickly turned into a glare, her anger filling the room.
“So,” her voice shook. “This is how it will be?” Persephone said nothing. Demeter had chosen this path with her actions.
“You could end your humiliation,” Persephone said. “Just…apologize.”
Those words were like declaring war.
“Never.” The word left Demeter’s lips in a shuddering breath.
A shockwave of Demeter’s power rushed through the throne room as the goddess attempted to rise. The surge in strength took Persephone off-guard for a moment, her own magic rushing forward to quash it. She glanced at Hades, she could feel his power all around, lapping at the edge of her own, lying in wait.
Persephone stood and ascended the few steps that separated her from her mother. As she approached, the floor beneath Demeter continued to crack and crumble. Finally, she relented, her power waned, and she glared up at her daughter.
“I see you have learned a little control, daughter.”
Persephone might have smiled, but she found that when she looked at her mother, all she felt was resentment. It was like a curse, working through her body, coating everything in darkness.
“All you’ve ever had to do was say you were sorry,” Persephone said fiercely. She realized they were no longer talking about Leuce. “We could have had each other.”
“Not when you’re with him,” she spat.
Persephone stared at her mother for a moment, and then said, “I feel sorry for you. You would rather be alone than accept something you fear.”
Demeter scowled at her daughter.
“You’re giving up everything for him.”
“No, mother, Hades is just one of many things I gained when I left your prison.”
She released Demeter from her magic, but the goddess shook visibly and did not rise to her feet.
“Look upon me once more, mother, because you will never see me again.”
Persephone expected to see fury in her mother’s eyes. Instead, they gleamed with pride and an unsettling smile curled her lips.
“My flower...you are more like me than you realize.”
Persephone closed her fingers into a fist and Demeter vanished.
There a beat of silence in the aftermath before Leuce hurried forward and embraced her.
“Thank you, Persephone.”
When the nymph pulled away, Persephone smiled, maintaining her composure. On the inside, she was trembling. The look on her mother’s face was one she knew well.