Eternal Night (Skeleton Key)

by Marian Tee

  “But Jason – wasn’t he purely human and his life a fulfillment of a prophecy?” one of the guests asked uncertainly. “He became the Argonauts’ lea---”

  “The point is,” Persephone said quickly, “I know in my heart I am the prophesied queen.” But in the event that she was not – no one would have to know that.

  In the end, the party ended at an artificially bright note, with everyone smiling and laughing even as their minds scurried about, wondering whom to believe.

  When everyone had left and Persephone was alone---

  She screamed. She screamed and screamed and thrashed every room in her home, tearing out curtains and throwing vases against the wall.

  Hades shouldn’t be allowed to marry that mortal, Persephone thought feverishly. She began to pace as she thought of a plan, knowing she had to act swiftly before she lost everyone’s respect. She would go back to Hades, make him think she loved him again, and get rid of the other girl. Once the threat was eliminated, she would leave him again.

  Persephone stalked out to the terrace and gazed into the horizon, knowing that far beyond it lay the dark and unseen kingdom of the Underworld.

  This plan would work, Persephone told herself. Whatever she did, it would always work because no matter what people thought – she, Persephone, daughter of the Olympian goddess Demeter, was the prophesied Queen.

  Persephone was one of their kind.

  The mortal was not.

  The Underworld would choose her over the other.

  It was always how things worked.

  “There you are.”

  Looking up at the sound of her voice, Hades found her hovering in the doorway, her long blonde hair tied in plaits and her curvy figure outlined in a pastel dress with yet another ridiculously low neckline.

  “Have you been looking for me?”

  She smiled brightly at the god of the Underworld. “In a way. I was actually just wondering what you’ve been doing.” She was determined not to let Hades know that she had worried herself sick wondering if he was avoiding her. It had been their first night together and she had woken up without him by her side.

  At first, she had told herself to be patient and tried to wait for him to come to her. But when lunch and dinner were served and she was forced to enjoy them alone, she knew that she had to find him.

  And now that she had---

  Are you avoiding me?

  Are you bored with me already?

  Are you wishing I’d leave now that you’ve had me?

  Those were the questions she wanted to ask, but her lips parted and closed without any words coming out.

  Feeling that an awkward silence was about to fall between them, Hades said with a smile, “You look beautiful in that dress.” He paused. “But don’t you think you’re showing a bit too much skin?” At her sheepish smile, he said dryly, “Let me guess. Hecate gave you that, and she made you think you had no choice but to wear it.”

  “She can be really persuasive,” she said defensively. “And besides, it’s not that bad, right?”

  “It’s not that bad as long as another man hasn’t seen it.” When she didn’t answer, Hades scowled. “Ever…”

  “It’s not my fault,” she blurted out. Hades’ castle had four towers, and the first three that she had explored just had to be the wrong ones. “I had to ask a lot of people before someone finally pointed me to the right way.”

  “Fine then.” He feigned a resigned sigh. “You are forgiven for this instance only, but the next time you show what is mine---”

  “I get it,” she said quickly, knowing by now that his threats were guaranteed to make her drown in embarrassment. And to prevent him from teasing her further, Ever changed the subject right after, asking, “Am I disturbing you?”

  Hades touched his chest as if wounded, saying gravely, “That you should even ask pains me, milady. My prophesied queen can never disturb me.” And he meant it. She could never disturb him. In fact, the opposite was true. She entertained him too much that the moment he woke up, Hades had deliberately kept himself away from her, wanting to make sense of how he was feeling.

  Before making love to Ever, he had thought that he would be able to always stay in control, had thought he would always be able to call the shots.

  But the second he had a taste of her body---

  It had become clear to Hades that it was not going to be as easy as he thought.

  With Ever still hovering on the doorway, he gestured for her to come forward, saying softly, “Come in, milady.”

  “Okay.”

  A smile tugged at Hades’ lips at her lack of hesitation, and as she turned around to close the door, Hades came to his feet.

  Turning around, she took one step and bumped straight into Hades’ powerful chest. “Hades,” she gasped. She knew she should be used to him transporting himself whenever and wherever he liked, but she wasn’t.

  “Sorry for surprising you,” he murmured while nibbling on her lips.

  She curled her arms around his neck, her eyes closing as she savored his kisses. When his tongue probed between her lips, she opened her mouth and his tongue slid in, the kiss deepening in an instant.

  Ever gasped when the god suddenly lifted her up in his arms, and then she gasped again when in the blink of an eye they were both naked.

  “H-how---”

  When her dazed eyes met his, Hades said with a smirk, “I’m a god. Have you forgotten?”

  Oh!

  It was such an arrogant thing to say, Ever thought helplessly, but it was also such a sexy thing to say because they both knew he wasn’t saying anything untrue. When he started to walk, she instinctively clung to him, arms tightening around her neck while her legs locked around his waist.

  “Where are you taking me?” she asked breathlessly.

  “You’ll see.” The wicked gleam was mesmerizing, making her pay little attention to where he was heading until she felt him stop before lowering her---

  Oh.

