After Life

by Jacquie Underdown

  “It reignited the feelings I have for him.” She didn’t look at Dionne’s face, afraid she’d lose the conviction in her voice. The words burnt like acid in her throat, but it needed to be said if her plan were to work. “He visited me in dreams—”

  “In dreams?” Dionne asked, an eyebrow raised.

  “He spoke so tenderly. And told me how much he wanted me back.”

  Theron sat rigidly, fingers gripping the arm rests until his veins rose on his strong forearms.

  Dionne stood then. Zoe took that moment to watch her. Though her face was a mask of impartiality, her body was giving away clues: the little tic at her jaw; the small beats of her fingers against her thighs as she walked stiffly across the room.

  Dionne stopped and peered at her. “He said those things to you?”

  Zoe nodded and closed her eyes. She pressed her fingers to her lips and sighed. “And when we kissed, he set my body throbbing with the need—”

  “You kissed?” she shrieked.

  Agnes and Darian watched Dionne with narrowed eyes.

  Zoe nodded. “I know that sounds like a betrayal, but you must believe me that I didn’t remember any memories of Theron. Don’t you think that means something? That I’d forget the man I was with and remember the man I left?”

  “I don’t think it means anything! Perhaps you’re over-reacting!” Dionne said.

  “I don’t think so. I can’t change who the heart desires to love.”

  Dionne nodded evenly, though Zoe saw the strain it was taking to do so in the tendons in her neck. “What does this mean?”

  “I know Marcus still loves me,” Zoe said quickly, passionately.

  “You know this, how?”

  “I recall every sensation of that kiss.” Dionne’s gaze was hard on her. Zoe met it head on. “The way he looked into my eyes, the sweet words he spoke in my ear…there was nothing but burning passion, exactly how it used to be between us.”

  Fleetingly, Dionne’s eyes narrowed and her lips turned up in a scowl. This was Zoe’s moment to drive in the final nail.

  “When he docks back here later, I’m going to confess my feelings. I think he’ll be happy. I think we’ll be happy together. I should never have hurt him like I did. He never deserved that.”

  With a flash, Dionne charged at Zoe, straddled her waist and gripped her hands hard around her throat. No breath, in or out, was allowed passage and all she could do was make little choking sounds. “You go near him and I’ll kill you!”

  Theron jumped to his feet, meeting Agnes and Darian, and yanked Dionne off Zoe.

  Zoe sucked in a deep breath and composed herself as best she could. In time, she managed to plant a smug smile on her face. “I can’t help the way I feel about him. I know he feels the same way about me. No one will come between us, not even you.”

  Dionne broke free from the others’ grips and rushed at her again. She slapped Zoe so hard her teeth rattled. “You interfering bitch. You always have been. You back off.” The gods gripped her again and tugged her away before she got another hand in.

  Violence hadn’t been witnessed for centuries and the gods’ eyes were round confused orbs. Even Zoe, who had spent the last seventeen years on Earth, found it difficult to stomach violence in this place that had epitomised peace for so many years.

  “Take your hands off me.” Dionne released a long, sharp scream so loud it blew the windows out with a loud crash. Gusts of salty river air rushed through. “So help me, you better let me go or reap the consequences.”

  Agnes and Darian backed away, but Theron still held her. He pulled golden chains from his pocket, and the others in the room gasped to see a relic from the past.

  But Zoe was grateful for the chains now, though she had fought Theron yesterday when he had suggested making a trip down to The Underworld’s Hell, Tartarus, to recover them.

  But he had won with his reasoning that of all the artefacts, the golden chains were not inherently dangerous or harmful, but useful. Forged from lead and turned by the alchemists of the past into indestructible gold, they were inescapable by even the strongest gods.

  Seeing how this intervention had played out, he had been right.

  Dionne struggled fiercely, kicking and screaming, but Theron skilfully wrapped the chains around Dionne’s wrists, binding her and locked them with his key.

  Dionne had told no one of her relationship with Marcus so as to reduce any suspicions, but that charade had left her exposed. If Marcus’s weakness was money, Dionne’s was her relationship with Marcus. She obviously loved and trusted him and would do anything to keep him, even expose herself.

