“Lady Persephone, this is Antoni,” Hades said. “He will ensure you make it home safe.”
Persephone raised a brow at the God of the Underworld. “Am I in danger, my lord?”
“Just a precaution. I wouldn’t want your mother banging down my door before she has a reason to.”
She has a reason to now, she thought angrily, and the mark on her wrist felt hot. She met his stare, intending to glare and communicate her anger, but she found it difficult to think at all. The God of the Dead had eyes like the universe—vibrant, alive, vast. She was lost in them and all they promised.
She was thankful when Antoni distracted her from those dangerous thoughts. Nothing good would come out of finding Hades interesting. Hadn’t she learned that already?
“My lady,” Antoni said, opening the rear car door.
“My lord.” She nodded to Hades as she twisted from him and slid into the black leather interior.
Antoni shut her door carefully and then folded himself into the driver’s seat of the car. They were on the road quickly, and it took everything in her power not to look back. She wondered how long Hades stood there before returning to his tower—if he was laughing at her boldness and her failure.
She stared down at the flashy gold bracelet that covered the black mark. In this light the gold looked brassy and cheap. She pulled it off and examined the markings on her skin. The only thing she could think to be thankful for at this moment was that the mark was small enough and placed where it could be easily hidden.
Create life in the Underworld.
Was there even life in the Underworld? Persephone knew nothing about Hades’ realm, and in all her studies, she had never found descriptions of the land of the dead—just details of its geography, and even those seemed to conflict. She supposed she would find out tomorrow, though the idea of returning to Nevernight to make the descent into the Underworld filled her with anxiety.
She groaned. Just when everything seemed to be working out for her, too.
“Will you be returning to visit Lord Hades?” Antoni asked, glancing in the rearview mirror. The cyclops had a pleasant voice. It was warm and spiced.
“I’m afraid I will,” Persephone said absently.
“I hope you’ll find him pleasing. Our lord is often alone.”
Persephone found those words strange. “He doesn’t seem so alone to me.”
She thought of the jealous Minthe.
“Such is the case with the Divine, but I am afraid he trusts very few. If you ask me, he needs a wife.”
Persephone blushed.
“I am certain Lord Hades isn’t interested in settling down.”
“You’d be surprised by what the God of the Dead is interested in,” Antoni replied.
Persephone didn’t want to know Hades’ interests. She already felt like she knew too many and none of them were good.
Persephone watched the cyclops from her seat in the back. She wondered how the monster came to be in the service of the God of the Underworld, so she asked.
“My kind were freed from Tartarus by the three after we were placed there by Cronos,” he replied. “And so we have repaid the favor by serving Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades from time to time.”
“As a driver?” She didn’t mean to sound so repulsed, but this seemed a menial task.
Antoni laughed. “Yes, but our kind are great builders and blacksmiths, too. We have crafted gifts for the three and shall continue.”
“But that was so long ago. Surely you have repaid their favor?” Persephone asked.
“When the God of the Dead gives you life, it is a favor that will never be repaid.”
Persephone frowned. “I don’t understand.”
“You have never been to Tartarus, so I don’t expect that you will.” He paused and added. “Do not misunderstand. My service to Hades is my choice, and of all the gods, I am glad to serve him. He is not like the other Divine.”
Persephone really wanted to know what that meant, because from what she knew about Hades, he was the worst of the Divine.
Antoni arrived outside her apartment and squeezed out of the driver’s seat to open her door.
“Oh, you don’t have to—I can open my own door,” she said.
He smiled. “It is my pleasure, Lady Persephone.”
She started to ask that he not call her that, but then realized he was using her title, as if he knew she were a goddess, yet she wore her glamour.
“How did you—”
“Lord Hades called you Lady Persephone,” he explained. “So I will, too.”
“Please...it is not necessary.”
His smiled widened. “I think you should get used to it, Lady Persephone, especially if you visit us often, as I hope you will.”
He shut the door and bowed his head. Persephone wandered into her apartment in a daze. This day had been long and bizarre thanks to the God of the Dead.
There was no reprieve from it, either, because Lexa stood in the kitchen when Persephone came inside and pounced.
“Uh, whose Lexus dropped you off in front of our lame apartment?” she asked.
She wanted to lie and claim that someone from her internship had dropped her off, but she knew Lexa wouldn’t believe that—she was supposed to be home two hours ago, and her best friend had just watched as she’d literally been chauffeured to their home.
“Well...you’re never going to believe this but….Hades.”
While she could admit to that, she wasn’t ready to tell Lexa about the contract or the mark on her wrist.
Lexa dropped the mug she was holding. Persephone flinched as it hit the floor and shattered.
“Are you kidding?”
Persephone shook her head. As she moved to grab a broom, Lexa followed.
“Like...the Hades? God of the Dead Hades? Owner of Nevernight Hades?”
“Yes, Lexa. Who else?” Persephone asked, irritated.
“How?” she sputtered. “Why?
Persephone started sweeping up the ceramic pieces.
“It was for my job.” It wasn’t technically a lie. She could call it research.
“And you met Hades? You saw him in the flesh?”