  She found herself laid on the table, her naked body spread eagled in front of the god of the Underworld like a virgin about to be sacrificed. It was such an embarrassing position to be in, and she immediately pushed herself up on her elbows, protesting, “No---” The rest of her words disappeared into a moan when he slowly ran his fingers down the valley of her breasts.

  His fingers continued its downward trail, all the way to the triangle between her legs. Her eyes flew to him when his fingers stopped above her core.

  “H-Hades?”

  Taking hold of her thighs, Hades slowly pushed her legs to open wider, asking, “Do you want me to take you with my fingers, milady?” He smiled at the way she buckled at the question, and looking down on her moist folds, he purred, “You’re wet.”

  “Stop s-saying something so embarrassing.” She squeezed her eyes shut even as she felt herself becoming even wetter at his words. Her folds were swelling beyond belief, and her clitoris was already tingling and throbbing even without being touched.

  “I want to take you with my fingers now, Ever. But I can’t do it without your permission.”

  “You already know,” she choked out, “what my answer is.”

  “But I must be cert---”

  Unable to wait any longer, her body on fire, she cut him off with a cry, “Yes.”

  In response, she felt Hades take hold of her hands and to her surprise, Hades pressed her hands to her legs.

  When her gaze searched his in confusion, he told her roughly, “Keep yourself open.” It was the only warning she received before three long hard fingers thrust inside her.

  Ever screamed, and her hands automatically pressed her thighs down to the table as they instinctively tried to close.

  Hades’ fingers worked fast and furiously inside of her, and soon she was gasping, her head tossing and turning on the table while her body slid up and down at the forceful thrusts of his fingers.

  “You look so beautiful, milady,” Hades growled. “So damn beautiful…”
His fingers pulled out, and Hades couldn’t help laughing hoarsely when she cried out in protest. “I just want to make it feel better for us.” With that, he clutched her legs and slid his cock into her.

  Aaaah. Ever found herself gripping the edges of the table as the god of the Underworld began to slowly and methodically plunge himself inside of her.

  No matter how she sought him to move faster and harder, his pace remained agonizingly slow, and the sexy, taunting smile on his lips told her he was enjoying every moment of torturing her.

  “Please,” she found herself moaning. “Please.” Even now, a part of her was reeling at how sadistic Hades was being, but she also knew that she had come to love this part of him and would not have Hades any other way.

  “Please what?” he crooned.

  “Y-you know!” Lifting herself up, she tried pulling his hips towards her, and as if rewarding Ever for her efforts, Hades made no move to stop her.

  Her fingers dug into the cheeks of his bottom.

  He raised a brow in front of her, as if asking, Now what?

  She pulled him hard towards her, and his cock thrust all the way into her womb.

  A whimper escaped her even as he hissed above her. A moment later, he removed her hands and tightening his hold on her thighs, he gritted out, “If you want it hard, milady…” Bending down, he took a nipple into his mouth and bit hard.

  She cried out, but his teeth didn’t let go, and tears stung her eyes as the pain of his kiss seemed to heighten the pleasure of having his cock pump into her. Over and over, he plunged into her relentlessly while his mouth continued tormenting her breasts.

  Ever gasped when he finally allowed her nipple to pop out of his mouth, but her relief was short-lived. As Hades straightened, he released her hips and her eyes widened when she realized where his hands were heading. Remembering how easily she had shattered when he started touching her sensitive nub, her breath hitched, and she whimpered, “H-Hades---”

  His thumb pressed hard on her clit.

  “Hades!”

  But it didn’t end there.

  As he pulled his cock out, one index finger slipped in, and a new cycle began, ensuring that there was not a single second she didn’t have something of him inside of her. It broke her with pleasure, drove her crazy, with both his cock and finger taking her.

  By the time her orgasm finally spilled out, she could only clutch at his shoulders, her hips jerking against his, and a second later, Hades joined her with a growl, and then he was spilling his seed into her---

  “Ever.” Hades couldn’t stop himself from saying her name as he shot his load into her, over and over until he had filled her completely and he felt his cum start to stream down her thighs.

  When it was over, both of them were panting, and with their bodies still joined, he carried her to the couch. He sat down, and her knees sank into the couch as she collapsed against him.

  The position caused his still-erect cock to push deeper into her---

  He groaned.

  She whimpered.

  “Please tell me you’re tired,” she pleaded.

  He bit her shoulder, and as she moaned, he whispered, “I hate to disappoint you…”

  She shook her head, saying faintly, “Hades, I can’t---”

  “But yes, I am.”

  A tired giggle escaped her even as she weakly thumped his shoulder. “Sadist.”

  They stayed like there for a long while, and she would have been content for them to be like that forever---

  Tick tock. Tick tock. Tick tock.

  ---if such a possibility was in the cards.

  But it wasn’t.

  Tightening her hold on him, she hid her face in the crook of his neck and whispered, “Can I ask you something?”

  “Of course, milady.”

  “What if the door I used to come here…disappears? Will I be able to come back here again?”

  Frowning at the suddenness of her question, Hades murmured slowly, “I’m not truly sure. Over the years, it’s become harder and harder to get mortals to come into our world.”

  “How hard?” she asked with a gulp.

  “You’re the first one to cross into our world in the last five hundred years.”

