We Will Bleed

by Nicole Thorn

  Verin nodded. “Always. Of course, I didn’t think it would happen this soon, but whatever. We start off by finding my father. He can get us where we need to go. I’m crossing my fingers that he’ll help us out, which I think he will.”

  “Why?” Juniper asked.

  “Because my father was fucked over by the gods, and I don’t think he would appreciate them doing it to his son. Unlike Aunt Kizzy and Zander’s parents, mine gives a damn about me.”

  I flinched, but it wasn’t untrue. “Where do you want him to take us?”

  “Don’t worry about this. I have everything all planned out, and it’ll be fine. We just need to wait for a boat.”

  While we stood there, none of us changed positions. Juniper stayed with her legs around Verin while he held her, Zander had Jasmine held to his chest, and I had my arms around Jasper. I couldn’t picture having to let go of him, and I thought it might have killed me.

  When Charon came back around . . . he sighed at Verin. Sighed. “What the hell are you doing here?”

  Verin grinned at him. “I’m here to cause you trouble.”

  My eyebrows pressed together. “You know him?”

  “Of course, I do. He was at my birth, and he sends me a card every year for my birthday. He got me my second drum set.”

  The ferryman of the River Styx then pulled his boat along the side of the shore, sighing again at Verin. “You should not be here.” When people started trying to gather onto the boat, the man held his hand out, blowing them all back. They landed on various parts of the shore, most scrounging for coins that they dropped. “Wait until I tell you to come.”

  “Nice guy,” Jasmine whispered.

  Charon looked at all of us clutching the dead, and his eyes found Verin. “I don’t know what you think you’re doing, but I assure you, it’s not going to work out.”

  “It is,” Verin said. “You need to bring me to my father. Now.”

  “No.”

  “What do you mean no? I’m the son of Hades.”

  “Yes, and I am telling you no.”

  Verin sighed. “Is this because I didn’t pay you, you greedy bastard? You know I’m good for it, and you don’t spend that money on anything anyway. You row a boat all day. You have a coke habit I don’t know about?”

  “It is none of your business why I want the coins, and that has nothing to do with why I won’t help you. You are living, and in a place of the dead. Leave your loved ones, and go home.”

  That light of hope started to dim. Without the boat, we couldn’t get to Hades. The seers couldn’t come with us if we left to summon him, and that cut our options down. We needed to stay with them so that they wouldn’t get taken away.

  Verin looked at Juniper with a frown. “I’m sorry, luv, but I have to put you down.”

  She hopped to her feet happily, putting her hands behind her back. “No problem.”

  I watched the demigod walk closer to the boat, staring at the water that he said could have killed me. I wondered what it would have done to him. “I don’t want to be a dick,” he said. “But I will be if you don’t give me what I want.”

  Charon rolled his eyes. “You sound like your father and all the other gods.”

  “Yes, I imagine I do. You have ten seconds to agree to take us to my father, or I’ll start pulling souls out of the river.”

  My mouth popped open in surprise. “You can do that?”

  He smirked at me. “I can do that. These souls damned for all eternity, I can play with. Benefit of having power over the dead.”

  “What happens if you do that?” Jasper asked.

  Verin knelt down his hand hovering over the water. “They’ll be cursed to wander the shore instead of swimming in the river. On the shore, they can irritate Charon for all of eternity. The dead ask so many questions.”

  Charon’s eyes trained on Verin’s hand. “You wouldn’t . . . .”

  “I would. I really would. Ten seconds.”

  “Verin.”

  “Charon.”

  Ten seconds passed as the ferryman called Verin’s bluff. Only it hadn’t been a bluff, and he pulled out a screaming woman. He threw her to the shore and shook his hand out. “That tingled.”

  Juniper stared at him. “Let’s hope this doesn’t make you the next Iron Fist.”

  “I’m sorry I made you watch that.”

  “I am too.”

  The dead woman didn’t stop screaming, and I took her in. She wore ragged clothes utterly drained of color. I couldn’t tell anything else from them, like when she died. I couldn’t really think with all the screaming.