Persephone shivered at the word flesh, recalling Hades’ haphazard appearance. “Yeah.”
“What does he look like?” Persephone turned away from Lexa and grabbed the dustpan. She was also trying to hide the furious blush staining her cheeks. “Details. Spill!”
Persephone handed Lexa the dustpan and she held it as Persephone swept up the shattered mug. “I...don’t know where to begin,” Persephone said at last.
Lexa smiled. “Start with his eyes,” she said.
Persephone sighed. It felt intimate to describe Hades and part of her wanted to keep him all to herself. She was well aware she was only describing a toned-down version of the god because she had yet to see him in his true form. There was a strange anticipation that followed that thought, and she realized she was eager to know the God in his Divinity. Would his horns be as black as his eyes and his hair? Would they curl on either side of his head like a ram’s, or reach into the air, making him even taller?
“He’s handsome,” she said, though even that word didn’t do him justice. It wasn’t just his looks, it was his presence. “He’s…power.”
“Someone has a crush.” The smug smirk on Lexa’s face reminded Persephone that she was too focused on what the god looked like and not enough on what he did.
“What? No. No. Look, Hades is handsome. I’m not blind, but I cannot condone what he does.”
“What do you mean?”
Persephone reminded Lexa of what they’d learned from Adonis at Nevernight.
“Well, you could ask Hades about it.”
“We’re not friends, Lexa.”
They would never be friends.
Then Lexa got really excited. “Oh! What if you wrote about him? You could investigate his bargains with mortals! How scandalous!”
It was scandalous—not only because of the
content, but because Persephone was considering writing an article about a god, something very few people did for fear of retaliation.
But Persephone wasn’t afraid of retaliation because she didn’t care that Hades was a god.
“Looks like you have another reason to visit Hades,” Lexa said.
It looked like she did, and hadn’t Hades offered her easy access? When he’d pressed his lips to her forehead, he’d said it was for her benefit. She wouldn’t have to knock to enter Nevernight again.
She smiled.
The God of the Underworld would definitely regret meeting the Goddess of Spring—and she looked forward to that day. She was Divine, too. Though she had no power of her own, she could write, and maybe that made her the perfect person to expose him. After all, if anything happened to her, Hades would feel Demeter’s wrath.
***
On her way to class at New Athens University, Persephone stopped to purchase an assortment of bangles. Since she would have to wear Hades’ mark until she fulfilled their contract, she wanted to accessorize her outfits accordingly. Today she wore a stack of pearls, a classic touch to compliment her bright pink skirt and white button-up.
Her heels clicked against the concrete sidewalk as the university came into view. Each step meant time was passing, which meant an hour, a minute, a second closer to her return to Nevernight.
Today Hades would take her to the Underworld. She’d stayed up into the night considering how she was to fulfill their contract. She’d asked if he’d wanted her to plant a garden, and he’d shrugged—shrugged—that is one way, he’d said. What was that supposed to mean, and what other ways could she possibly create life? Isn’t that why he’d chosen this challenge? Because she had no power to fulfill the task?
She doubted it was because the Lord Hades wanted beautiful gardens in his desolate realm. He was interested in punishment, after all, and from what she’d heard and witnessed from the god, he did not intend the Underworld to be a place for peace and pretty flowers.
Despite how angry she was with herself and Hades, her emotions were at odds. She was both intrigued and nervous to descend into the god’s realm.
Mostly, though, she was afraid.
What if she failed?
No, she closed her eyes against the thought. She couldn’t fail. She wouldn’t. She would see the Underworld tonight and make a plan. Just because she could not coax a bloom from the ground with magic did not mean she couldn’t use other methods. Mortal methods. She would just have to be careful. She would need gloves—it was that or kill every plant she touched and while the garden ruminated, she would look for other ways to fulfill the contract.
Or break it.
She did not know much about Hades except what her mother and mortals believed about the god. He was private, he did not like intrusions, and he did not like the media.
He was really going to dislike what she had planned for today, and suddenly she had the thought—could she make Hades mad enough that he would release her from this contract?
Persephone passed through the entrance of New Athens University. It was a set of six columns crowned with a piece of pointed stone. Once inside, Persephone found herself in a courtyard. The Library of Artemis rose in front of her, a pantheon-style building that she had taken pleasure in exploring her Freshman year.
The campus was easy to navigate, as it was laid out like a seven-point star—the library being one of the seven points.
Persephone always cut through the center of the star, which was the Garden of the Gods, an acre of land full of the favored flowers of the Olympians and marble statues. Though Persephone had walked this path many times to class, today felt different. The garden was like an oppressor, the flowers, enemies, their smells mixing in the air—the thick scent of honeysuckle mingled with the sweet smell of the rose accosted her senses.
Did Hades expect her to grow something this grand? Would he really sentence her to life in the Underworld if she failed to deliver his request in six months?
She knew the answer. Hades was a strict god. He believed in rules and boundaries, and he’d set them yesterday, not even fearing the threat of her mother’s wrath.