  “Why do you care so much?” Zoe asked.

  “Because Marcus is mine, and you’ll have to fight me if you think that’s going to change.” She laughed derisively. “He doesn’t love you! He was playing you because he needed you restored as a god.”

  The god’s gasped. Zoe sighed with relief that this had played out even better than she had hoped. Her throbbing cheek, however—she would have liked to have avoided that. But after spending time on Earth, it was miniscule in comparison to what she experienced there.

  Zoe stood and shook her head. “I don’t believe you. I saw the way he looked at me. I felt his touch. You can’t stand here and tell me that’s not love. You weren’t there.”

  Dionne spat at Zoe’s feet, just missing her. Zoe briefly met Theron’s gaze, which was wild with an angry haze. Witnessing this and having to restrain his tongue, would be making him crazy. Theron wasn’t demonstrative of his emotions usually, except where Zoe was concerned.

  They’d not been pushed to the limits like this here since the new peaceful model was adopted, and Zoe wondered what it would take for any of them to break their oaths.

  “You’re delusional,” Dionne shouted.

  Zoe stepped closer, pushing as hard she could to get more information from Dionne. The more Dionne provided freely, the more the gods were then likely to believe what Zoe and Theron knew. “I’m delusional? Then why don’t you tell me why Marcus would want me to be restored as a god other than for us to be together again?”

  Dionne scowled, opened her mouth to speak, but jerked and looked at all the wide-eyed faces watching her. Only now had she recognised her own anger had swayed her judgement. Damn it. But Zoe believed Dionne had already said enough.

  “We ask permission to search Dionne’s room,” Theron said with a deep, commanding voice.

  Agnes shook her head, still dazed by what had just played out before them all. “What? Why?”

  “We believe she has contraband weapons. The night I was reincarnated, I was attacked by someone wearing the invisibility helm.”

  Zoe nodded. “We apologise for provoking Dionne this way, but it was the only way we could show you what type of goddess she truly is. We believe it was Dionne who attacked Theron and forcefully reincarnated him. Today, she showed us her true side, which is not unlike Zeus.”

  Dionne laughed manically, sickly sweet. “You’ve taken all this wrong. I was angry, that’s all.”

  “Agnes, please search her rooms. Then we’ll talk.”

  Agnes looked to Darian. “Fine. We’ll take a look.”

  Dionne struggled against her chains like a crazed bull. Theron pushed her backward until she fell seated in a chair, where, realising struggling wasn’t going to change her circumstances, she crumpled into it.

  Agnes and Darian marched off toward Dionne’s room, their footsteps echoing down the long hall.

  “You bitch,” Dionne hissed.

  Zoe stood before her. “I know what you and Marcus are planning. I don’t care what I have to do to stop you, but I’m not going to let you destroy this world or any other.”

  “Don’t. Underestimate. Me,” Dionne hissed through gritted teeth.

  A dismayed cry sounded from down the hall, followed by rushed footsteps. Agnes marched into the Great Room, holding a device in front of her. Long, sleek, glinting metal. Tears were pooling in her eyes, he
r lips were trembling. Her features drooped from disappointment. Darian stood beside her, frowning at the weapon, shoulders hunched.

  “The obliterator,” Agnes said.

  Zoe gasped. Even she hadn’t expected them to find something as horrifying as the obliterator. It was the only known weapon that could kill a god instantly—ending their immortality in a flash, wiping their soul from existence.

  The obliterator was what had killed her true parents and many of the other gods who had walked these halls for millennia. She stared at Theron, her courage faltering. Theron was shaking his head in disgust.

  Perhaps they had underestimated Dionne because, despite everything, Zoe never even imagined that she was in possession of this weapon. The invisibility helm, fine. It wasn’t necessarily dangerous in and of itself, but the obliterator had only one job—obliterate.

  A sickliness swirled in her gut as she saw the object swinging from between Agnes’s finger and thumb as though its inherent evil was contagious.

