“What is all this?” I ask.
“A place to reflect. To wash away what ails you.”
I don’t believe him. As alluring as these new surroundings are, the overwhelming energy of the castle still screams death and deceit. The walls alone, though cleaner here, are eons old and etched by sorrow. They speak to my senses more strongly than any human ever has.
Hades circles around me, his bold survey of my figure obvious in the mirrors before us. “Too, it’s a place to celebrate and revel in one’s beauty. In your case, in all its earthly grandeur.” He sweeps his hand broadly, gesturing toward the display of mirrors. “You must enjoy it, no? Vanity is a Valari favorite, after all.”
I barely hold back the urge to roll my eyes. The design of the room makes such hideous sense now. What creation of Hades wouldn’t cater to a cardinal sin?
“I’m not like the rest of them.” The words hit the air like a reflex from years of believing the sentiment in the depths of my soul.
He quirks a brow. “No?”
“No.”
He reaches out boldly to toy with the ends of my hair. “You don’t appreciate these thick locks of hair?” Our gazes meet. “What about those eyes that arrow into one’s soul? Skin like spun silk. A body that millions covet. Some people would kill for what you have, you know.”
His eyes glimmer, like the prospect of that excites him. Murder in the name of envy.
“Luck of the draw, I suppose. None of it has any bearing on what truly matters. A truth my family has yet to realize.”
He chuckles at that. “Enlighten me, young Valari. What really matters?”
I swallow hard, wary to give him my answer but committed to the truth I know in every cell of my being. The truth that, in so many ways, keeps me sane through this very moment.
“Love,” I declare, firming my stance and raising my chin. “Love is always what matters most.”
His arrogant grin curls into an unattractive grimace. “Does it now?”
“I think so.”
No. I know so, but saying that out loud probably isn’t such a wise call right now. I’m challenging him when I’d be wise to make him think he has me under his spell.
“Love. That’s all of it?”
I cast a fast glance at him via the mirror. “That’s all there needs to be.”
“Then why is love so easily consumed by greed and power and pride and envy?”
“Why indeed—though I strongly suspect that might have something to do with you,” I snap.
Instantly I regret the words and the passion behind them. The feeling worsens as his nostrils flare and his gaze intensifies.
“I don’t create the darkness, Kara,” he utters, his voice low and dangerous. “I respect it. I see it for what it is.”
“You do more than that,” I accuse. “You give it power.”
He shrugs. “You could say I’m heavily invested in it. But it’s your human friends who power the engines of hate. Don’t blame me for their inherent weaknesses. I’m only here to collect the trash. It’s an unsavory task, but alas, the one I was given.”
Without another word, he strolls toward the tub. I follow, as if pulled by an invisible string behind him. Bending, he trails his fingertips across the glassy surface of the water, eliciting an eruption of steam from the fragrant water.
He turns on his heel, gazing directly upon me once more. “Anyway, perhaps it’s for the best that you don’t stay in the castle long. No doubt the others will soon resent you for the human beauty you retain here.”
True enough, every face I’ve seen except my captor’s has been gruesome to behold, distinct in deathly pallor and rotten flesh. So that must mean I’m not actually dead, though I’m not exactly part of life in its purest form either. But looking into the mirror gives me no easy or clear answers. All that’s changed on me is the red garment draped elegantly off my frame, replacing the expensive party dress I wore when Hades captured me.
Against my will, the backs of my eyes start to sting. Forever gone are the days of gowns and stilettos and servers with champagne. I never thought I’d be so mournful of it all, but I’d happily go back to mingling among the social sharks of LA if it gave me another chance at life. Any chance at life…
Hades makes a concerning point, however. I may be sheltered and protected until Persephone returns, but my appearance is bound to create problems as I journey to other parts of the underworld.
“You could change that. You could make me like the others.”
I swallow hard. Did I really just say that? Am I really considering relinquishing my earthly body to wear a face of the damned for the sake of survival?
“I wouldn’t dream of it.” Hades moves closer again until he’s only inches away. He draws the backs of his fingers down my cheek, following the line of my jaw down my neck, stopping at the collar of my robe. “I’m far too selfish to not want to look upon it every time our paths cross. Whether you end up in your family’s district or frozen in the ice beneath my feet, this is what I shall see. No matter what we do with you, whatever unending torment comes your way, nothing can mar this face. It’s mine, and so are you.”
I close my eyes, forcing away the truth in that self-imposed blackness. I’ll never be his. I’ve only ever belonged to one man…one god. Maximus. My lover, my hero.
Emotion burns thick in my throat to remember his touches, his love, his passion. More tears threaten. Tears I refuse to show Hades for the pleasure they’d give him.
“Come now. Open up. Look at me.”
I turn my head away, refusing his demand.
His sigh mingles with the quiet gurgle of water rolling into the pools. “Have it your way, then. Languish here as long as you’d like, and I’ll have you brought back to your chamber when you’re through.”
I release some tension, hoping he’ll soon leave me be. But when I open my eyes again, he hasn’t moved. The quiet but aggressive expression across his features hasn’t changed.
“Just remember, Kara, that everything you see…everything you are…all your gifts, all your extra senses…are mine.” He pauses, his eyes endless tunnels boring into mine. “Your time on earth was a privilege you never earned. You belong here and nowhere else.”
Chapter Four
Maximus
“You’re aware that it was easier to hear that you’re a bastard of Olympus in love with a demon than wrap my head around what you’re attempting here, right?”
Jesse backs up the charge with what must be his hundredth double take between me and the wrinkled paper brochure on his lap, fronted with a bold headline See Where the Stars Sleep!
I ignore him and keep going west, pushing the speed limit and testing the yellow lights.
He begins folding the map as the clubbing district gives way to wider streets and manicured greenbelts. “Hook a right on Roxbury.”
Very soon after I do, we’re rolling up in front of a sprawling Mediterranean complex fronted by an ornate iron gate.
He drums his fingertips on the center console. “What do you think?”
“I think we’re in the right place,” I say, putting the truck in park.