  “Want another?” Verin called out.

  Charon looked murderous, but he didn’t try and harm Verin. “You are the worst person I know.”

  “And you’re about to get another buddy if you don’t give us a ride.”

  Three seconds passed, and Verin’s hand went back in the river before Charon said, “Fine! Get in the boat.”

  I smiled, taking Jasper’s hand as we started walking.

  Verin set Juniper on the boat, and we all took our seats. Hers happened to be on his lap, while the rest of us only clutched each other. I mostly stared at Jasper, wondering if this would be one of the last times I saw him. Today couldn’t be the final day. I refused it. I made the choice to keep on living, but I needed Jasper for that. What would have been the point without him?

  We sailed past the parts of the underworld that I wanted nothing to do with. The Fields of Punishment and the Asphodel Meadows. We’d already passed Tartarus, and this river felt eternal. I wanted to go home, safe where the dead didn’t surround us. I kept forgetting that most of the people I loved were dead.

  “We’re close,” Verin said, pointing. “See the gates?”

  “Cerberus!” Jasmine exclaimed. “He’s so big!”

  We looked at the gates that blocked off where Hades and Persephone lived, and I indeed saw the puppy that we had to rescue not too long ago. Only he wasn’t a puppy anymore. Cerberus had been made his original size, and that happened to be about the height of our home. He laid there, a head on one of his paws as he slumbered.

  “Nooo,” Juniper whispered. “I don’t want to be anywhere near him.”

  “Sorry,” Verin said. “But he’s the only thing in the way of the gate.”

  Charon pulled the boat along the shore, and he gave Verin the dirtiest of looks. “I hope I never see you again. You aren’t getting birthday cards anymore.”

  “I’ll live,” Verin said, standing up with Juniper. “Thanks.”

  We all got out, hanging onto our dead seers as we approached a dog that I really hoped remembered us. The puppy had been so nice to us, but he also murdered a guy, so he couldn’t be trusted.

  “Cerberus,” Verin called. “Guess who’s home.”

  The dog opened all six eyes, staring at us. He growled for only a moment, and then recognized Verin. He leapt up, and the ground shook under us. The dog stopped in front of Verin, and then started licking his face.

  Juniper looked horrified. “You’ll need three showers before I let you touch me again.”

  Verin patted Cerberus’ middle head. “I need to get these people in to see Dad. You mind?”

  He patted a paw on the ground, and Verin gave him a scratch behind the ears. Then we were able to move past him, and Verin pushed the gates open. They looked solid before he touched them, so I didn’t know if that counted as another power Verin had, or magic I couldn’t see.

  The house looked a lot more modest than I would have thought. It was fucking huge, but more like a mansion than a castle. Other paths existed, but I couldn’t tell what laid beyond the house. I didn’t really want to. I needed him to be alive, and wandering wouldn’t get that done.

  “Do we just walk in?” Zander asked.

  “We do,” Verin responded.

  We approached the house, and then stepped inside together. I kept Jasper’s hand tight in mine as we appeared in a foyer with books everywhere. I almost wante
d to stop and look at them all, but we didn’t have the time. I mostly stared at everything with my eyes wide open.

  “Dad!” Verin shouted. “We need you!”

  I peeked into the room on the left, looking like a study. The one on the right might have been a library, but I couldn’t tell with what this room looked like.

  In seconds, Hades walked down the stairs that led up, and he didn’t look surprised to see any of us. Verin clearly got it from somewhere, and it only made sense that it would have been his father.

  When the man reached us, he said, “I’m sorry. I felt them cross over. If I knew this would happen, I would have warned you.”

  “I know,” Verin said. “But what’s done is done, and now I need something from you. If you’re willing. If you’re not, then we’ll only find another way to get it.”

  The man smiled. “Oh, I’m sure you would. What do you want from me?”