  Zoe needed to get to Marcus quickly to ensure that he was no longer a threat. But, at least, while Dionne was chained here, there was no chance of any cataclysmic event occurring on Earth.

  Anger chased away her shock. Leaning closer to Dionne’s face, she whispered, “I will never do your bidding. You would have to kill me first.”

  Dionne’s mouth curled at the corners—a mocking smile. “It will be my pleasure.”

  Zoe straightened and looked away, not willing to give her any more attention or time than she absolutely had to.

  “We need her completely secured,” Theron said, mustering Dionne from the chair.

  “The cells below are still functional,” Agnes suggested.

  Theron led Dionne out of the room, Darian flanking him. Zoe sighed, thankful they were not taking any precautions. As strong as Theron was, she knew what Dionne could do.

  Zoe spoke to Agnes quickly while she waited for Theron and Darian to come back. “I need to stop Marcus.”

  Agnes nodded. “Explain to me what you think they’re planning.”

  Zoe told her everything about the plan she and Theron had worked out, the relationship between Dionne and Marcus, and about Marcus’s greed for money and desire for power.

  She told her of the conversation she overheard alluding to a catastrophic natural disaster on Earth and the huge number of coins they would acquire by doing so.

  Agnes’s legs crumpled beneath her. Zoe caught her and staggered toward the chair where she gently placed Agnes down.

  When Agnes spoke, her voice was breathless and words were weak. “I thought that Dionne was enthusiastic about making money the official tender. She convinced me it was positive for Olympus. I see my naivety led me down the wrong path.”

  “It’s no one’s fault, Agnes. We were all fooled by them.”

  “Do what you need to do, but remember our vows. Don’t let this lead you or Theron astray. We have rebuilt this world on peace, it must remain that way.”

  Zoe nodded. “That’s why I’m doing what I’m doing. Maintaining what we have made here means more to me than anything. I want you to run an inventory of the weapons and artefacts. We need to know exactly what is missing. If Dionne had her hands on the obliterator, I can’t even imagine what else might be in her possession.”

  Agnes nodded. “I’ll do that immediately.”

  Zoe took Agnes in her arms then and hugged her tightly. She hadn’t had a chance to embrace her friend and be wrapped up in the gratitude she felt to see her again.

  “I missed you,” Zoe said, “And I’m sorry I haven’t been able to say that yet, but I didn’t know who I could trust.”

  Tears formed in Agnes’s eyes as she pulled away and smiled a watery smile. “I missed you too. And you can always trust me. Always.”

  Zoe nodded. “I know.”

  Theron was back with Darian.

  Zoe went to Darian and wrapped her arms around him. She kissed his cheek. “It’s so good to see you again. Hopefully soon things can go back to normal.”

  “I’m so sorry that any of this has even happened to you. If I knew the truth about Theron, that he wasn’t dead, I would have fought harder … I would have done something…”

  Zoe smiled up at him. “It’s in the past now. We’ve all been deceived here. Not just Theron and me. But we’ll fight now to make things right.”

  Darian nodded, his dark eyes bright. “Agreed. I’ll do what I can.”

  She went to Theron then and kissed him hard on the mouth.

  “Are you ready?” he asked.

  “As ready as I can be.”

  “Then do what you have to do. Be efficient. Keep your head about you.”

  “Aren’t you going to help her?” Agnes asked.

  Theron shook his head. “Only Zoe can do this next task.”

  Chapter 47

  Zoe walked through the darkened house. A mere presence; there was no solidity to her form here on Earth anymore. She lingered in the air like a faint scent.

  Nothing had changed in her childhood home since she was last here, but the warmth of love for her human family still existed in her heart.

  In Seth’s bedroom, she found both her brothers in the same bed. Watching them fitfully sleep, she knew they were here together for comfort.

  Her heart filled with a heavy sadness to see them like this and know it was because of her.

  Bending over her brothers’ sleeping bodies, she raked a hand through Seth’s hair and pressed a kiss to his forehead. “I love you. I’ll always look over you and when your time comes, I’ll be the one here to take you somewhere better.”