  “What?” She jerked against him in shock, causing his cock to slide deeper into her, and Hades sucked in his breath. His semi state of arousal reached a burning need to possess her again, and his hands moved to her hips.

  “Let’s talk later, milady,” he gritted out.

  She stiffened as she felt the god lift her off him. “H-Hades?”

  He answered her by pulling back down, and she shuddered in yearning despite the fact that she was still trying to catch her breath. Even so, she tried stopping him, stammering, “It’s too soon---”

  His hands tightened on her hips, and then he was making her bounce on top of his cock.

  Bloody…hell…it felt so good.

  Her head fell back.

  “Is it still too soon, milady?” he whispered huskily.

  She shook her head, choking out, “Don’t stop.”

  They came together one more time, but this time she was no longer able to open her eyes in the aftermath of her release.

  “Sleep, milady,” Hades said tenderly. Pulling her closer, he transported them back to his bedroom and laid her on the bed. The moment he joined her, she snuggled closer to him, and he stiffened, the broken part of him wanting to tear away---

  Before she could betray him the way his former queen did.

  “Hades.” She mumbled his name sleepily, and after one tense moment, he succumbed to the need to embrace her.

  “Stop thinking.”

  “The door...”

  “Don’t worry about it,” he murmured soothingly. “You can stay forever with me.”

  A sigh escaped her, and he felt her body relax against his. He was about to think she had finally fallen asleep when he heard her whisper his name one more time.

  “What is it?” He couldn’t help smiling as he spoke, thinking that she appeared to be more talkative asleep than when she was awake.

  “I love you.”

  Ah.

  He stroked her hair. “I know.” He closed his eyes and allowed his breathing to even out as if he were asleep. Minutes passed, and he bided his time, waiting---

  And finally he heard it---

  The swift intake of breath when one was holding back tears.

  Ever was not surprised at all when she woke up on her third day to discover Hades once again gone from her side. Sitting up, she grasped the skeleton key from the table---

  It took more moments for the door to appear this time, and as she had feared, it was almost completely closed. She glanced down at the skeleton key, its glass body so faded it was hardly visible to the eye.

  Not good, Ever thought numbly. This was not good at all, especially when she now knew that the god of the Underworld didn’t love her.

  So what now, Ever Carlisle?

  Tick tock. Tick tock. Tick tock.

  By the time she finished her bath, she had come to a decision.

  Even if he didn’t love her now, there wasn’t any reason why he couldn’t learn to love her, could there?

  Her glance strayed to the skeleton key. Thanks for coming to my life, Ever thought. She had no idea where the key came from, but at this point it no longer mattered. What did matter was that it had brought her here – and it was here she wanted to stay.

  “Good morning, milady.” An unidentified girl who looked to be in her early teens was waiting for her at the foot of the stairs, and Ever came to an awkward stop as she tried hard to place the girl’s name.

  “Shall I accompany you to the Great Hall for breakfast?”

  Ever cleared her throat. “I…uh…I’m terribly sorry for this, but I don’t recall your name.”

  The girl’s lips curved. “It’s me, milady.”

  Cringing, she said, “I really can’t remember.”

  “It’s me, Hecate.”r />
  Ever was startled. “Oh.” She blinked. “Another disguise?”

  The girl’s cheeks dimpled. “Is it good?”

  “Very,” she said feelingly. “But…why are you using a new disguise?”

  “For practice,” Hecate answered simply. “My skills will get rusty if I don’t use it from time to time.” She gestured to the Great Hall. “Shall we proceed, milady?”

  At her nod, they started to walk and Ever couldn’t help admitting with a grin, “I feel like I’ve turned you into a babysitter.”

  Hecate rolled her eyes. “A babysitter who can turn you into a frog with a blink of my eyes.”

  Ever stumbled at the threat and made a face at the way the goddess cackled. Considering Hecate looked no older than thirteen, it was extremely creepy and reminded Ever of the child from The Omen.

  As they took their seats, Hecate noticed the prophesied queen staring warily at her. Deliberately making her voice sound even more childish, she asked Ever, “What is it, milady?”

  Ever cringed. “Stop that.”

  Hecate stared dolefully up at Ever. “What do you mean?”

  Ever shuddered. “You’re giving me the creeps.” It was meant as an insult, but the way Hecate beamed told her she had failed.

  After breakfast, Hecate told her mysteriously, “I have a surprise for you.”

  “I don’t want to be part of your experiment,” Ever said right away, not liking the gleeful look on Hecate’s childlike face.

  “It’s nothing like that. I just want you to meet one of your future subjects.”

  Against her better judgment, Ever allowed herself to be led by the goddess, who used her power to transport them to a part of the Underworld that she had not yet seen. However, her surroundings still appeared familiar and after thinking hard, she exclaimed, “The Fields of Asphodels.”

  Hecate clapped her hands in childish delight. “You are correct, milady.”

  “But…” Ever’s brows furrowed. “Who did you want me to meet here?”

  Hecate grinned. “Why, the subjects who reside here, milady.” And in a confidential tone, she whispered, “They’re all around you.”

  Ever looked around her one more time. “I don’t see anyone.”