  I got scared then, because this was it. Either Hades agreed to help us, or he left us out to dry like all the other gods did. I wanted to believe that at least some of them cared about us and the humans. They had to, didn’t they? They couldn’t have all been so cold and selfish all the time. Hades cared enough about Verin’s mother to keep her taken care of, and I knew he wasn’t happy when she had been murdered. Would this be different? He didn’t look uncaring about what happened to us, so I prayed it would be enough to get us what we needed. If not . . . we would find a way.

  I huddled closer to Jasper, wishing he smelled like he did when he was alive. Now it all smelled like ice to me, and it felt wrong. His hand still felt the same, so I weaved our fingers together. I wanted to say I loved him, but I stayed silent.

  Confidently, Verin held his head high. “Dad, I need you to take us to the gods. I want a meeting with the Olympians.”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN:

  At this point, They can’t be surprised

  Jasper

  HADES’ EYEBROWS ROSE up, and he laughed. Somehow, even that sounded like it had an Australian accent. He took in his son, and then the rest of us, standing just behind Verin. Juniper kept her hand in his, quiet as could be, and confident in him like always. When I had seen the demigods coming for us, it actually surprised me. Not only that they had come to the Underworld. but that they had managed to find us at all. We had done a lot of wandering, and after a while, the shore looked the same, no matter how long you walked.

  Kezia’s hand tightened in mine, and I turned to stare down at her. Her eyes had been bright green when I saw her again, and I drank in that color, fearing I would never see it again. Just like I feared I’d lose her hand in mine. Kezia hadn’t stopped touching me since her arms had come around me at the edge of the river. As if she feared that I would float away if she let go, and I couldn’t blame for her that fear. Part of me believed that this entire thing would be a fruitless endeavor, and she’d lose me.

  That I’d lose the feel of her skin again, and I’d never get it back. I’d never feel her stretch against me in bed, or see her eyes. And if that happened, this last hour would feel like a betrayal. Like another level of hell, because how could the gods let me see her again, just to take Kezia away? If I hadn’t already died, I wouldn’t have been able to live through something like that.

  “You’re serious?” Hades asked. “Of course, you’re serious. And of course, Demeter’s daughter is here. You lot never know when to let someone go.”

  Kezia narrowed her eyes at the god, showing no fear. “Nope, we don’t. So, you should know that I’m not leaving this place until you give us what we want.”

  Even Zander, who seemed nothing like himself, straightened out. He didn’t say anything, but he offered the same strength that the other demigods had given.

  Hades sighed and waved his hand. “Calm down, calm down. I wasn’t saying no. Look, I am all for making all of the gods up there have a bad day, but do you really know what you’re asking me?”

  “Yes,” Verin said, still sporting his confidence like a badge of honor. “I’m asking you to take me to all the people you hate the most.”

  “I wouldn’t say that I hate them,” Hades muttered. “Just that I hold a grudge. Something that I’ve passed onto you, I’m afraid.”

  “It’s not a grudge when the person you hate keeps killing the people you love,” Jasmine said.

  Zander flinched, and held her closer, as if he could protect her from the thing that already happened. Jasmine let him, but her eyes filled with worry when she turned to stare at her boyfriend. Kezia’s hand tightened on mine. If I could’ve felt pain, I thought my hand would’ve been screaming by then. Instead, I only felt pressure, pushing my bones together.

  Hades looked at his son. “Do you know what you’re doing? What you’re really doing?”

  Verin nodded. “I know. I’ve been taught all the stories, just like everyone else behind me has.”

  “And you’re still willing to do this?” Hades asked. “Because they will show no pity on any of you. It doesn’t matter whose blood you have running through your veins, everyone is the same to them. They have no loyalties to anyone but themselves.”

  Verin said, “I know.”

  “You do,” Hades agreed, and then turned to look at the rest of us.

  Juniper said, “I’ve never trusted any of you, to be fair.”

  Hades laughed and rubbed his eyebrow. “I remember. You nearly fainted when you met me, and you wanted nothing to do with my son over here. But what about the rest of you. Do you truly understand what the gods think of you?” He directed the question to all of us, but I couldn’t help feeling like he only wanted the answer from Kezia and Zander.