  Her throat squeezed tight as tears threatened. She moved around to the other side of the bed and kissed sleeping Braith’s face. “I love you. Please understand that I had to do this to save you.”

  Zoe wiped tears from her eyes as she let her gaze loiter on the big sleeping frames before shifting out of the room and down the hall.

  She hesitated at her parents’ door before entering the room. The light was on low, illuminating the room with a dim glow, shadows creeping along the wall.

  Mum was seated crossed-legged on her bed, crumpled tissues tossed about her. She was crying. Dad held his arm around her shoulders, rubbing her back. His own eyes were red raw and swollen.

  Zoe shifted closer and stroked a hand down her mother’s cheek. “I’m fine, Mum,” she whispered. “Don’t worry about me. I love you so much.”

  Mum lifted her head quickly, gaze darting around the room. “Did you see that?”

  Dad shook his head. “What? What was it?”

  “I’m not sure. I think I saw … Zoe. I heard her, but it was like a voice in my head.”

  Dad remained silent, probably too scared to dispute his wife when she was in such a state. Who was he to take her hope away?

  Zoe went to her father and kissed his head. “I love you, Dad. I’m going to make my kingdom a place you’ll be so happy to live in. I promise. I promise you all.”

  She turned away then and headed to the lounge room. Her conviction was stronger now; she was doing this for them as well as for her own future in Olympus.

  The hanging girl snapped her pale dead eyes open when Zoe entered the living room and started screaming for Zoe to help her. The rope creaked as her body gently swayed.

  No longer possessed of any fear or patience, Zoe yelled, “Shut up! There are bigger things at stake than you. You open your mouth again between now and The Underworld, I’ll bring you back here! Understand?”

  The girl pursed her blue lips and nodded.

  Zoe felt the contents of the pouch she had strapped around her neck by a thin leather rope, then took the girl’s hand. There was no time to waste.

  When her feet touched the powdery shore of the River Styx, Zoe’s adrenalin sparked. A small tremble had found its way into her hands. She hoped her plan would work because she had no backup.

  With the hanging girl trailing behind her, Zoe marched toward the river. The rickety boat
was sloshing through the gentle ripples of the silvery water.

  Marcus was standing, ore pushing in and out of the river, his coat flickering behind him as the atmosphere gusted his way. His ice-blue eyes were stoically hard as they held her gaze.

  Within a few moments, the boat pushed up onto the shore.

  “Not wasting any time, I see.”

  Zoe’s mouth was tight as she attempted a weak smile, but she forced her lips to do as she commanded. “I have a lot of time to make up for.”

  “You certainly do.”

  Zoe’s stomach squeezed with nerves. She couldn’t tell what was happening beneath that impartial expression of his. He was so cool, giving nothing away.

  She hoped he hadn’t learned of Dionne’s capture or suspected Zoe was about to fool him as well.

  “Glad to be home, Zoe?” he asked.

  She nodded.

  He smirked, his eyes flashing with mischief. “Enjoying your little reunion with Theron?”

  “Very much. Especially once I learned of the strange fact that he’s not dead after all.”

  Marcus laughed. “Ah, so you finally remembered that little tidbit.”

  “Among other things.”

  He stared at her for a long moment; she didn’t break eye contact, not letting him get the better of her.

  Marcus scowled. “I still don’t know what you see in Theron. How can any descendant of Hades be granted such power?”

  “You mean the power given to all gods?”

  “You know exactly what I mean.”

  “Jealous?” She wanted to bite her tongue the moment the question spewed from her mouth. She wasn’t here to fight nor to provoke him.

  Marcus laughed before stillness found him. He glared. “You’re no match for me. I may not be a god, but as a primordial, I deserve to be treated like one.”

  “Is that why you fuck gods?” she shouldn’t have said that, but anger was burning her up, and her mouth was saying things before her mind could filter.

  His head cocked to the side, one brow arched. “Now who’s jealous?”

  “Don’t flatter yourself. Theron is so much more than you ever were. Fit for a goddess, you could say.”