Persephone passed Poseidon's pool, and a towering statue of a very naked Ares with his helm atop his head and shield in hand. It wasn’t the only statue of a naked god in the garden. Normally she gave it little thought, but today her gaze was drawn to the large horns atop Ares’ head. Her own felt heavy under the glamour she wore. She’d heard a rumor when she moved to New Athens that horns were the source of the Divine’s power. Persephone wished that were true. It wasn’t even about having power now. It was about freedom.
“It’s just that the Fates have chosen a different path for you, my flower.” Demeter had said when Persephone’s magic never manifested.
“What path?” Persephone asked. “There is no path, only the walls of your glass prison! Do you keep me hidden away because you are ashamed?”
“I keep you safe because you have no power, my flower. There is a difference.”
Persephone still wasn’t sure what sort of path the Fates had decided for her, but she knew she could be safe without being imprisoned, and she guessed at some point, Demeter had agreed, because she’d let Persephone go—albeit, on a long leash.
“Mother,” she said.
Demeter appeared beside her daughter. She wore a human glamour. It was not something she often did. It wasn’t that Demeter disliked mortals—she was incredibly protective of her followers—she merely knew her status as a goddess. Demeter’s mortal mask was not so different from her Divine appearance. She kept the same smooth hair, the same bright green eyes, the same luminous skin, but her antlers were veiled. She chose a fitted emerald dress and gold heels. To onlookers, she had all the appearances of a sharp businesswoman.
“What are you doing here?” Persephone asked.
“Where were you yesterday?” Demeter’s voice was curt.
“It sounds like you already think you know the answer,” she replied. “So why don’t you tell me?”
“Do not treat this with sarcasm, my dear. This is very serious—why were you at Nevernight?”
Persephone tried to keep her heart from racing.
“How do you know I was at Nevernight?”
Did a nymph see her?
“Never mind how I knew. I asked you a question.”
“I went for work, mother. I must return today, too.”
“Absolutely not,” she said. “Need I remind you a condition of your time here was that you stay away from the gods? Especially Hades.”
She said his name like a curse and Persephone flinched.
“Mother, I have to do this. It’s my job.”
“Then you will quit.”
“No.”
Demeter looked stunned, and Persephone was sure that in all her twenty-four years she’d never told her mother no.
“What did you say?”
“I like my life, mother. I’ve worked hard to get where I am.”
“Persephone, you do not need to live this mortal life. It is...changing you.”
“Good. That’s what I want. I want to be me, whatever that is, and you are going to have to accept that.”
Demeter’s face was stone cold, and Persephone knew what she was thinking—I do not have to accept anything but what I want.
“I have heeded your warnings about the gods, especially Hades. What are you afraid of? That I will allow him to seduce me? Have more faith in me.”
Demeter paled and hissed, “This is serious, Persephone.”
“I am being serious, mother.” She checked her watch. “I have to go. I will be late for class.”
Persephone sidestepped her mother and left the garden. She could feel Demeter’s gaze burning her back as she went.
She would regret standing up for herself, she was sure of it.
Question was, what punishment would the Goddess of Harvest choose?
***
Class went b
y in a blur of furious notes and droning lectures. Normally Persephone was attentive, but she had a lot on her mind. Her conversation with her mother was gnawing away at her insides. Though Persephone was proud she stood up for herself, she knew Demeter could whisk her away with a snap of her fingers, back to the glass greenhouse. She was also thinking about her conversation with Lexa, and how she could start research for her article. She knew an interview would be essential, but she wasn’t eager to be in an enclosed space with him again.
She was still feeling off at lunch, and Lexa noticed.
“What’s wrong?”
She considered how to tell her friend her mother was spying on her. Finally, she said, “I found out my mom’s been tracking me,” she said. “She...sorta found out about Nevernight.”
Lexa rolled her eyes. “Doesn’t she realize you’re an adult?”
“I don’t think my mother has ever seen me as an adult.”
And she didn’t think her mother ever would, evident by her use of the nickname Kore.
“Don’t let her make you feel bad for having fun, Persephone. Definitely don’t let her keep you from doing what you want.”
But it was harder than that. Obeying meant she could stay in the mortal world and that’s what Persephone wanted, even if it wasn’t as fun.
After lunch, Lexa came with Persephone to the Acropolis. She claimed it was to see where she worked, but Persephone suspected she wanted a glimpse of Adonis and she got one, because he intercepted them as they passed the front desk.
“Hey,” he said, smiling. “Lexa, right? It’s good to see you again.”
Gods. She couldn’t blame Lexa one bit for falling under Adonis’ spell. This man was charming, and it helped that he was remarkably handsome.
Lexa grinned. “I couldn’t believe it when Persephone told me she worked with you. What a coincidence.”
He looked at Persephone. “It was definitely a pleasant surprise. You know what they say, small world, huh?”
“Adonis, a moment?” Demetri called from his doorway. They all looked in his direction.
“Coming!” Adonis called, and looked back at Lexa. “Good to see you. Let’s all go out sometime.”
“Careful, we’ll hold you to that,” she warned.
“I hope you do.”
A Touch of Darkness (Hades & Persephone #1) Page 6