  Jasmine nodded anyway. “Yeah, I know that while meeting the gods is super awesome, it’s also nothing to them. I am nothing to them.”

  “I know what they are,” I said, my voice low. Everything they did to Kezia told me what kind of people they were. Her own mother couldn’t have been bothered to come down and save her. She only got involved when Zander left some bodies behind, and their children needed to be moved to keep the secret underground. Then, for the rest of Kezia’s life, her mother would only pop in when Kezia called her, begging for help that she wouldn’t get. Her mother never came down to tell Kezia that she loved her, or that everything would be fine. Demeter never bothered to care about Kezia. Especially not when Persephone roamed around topside, giving her mother attention.

  So, yeah, I didn’t expect the Olympians to do anything for us but cause more pain. They had proven time and again that we mattered so little to them . . . That Kezia and Zander mattered so little. Their mothers had gotten bored one day and decided to have some children.

  Hades turned to look at Zander. His shoulders straightened, and when he spoke, he did so in a low growl that would’ve scared anyone alive. “You don’t have to worry about me forgetting that.” He stared at Jasmine after he said it, and I knew that he would never be able to forgive his mother for that, if nothing else.

  “Me neither,” Kezia agreed, her hand tightening on mine. I turned to look at her, and worried about how she felt, and what she thought. I wanted to drag her off to a room, so that the two of us could talk, hash everything out. I needed to know what she felt, and I couldn’t know. Maybe ever, if this meeting went the way that I thought it would.

  Hades nodded and looked up at the ceiling. “I’m going with you, because I don’t trust those bastards.”

  “The sods won’t get the best of me,” Verin promised. “Don’t you worry.”

  “Not that we wouldn’t appreciate your help,” Jasmine said, shooting a look at Verin.

  The demigod shrugged. “Fine, it can’t hurt, I suppose. Hang on tight, luv, we’re going somewhere.”

  “Huh?” Juniper said.

  Everything went white. If my heart still beat, it would have started drumming out of my chest. My mind started shooting in a thousand different directions, thinking that I’d come to in the underworld again, with my sisters. That this would all be some dream,
meant to trick us, or hurt us. I didn’t even know what to worry about anymore. It felt like anything could happen, anything could swoop in, and ruin my life even more.

  The white dissipated, allowing my normal vision to return. Before I could see clearly again, Kezia jumped on me. I knew it was her, because of the strength she used to hold onto me. I put my hands on her arms and blinked the last of the white away. A demigoddess had attached herself to my chest and stared around us with wide eyes. I didn’t think she’d let go of me any time soon.

  “Seriously, Hades?” a familiar voice said. “You can’t leave well enough alone?”

  “So sorry that I care about my child,” Hades said on a sigh.

  “We all care about our children,” another, deeper voice said. “However, most of us are smart enough to leave them where they belong.”

  “Fuck you,” Hades said, grinning.

  With Kezia still attached to me, I turned around to stare at a roomful of Olympians. Athena, the familiar voice, sneered. “That’s such an original comeback. Thank you for gracing us with your presence. I can’t believe that it’s been so long since we’ve last seen each other. How did I get through the days?”

  “I don’t know,” Hades said, smoothing down his shirt. “I know that most women can’t resist. Right, Mummy-in-Law?”

  “I hate you,” Demeter said.

  “So that’s where Verin gets it from . . . ” Kezia whispered.

  “I am a delight,” Hades said, looking back at Kezia.

  “Kezia,” Demeter said, stepping forward, with her arms out. “I’m so sorry.”

  My girlfriend shrank away from her mother, pushing into my chest. I put my arms around her and tucked my face into her neck.

  Demeter stopped, dropping her arms. “I understand that you must be upset with me—”

  “Do you” Kezia asked.

  Demeter’s eyes went from bright green to black in a second. She looked down at the ground and whispered, “Of course I do. I didn’t want you to lose your Jasper. If I could have done something to prevent this from happening, then I would have.”

  “You could have done something. Anything, really,” Kezia whispered. “You could have warned us, at the very least. Maybe we could have stopped it from happening then.”